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CARY, N.C. (August 22, 2019) — The Tampa Bay Rowdies were far from their best Wednesday night, falling 4-2 to surging North Carolina FC on a disappointing night on the road.

It was Tampa Bay’s second road loss this season and leaves the Rowdies in third place in the USL Championship’s Eastern Conference. The Rowdies are four points behind New York Red Bulls II but have the benefit of a game in hand.

Here’s Three Things from the match…

1. No fun North Carolina
If a Rowdies vs. North Carolina FC match comes to fruition in the USL Championship playoffs, Tampa Bay will need to fight off some bad mojo from this regular season. While the Rowdies have been at or near the top of the table all year, North Carolina has fully had their numbers.

In two meetings this regular season, the Rowdies have lost twice by a combined margin of 7-3. Tampa Bay opened the year on a 13-game unbeaten run only to see it snapped on home turf with a 3-1 loss to Dave Sarachan’s side. Those three goals were the most allowed by the Rowdies this season until last night’s four goals scored by, yes, that same North Carolina team.

The Rowdies have only conceded 20 goals in 24 matches this season and seven of those (35 percent) have been to a single opponent.

Admittedly, North Carolina got a little bit of scoring help last night from an unfortunate own goal scored by Rowdies centerback Pape Diakite. NCFC’s Manny Perez made a great solo run down the right wing and cut inside on the endline before sending a low cross that Diakite backheeled past goalkeeper Macklin Robinson to make the score 3-1. It was the first Rowdies own goal since Akira Fitzgerald got unlucky in a match against Toronto FC II on July 4, 2018.

2. Seba ties a record
There’s something about WakeMed Soccer Park that brings the best out of Rowdies forward Sebastian Guenzatti.

Last season, Guenzatti recorded a hat trick in a 3-0 victory, joining Rowdies legend Georgi Hristov as the only two players in modern team history with a hat trick.

3. Tennessee two-step
How do you assess where the Rowdies currently sit in the playoff race? Tampa Bay is just about touching distance to first place with a four-point gap and a game in hand, but also faces pressure from below. Indy, in particular, could shake the top of the table up with three games in hand on Tampa Bay and four on everyone else.

After losing once in 20 games, losing three of four makes it feel like the Rowdies have bottomed out. But four losses is still tied for the fewest in the entire conference. Of the 10 teams currently in the playoff field, only Birmingham hasn’t lost in the last five games as the East tightens up.

FiveThirtyEight.com still forecasts the Rowdies as the team most likely to win the Eastern Conference, despite the dip in form.

Neill Collins wasn’t ready to hit the panic button after Wednesday night’s defeat, saying, “Recently there have been two or three things that have crept into our game that have cost us, but (there’s) no panic. No panic at all. We know we’re doing a lot of good things and we’ll get some people back fit and we’ll be ready to go strong between now and the end of the season.”

What’s clear is that Tampa Bay needs to get back on track sooner rather than later. Ten games remain in the regular season, starting with back-to-back home games against the two Tennessee teams, Memphis 901 FC on Saturday night and Nashville SC on August 31. With a good homestand, things will feel totally different as September arrives.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (August 21, 2019) — The Tampa Bay Rowdies late summer slump continued Wednesday night as they fell 4-2 on the road to North Carolina FC.

The Rowdies, who lost just once in their first 20 games, have now lost three of their last four. Tampa Bay (13-4-7, 46 points) fell to third place in the USL Championship’s Eastern Conference with the result. North Carolina (13-5-7, 46 points) jumped all the way up to second place.

“Recently there have been two or three things that have crept into our game that have cost us, but (there’s) no panic,” Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins said. “No panic at all. We know we’re doing a lot of good things and we’ll get some people back fit and we’ll be ready to go strong between now and the end of the season.”

Tampa Bay was under heavy pressure for the first 10 minutes and ultimately conceded to Dre Fortune in the 19th minute after a sluggish start.

Captain Sebastian Guenzatti leveled the match in the 32nd minute as the Rowdies rallied to take control of the remainder of the half.

All that momentum was killed by halftime as North Carolina took the lead for good just five minutes into the second half via Steven Miller.

The Rowdies kept it close until the 76th minute when North Carolina’s Manny Perez made a great solo run down the right wing before playing the ball across the face of goal. Rowdies centerback Pape Diakite turned the ball into his own net for an own goal to put the Rowdies down 3-1.

Miller would score his second goal of the night just three minutes later to make the score 4-1 in the 79th.

Juan Tejada scored a late consolation goal, his eighth of the season, in the 90th minute but it was far too late for Tampa Bay to make a game of it.

The Rowdies will now hope for a home game boost at they return to St. Petersburg to host Memphis 901 FC on Saturday night at Al Lang Stadium to open a two-game homestand. Tickets are available here.

