The “Fab Four” made a visit to St. John’s on Saturday, May 20 – not for a concert but for a charity soccer match.

This group of famous performers was composed of Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy, Kristine Lilly, and Joy Fawcett, all Olympic gold medalists and members of the 1999 Women’s World Cup Championship soccer team.

They joined together with select St. John’s women’s soccer alumni to face off against the FDNY Soccer Club, a team of firefighters from all five boroughs of New York City.

The match fittingly ended in a 3-3 tie, making both sides winners. The men held the game early, scoring two goals within the first 15 minutes courtesy of Tom Hunt and Tom Meagher.

Several impressive saves were made by goalkeeper Jason Hickey to keep the women off the board in the first half.

In the second half, the women came alive. Joy Fawcett scored two goals and Tom Meagher scored one more. The final goal came from Julie Foudy, making a trick bank shot off the goal post, back to her and into the goal.

The “Bravest” men displayed a couple of good keepers in Hickey and Larry Quinn, allowing only three goals in 26 shots and making 11 saves. The “Best” women saved only six but allowed only 13 shots.

Mia Hamm played for most of the game but did not score a goal. She was, however, a hit with the crowd, who cheered for her throughout. She had an assist on one of Fawcett’s goals.

The event raised awareness and funds for the Firefighter Sergio G. Villanueva Soccer Foundation, which was created for Villanueva, a firefighter and member of the FDNY Soccer Club that lost his life on Sept. 11.

Phillips Electronics hosted the match as part of a commitment to U.S. soccer. They will also be sending the FDNY Soccer Club to Europe where they will take on their German counterparts during the 2006 FIFA World Cup.