After flying home from Atlanta on Sunday, the Rowdies returned to practice with a two-hour session Monday morning at Shimberg Fields.
Tampa Bay has gone unbeaten in its last three matches and stands in a three-way tie for second place in the North American Soccer League standings. Head coach Ricky Hill says he sees several positives from his club after four games.
“Looking at the manner of how we have played in the games, I think we are playing a very attractive style of football," said Hill. "It is a brand of football that has created quite a few chances and unfortunately we haven’t capitalized on those opportunities in all the games that we’ve played."
Forward Daniel Antoniuk, who joined the team this offseason, has seen action in all four matches off the bench and is tied for the team lead with three points with fellow striker Tsuyoshi Yoshitake.
“You always want to start, but you want to try to help the team any way you can," said Antoniuk. "I trust Coach and what he is doing, and I am just trying to make an impact as much as I can when I get on the field."
The duo has already teamed up for two goals this season, with Antoniuk assisting on Yoshitake's game-tying goal last Wednesday against Carolina and Yoshitake returning the favor with a perfect pass to Antoniuk for his goal Saturday night in Atlanta.
"It is a team game. Yoshi was there last game to put the header away and then he played a perfect cross to me on Saturday and I had the easier part of just knocking it in right in front of the net," said Antoniuk. "There are a lot of positives. We are getting chances and just need to finish more of these chances, and I think we’ll put more of these games away to get more wins."
The Rowdies return to action this Saturday, April 28 when they resume their rivalry with the Ft. Lauderdale Strikers at 7:30 p.m. at Al Lang Stadium in downtown St. Petersburg. Tickets are available by calling 813-287-1539, via email at tickets@rowdiessoccer.com or by clicking here.
"We are in a good frame of mind, but disappointed that we didn’t get the three points on Saturday, but it is our third game where we managed to be unbeaten and we want to continue that run with Saturday’s game against the Strikers.”
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