ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (July 14, 2017) — The Tampa Bay Rowdies led Orlando City B for the majority of Thursday night’s clash, but were pulled back by a penalty in the sixth minute of stoppage time to split the points with a 1-1 draw.
Here’s Three Things from the match…
1. Pato’s Magic
Tampa Bay Rowdies forward Martin Paterson scored his fourth goal of the season in the 21st minute, receiving a pass from Joe Cole and hitting a left-footed shot past Earl Edwards Jr. to put Tampa Bay ahead 1-0 early.
It was a redemptive moment for Paterson, who played for Orlando City in 2015 but was released after just four appearances.
2. Orlando gets a late penalty
Orlando City B was on the verge of beating beaten at home, only for a lifeline to be thrown in the fifth minute of stoppage time in the form of a penalty kick.
Rowdies fans would’ve been frustrated by the end of the match even before the penalty kick, due to the minimum of seven minutes of stoppage time allowed by center referee Kevin Broadley. The second half didn’t feature any abnormal stoppages, with the fairly-standard six substitutions and a few injury delays like the average match.
The match arrived in the second minute of stoppage time with the Rowdies still ahead 1-0 and Darwin Jones on the break before a last-man foul from behind committed by Paul Clowes. As the Rowdies screamed for a red card, Broadley instead opted only for a caution.
The crescendo continued to build in the fifth minute of stoppage time when Richie Laryea got goal-side of Rowdies defender Darnell King near the byline. King went to ground made contact with Laryea, allowing Broadley to emphatically point to the penalty spot, where Danny Deakin would bring Orlando a point.
“We had a bad giveaway and we put Darnell in a footrace with a very, very quick player,” Rowdies Head Coach Stuart Campbell said. “(Laryea) got goal-side and Darnell went to ground and gave the referee an opportunity to give Orlando a penalty kick. … I can’t help but feel we shot ourselves in the foot. It came from us and it could definitely have been avoided.”
3. A word on injuries
All three of the Rowdies’ substitutions were forced by players picking up injuries or knocks, with Keith Savage, Martin Paterson and Joe Cole all leaving the match in the second half. The extent of their injuries aren’t known yet.
With several players potentially going down injured, Tampa Bay did receive a boost from the return of Justin Chavez, who replaced Savage in the 60th minute.
Chavez had not appeared since May 19, when he was forced out of the first half of a match against Toronto FC II with a toe injury that sidelined him for nearly two months.
Prior to his injury, Chavez had started five of six USL matches for the Rowdies and established himself as a calming influence in midfield, so his return is a welcome one.
