A debut a decade in the making took place on Saturday night when Homegrown defender Frankie Westfield started at right back for the Philadelphia Union in their 4-2 season-opening win on the road.
The Philly born and raised 19-year-old, who's been part of the organization since joining the junior academy at nine years old, played 88 minutes against Orlando City, recording three blocks and five clearances in that span. He even claimed his first career assist, finding Tai Baribo for the team's fourth goal of the night.
“I’m truly blessed. I just want to thank God for giving me this opportunity and blessing to step on this field today. I want to thank Coach Bradley, for the trust he's given me throughout preseason and especially today,” Westfield said on the field after the final whistle.
“A special day, special moment, and I’m very happy with the result as well.”
After an offseason of change for the club, the moment was a massive one. The matchup marked the Union’s first game under Bradley Carnell’s leadership, and Westfield was one of four players to make their Union debut.
He may have been the youngest Union player to see the pitch that night, but the opportunity is one that Carnell said he’s been sure Westfield was ready for since the team’s two-week training stint in Marbella, Spain in January.
“He's just shown commitment to the process. He's committed to the principles. We always said, you commit to the principles, this game model will reward you,” Carnell said after the match.
"I'm happy Frankie, he gets himself an assist as well. So what a memorable day for him and his family.”
Last season with Union II, Westfield started a postgame win tradition on the team's social channels, and he brought it over to the first team for the first time as shown in the video below.
In the locker room after the match, Carnell started a new postgame tradition of his own, awarding Westfield with a game ball in front of a packed locker room that met him with supportive applause.
“This means everything,” Westfield said to his teammates.
“We scored four goals after that preseason. I just want to say, thank you for trusting me. First start, first win of many, and I’m excited for the rest of the season. Thank you guys.”
