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March 12, 2001
Signing of "Marvelous" Mercy Akide fills
final foreign allowance for San Diego Spirit
San Diego Spirit
added Nigerian forward Mercy Akide to its roster, bringing the number
of players currently in training camp up to the league maximum of
28. She becomes the only African player in WUSA. As top female striker
in Africa, Akide helped lead Nigeria to suprising success in recent
years.
Akide had a trial at San Diego's local tryouts in early February
and with her play, convinced head coach Carlos Juarez that she was
worthy of the Spirit's final (of four) international roster spots.
She came to terms on a contract with the WUSA last week and played
against the Atlanta Beat yesterday in the first-ever promoted WUSA
exhibition match, scoring a goal in the Spirit's 3-2 loss.
"Mercy is
an instant offensive threat," said Juarez. "She's a skillful, smart
player who has a lot of flair and creativity. She will definitely
be a good compliment to our players."
She has played
approximately 60 times for the Nigerian National Team, scoring around
35 goals.
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