Charleston, SC. The Charleston Battery heads to Portland, OR Thursday for a 10 PM match versus the Portland Timbers (REAL 1340 AM). On Saturday night Charleston takes on the Minnesota Thunder in St Paul, MN at 8:05 PM (REAL 1340 AM) to close out its 2008 away schedule. The Battery (10-10-7, 37 points) enters the week in sixth position in the USL First Division; the top seven sides earn post-season berths and a win in either fixture would guarantee Charleston a top seven finish.

Charleston is winless in the league since August 3 and has only registered one league road victory this season, a 1-0 win versus Rochester on May 17. The Battery holds the best home record in the league with nine wins but has thus far been unable to replicate its home form on the road.

Both matches this week will be critical in deciding playoff berths, Portland (7-11-10, 31 points) is in 9th position while Minnesota (8-11-9, 33 points) is in the crucial 7th spot.

Charleston will be looking to rebound from a tough week that saw the Battery fall 2-1 to MLS’s DC United in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup final on Wednesday night and then lose 3-1 to the Carolina RailHawks on Saturday.

Defender Marco Reda should be available for selection after serving a one-game suspension that ruled him out of last Saturday’s match with the RailHawks.

The Battery has played Portland twice already this season winning 2-0 at Blackbaud Stadium on July 19 (Darren Spicer, Stephen Armstrong) and tying 1-1 at PGE park in Portland on August 9 (Lazo Alavanja).

Portland enters the game on the back of a 2-0 loss suffered in Montreal on Monday evening. The loss means that Portland cannot catch the Charleston Battery in the USL tables.

The Timbers are led by forward Chris Brown who scored eight goals and added two assists in 25 games played. Portland’s roster includes former Charleston Battery players, Byron Alvarez, Chris Bagley and Tim Karalexis.

Last Road Matches
Battery vs Timbers
Thursday, September 11
PGE Park – 10 PM (REAL 1340 AM / USLLive.com)

Battery vs Thunder
Saturday, September 13
National Sports Center - -8:05 PM (REAL 1340 AM / USLLive.com)
Final Home Game
Battery vs Islanders
Friday, September 19
Blackbaud Stadium – 8 PM (FOX Soccer Channel)
$5 - $15, 971-GOAL / charlestonbattery.com