Matchday 8 Info:
Tampa Bay Rowdies at Detroit City FC
Saturday, April 29, 4 p.m. ET
Keyworth Stadium, Detroit, MI
Watch Party: Catch the match at the Rowdies official Watch Party at Big Storm Brewing’s Clearwater taproom starting at 3:15 p.m. ET. All fans in Rowdies gear can enjoy $1 Bay Beer throughout the match and will receive one free shot for every Rowdies goal scored. Learn more and RSVP Here.
Stream: Fans can stream the match on ESPN+.
The Tampa Bay Rowdies return to USL Championship action this Saturday with a trip up to Detroit City FC. Both sides will be eager to take all three points out of Saturday’s contest in order to start climbing up the Eastern Conference standings after sluggish starts to the campaign.
It’s just the second time in club history the Rowdies have made the trip to Detroit’s Keyworth Stadium. Tampa Bay were just a handful of minutes away from taking a point back home from Detroit in last year’s trip to Keyworth, but an 88-minute concession allowed the hosts to secure victory.
“Last year I felt we handled the environment pretty well and just fell a little bit short,” said Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins. “That’s the kind of environment where that can happen. A 50-50, a quick bounce of the ball here or there. We need to make sure we implement our game on them and then I think when those 50-50s start going in your favor, you force the issues. Having been there before will help, but the most important thing is the attitude we take in. If you take the right attitude and intensity, we’ll see another positive performance.”
Conceding late in halves has been a trend the Rowdies will be looking to stop quickly. Including Wednesday’s U.S. Open Cup loss to Houston, the Rowdies have now conceded in the dying moments of the first half or stoppage time of the second half in three straight matches.
“It’s about being tuned in and focused for the 90 minutes.,” said center back Forrest Lasso. “There’s a statistic that most goals are scored in the first five minutes and the last five minutes of the half, so during those 20 minutes of a football game it’s super important to be locked in and concentrated on those smallest details because one simple mistake or one transitional moment can put you down a goal heading into the locker room.”
Taking the Positives Out of Open Cup
Although the result did not go in their favor, the Rowdies put in a performance against Houston Dynamo FC in the U.S. Open Cup that was closer to what fans have come to expect from the Rowdies over the last several seasons. For Collins, it all came down to one aspect of their game – intensity.
“More, more, more of that. Better of that,” said Collins. “To be perfectly honest, it’s obviously been a tough stretch. We’re constantly working so hard. The players are working so hard. The one thing that has got to be when you play for the Tampa Bay Rowdies is intensity. It doesn’t matter what you do, what formation, where you’re playing. If you don’t bring the intensity, you can’t play the way we want to play. Against Houston we brought the intensity. It was a much improved performance. More of that and we can work on other things. Will it guarantee a result in Detroit? It’s always very difficult. I guarantee if we play like that the rest of the season, we’ll win more than we lose.”
Spaulding’s Integration
A week into in tenure as a Rowdies player and Ryan Spaulding already has two appearances under his belt. Despite not playing in a competitive match since late last year, Spauldling went the full 90 minutes in San Diego and put in a quality shift off the bench versus Houston a few days later.
“90 minutes in San Diego is maybe not what we expected but we thought he showed that he could handle that, which bodes well,” said Collins. “Once he’s got more games under his belt, I think we’ll really start seeing some of his real strengths through the whole 90 minutes… when you’re playing every week as a player, not only is your fitness level high, your confidence level is as well. For Ryan, we just want to keep giving him opportunities. If he keeps showing the attitude he’s shown and the quality he’s shown, he’ll go from strength to strength.”
Milestone Tracker
- 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 (Achilles/Out for Season)
QUESTIONABLE: Jake Areman, Lewis Hilton
