News

The Rowdies returned to practice with a two-hour training session Tuesday morning at Shimberg Fields. Tampa Bay heads to Carolina to face the RailHawks this Saturday, August 4 at 7:00 p.m. after winning seven of its last eight matches. The Rowdies defeated FC Edmonton 1-0 last Saturday night at Al Lang Stadium, extending their winning streak to three consecutive games.

Head coach Ricky Hill said the team’s defensive performance has really helped the recent success.

“It is a great feeling for us in regard to being able to maintain clean sheets,” said Hill. “All credit goes to the whole side, in particular Jeff (Attinella) and the back four, who are the immediate defenders. We are defending slightly higher up the field in critical moments so they are not getting into our box as often and we are not looking as vulnerable. It is something that we keep working on in training.”

Tampa Bay worked on build-up play during this morning’s training session, looking to increase the intensity as the week goes on.

“It was fairly hot again so we had a pretty tough morning in respect to the content of the training,” said Hill. “We had quite a bit of ball work and then we went into a structured game with different rules at different times. Again, because of the heat, I have to be careful about having the players out there for too long and obviously dehydrating. We worked hard over a good period of time and now they have to continue with the intensity at training, looking ahead to Saturday’s game at Carolina.”

Tampa Bay currently sits in second place in the NASL standings, just two points behind league leaders San Antonio. The Rowdies travel to Carolina this Saturday, August 4. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. and fans can watch the match at the Official Away Game Viewing Party at Crowley’s Downtown Grill and Bar (269 Central Avenue, St. Petersburg, FL 33701).

Tampa Bay returns home to face Atlanta on Saturday, August 11 at 7:30 p.m. at Al Lang Stadium in downtown St. Petersburg. The third annual Rowdies Buick/GMC Celebrity game will take place at halftime. For tickets, call 813-287-1539 or click here.