If you look back at the last time the San Jose Earthquakes and Chicago Fire played each other, the last thing you’d likely remember is the score. As 18,000 eager fans piled into the brand new, state of the art Avaya Stadium for it’s first match, the sentiment wasn’t lost. Finally we have a home to call our own.
After bouncing around from San Jose State University’s Spartan Stadium to Santa Clara University’s Buck Shaw Stadium for years, the community came together to celebrate a myriad of firsts: the first cloud-enabled professional sports venue, the largest outdoor bar in North America and, most importantly, the Bay Area's first-ever soccer-specific stadium.
The team that took the field on that sunny Sunday in March of 2015 looked strikingly different than those that have played at Avaya Stadium this season. Names like Ty Harden, JJ Koval and Paulo Renato have been replaced by the now familiar Chad Barrett, Anibal Godoy and Alberto Quintero.
Current Earthquakes playmaker Quincy Amarikwa also made his Avaya Stadium debut that day, but on the other side of the field. The former Fire forward, who was traded to the Quakes a couple months later, started and played most of the match and inadvertently gave fans a look at what’s to come.
The Quakes didn’t waste any time giving the sold-out crowd something to cheer about. Just five minutes into the match, rookie midfielder Fatai Alashe headed home the first goal in the stadium’s history and the first of his career, creating a roar that the city of San Jose would become familiar with hearing. Harden doubled their lead quickly after en route to the 2-1 win. The rest was history.
The inaugural game started a winning standard that would continue throughout the year and into this season at Avaya Stadium. The losses that would follow were few and far between and the fans would grow accustomed to seeing their team shine at their new home. Several new heroes found their way into the spotlight at what has become the Earthquakes fortress and there are sure to be more to come.
In their first matchup against the Chicago Fire since the landmark occasion, the Earthquakes are searching for a new first: their first road win of the season. With new players added to the fold and memories of that first game at Avaya in tow, they’ll look to return to their winning ways at Toyota Park.
