Matchday 6 Info:
Tampa Bay Rowdies vs Charleston Battery
Wednesday, April 12, 7:30 p.m. ET
Al Lang Stadium, St. Petersburg, FL
Tickets also available at the stadium box office starting at 4 p.m. on matchday.
Matchday Special: $3 Bud Light Beer
Watch: Stream the match on ESPN+. International viewers can watch the match Youtube.
Fresh off their first win of the campaign on Saturday night, the Rowdies are back at Al Lang Stadium this Wednesday night to face the Charleston Battery. Tampa Bay found themselves on the losing end of a 3-0 road result to the Battery only a few weeks a go. The Battery, who head into this week’s matchup, as the only Eastern Conference side without a loss in their ledger.
“They’re a team that have started the season very well,” said Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins. “… It’s a good challenge for the boys to go and get another win. It’s not so much about getting revenge for something that happened two or three weeks ago. It’s about going and putting the performance in for the here and now and getting three points on the board”
100 for Guillen
Wednesday’s match will be memorable one for center back Aaron Guillen, who will be making his 100th appearance for the club. It’s no surprise at all to see Guillen reach 100 for the Rowdies. Now in fourth season with the club, Guillen has led the team in minutes played in two of the last three years.
“It’s a great honor to represent the Rowdies in a hundred games now,” said Guillen. “It’s an unbelievable feeling. It’s the first time that I’ve been able to do it in my career. This is the longest I’ve been at a club for.”
Guillen is the fourth Rowdies player in the last three seasons to reach the 100 appearances club, following Sebastian Guenzatti, Leo Fernandes, and Lucky Mkosana. However, Guillen is the first player signed recruited and signed by Collins to reach the milestone. The veteran defender wore the captain’s armband for a bulk of last season and has taken on the role fulltime this campaign.
“Aaron is certainly talented, but it’s his character and personality that set him apart,” said Collins. “He’s always up for a challenge, always available, always up for the battle. His consistency in his time at the club’s been great. I this is just another appearance of many for the club. He’ll be eager to have a fantastic 100th appearance and mark it with a win.”
A Night of Firsts
Along with the Rowdies registering their first victory of the season, the Green & Gold had a few notable firsts in their 2-0 win over Miami FC.
Keeper Connor Sparrow earned his first start of the season, helping the Rowdies secure their first shutout with three saves.
Newcomers Felix Schröter -making his first start of the season – and Cal Jennings both notched their first goals for Tampa Bay. Not only did those goals snap a two-match scoreless streak for Tampa Bay, it’s also the first time the Rowdies have tallied multiple goals in a match this year.
Milestone Tracker
- Aaron Guillen and Yann Ekra are nearing their 100th appearance for the Rowdies. Guillen stands at 99 appearances, while Ekra has 98 appearances heading into Wednesday.
- Yann Ekra is nearing a major USL Championship milestone. With 250 regular season appearances, Ekra needs two more appearances to surpass Dane Kelly as the league’s all -time regular-season appearances leader.
- Forrest Lasso is nearing his 150th regular-season appearances in the USL Championship. Lasso currently has 149 appearances under his belt.
- Lucky Mkosana is two goals away from his 50th regular-season goal in the USL Championship.
Injury Report
OUT: Leo Fernandes (Achiles/Out for Season)
QUESTIONABLE: Jake Areman, Zach Herivaux