Scoring Summary
North Carolina: Dre Fortune – 19th minute (assisted by Justin Rennicks)
Tampa Bay: Sebastian Guenzatti – 32nd minute (assisted by Kwadwo Poku)
North Carolina: Steven Miller – 50th minute
North Carolina: Own Goal – 76th minute (Pape Diakite)
North Carolina: Steven Miller – 79th minute (assisted by DJ Taylor)
Tampa Bay: Juan Tejada – 90th minute (assisted by Leo Fernandes)

Caution Summary
Tampa Bay: Pape Diakite – 72nd minute

Starting Lineups
Rowdies XI (3-5-2): GK Macklin Robinson; D Mohamed Kone, Pape Diakite, Caleb Richards; M Juan Tejada, Dom Oduro (Tarek Morad 80′), Andrew Tinari (Lucky Mkosana 66′), Kwadwo Poku, Leo Fernandes; F Sebastian Guenzatti (c), Jaime Siaj (Malik Johnson 61′)

North Carolina XI (4-2-3-1): GK Alex Tambakis; D Aaron Guillen, Sam Brotherton, Alex Comsia, DJ Taylor; M Nazmi Albadawi (Duval Wapiwo 79′), Graham Smith; M Steven Miller (c), Dre Fortune (Austin da Luz 87′), Donovan Ewolo; F Justin Rennicks (Manny Perez 71′)

The Basics
North Carolina FC vs. Tampa Bay Rowdies
Wednesday, August 21, 7 p.m. ET
Sahlen’s Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park, Cary, N.C.
Follow us for live updates on Twitter at @RowdiesGameday

How to Watch
The match will be broadcast nationwide on ESPNews. It can be streamed here. International viewers can watch online here.

Records
Tampa Bay: 13-3-7 (W-L-T), 2nd place; 7-1-3 on road 
North Carolina: 12-5-7 (W-L-T), 5th place; 7-1-4 at home

Rowdies Notes
The Tampa Bay Rowdies head to Cary well-rested after a bye weekend. Prior to that, the Rowdies were beaten 1-0 at home by Birmingham Legion FC on August 10 to fall out of first place in the USL Championship’s Eastern Conference. It was just the fourth time in 23 matches this season the Rowdies failed to scored a goal and the third time they were beaten.

The Rowdies took over first place in the East with a 2-0 win over New York Red Bulls II on May 18 and held onto their position every successive Monday until August 12. Tampa Bay fell to second place on a few occasions due to the order matches are played in, but always returned to first place following the conclusion of the weekend slate. Tampa Bay can take first place back with a win over North Carolina FC. A draw would level the Rowdies with the Red Bulls on points, but leave them short via tiebreakers.

Tampa Bay was beaten by North Carolina at Al Lang Stadium this season but will hope for the continuation of a trend that has seen the road team win each of the last four meetings between the sides. The Rowdies won 3-1 in Cary on the opening day of the 2018 season, then lost in St. Pete on August 11 of last year before returning to North Carolina to win 3-0 on September 1. Sebastian Guenzatti, Tampa Bay’s leading scorer this season, scored the second hat trick in modern team history in that match.

The Rowdies have been strong away from home this season with a record of 7-1-3 (W-L-T). Tampa Bay won four road games in the entire 2017 season, earning a total of 15 points away from home. The Rowdies have already taken 24 points on their travels this season with six matches left to play.

Among the players that has recently been sidelined by injury is goalkeeper John McCarthy, who strained a hamstring late in a 4-1 win over Saint Louis FC on July 20. McCarthy led the league in clean sheets at the time of his injury with nine but has missed three matches since then.

The Rowdies continue to be a well-balanced team. Tampa Bay’s 39 goals are good for fifth-best in the Eastern Conference and their 16 goals conceded are tied for the fewest in the East with Indy.

Injury Report
QUESTIONABLE – Shawn Barry (leg)
QUESTIONABLE – Yann Ekra (leg)
QUESTIONABLE – John McCarthy (leg)

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (August 12, 2019) – The Rowdies started hot but quickly fell out of rhythm Saturday night, ultimately falling 1-0 to Birmingham Legion FC at Al Lang Stadium in a disappointing defeat.

Here’s Three Things from the match…

1. Momentum derailed
If you watched only the first 15 minutes of Saturday night’s match and then turned it, you probably would have guessed the final score would be a comfortable Rowdies win with a few goals on the board and a clean sheet.

The graphic below is a snapshot of the first 15 minutes of play.

The Rowdies were absolutely dominating play. Forty-three percent of the match was being played in Birmingham’s defensive third, compared to only 16 percent in Tampa Bay’s end. The Rowdies had an eye-popping 76.8 percent possession. Birmingham was helpless.

But then the feeling of the match turned somewhat inexplicably. Tampa Bay maintained plenty of possession (finishing the game at 64.5 percent) but Legion FC’s counterattacks proved lethal. If not for a great performance from Rowdies goalkeeper Macklin Robinson, the score would have been more lopsided in Birmingham’s favor.

It wasn’t that the Rowdies were using an untested lineup. Basically the same group of players had beaten Charleston 5-0 away from home only a week earlier, with Pape Diakite returning from suspension as the only change.

It’s just that Birmingham had a good gameplan and the Rowdies weren’t clinical enough. With more than a week before Tampa Bay’s next match, there will be plenty of time to dissect things and get back on track.

“I think we stopped doing the real basics that are a real staple of everything we’ve been good at,” Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins said. “Credit to Birmingham. They probably feel they survived an onslaught, came through that and should have scored their own goals before halftime. I really thought going into halftime at 0-0, we could have learned from the let off and gone on to take on the second half. But we didn’t and we got punished. We never got back into it. It’s a big learning lesson for everyone tonight.”

Maybe the reason the Rowdies lost is very simple. In 10 seasons of modern team history, the Rowdies have only won 5-0 twice. Both times, they’ve followed that up with a loss. Let’s at least be grateful this setback wasn’t a 5-0 loss like last year’s travesty against New York Red Bulls II.

2. Checking in on the standings
Speaking of New York…

It’s a Monday and the Rowdies aren’t in first place in the USL Championship’s Eastern Conference, having fallen behind one point behind the Red Bulls.

The Rowdies took over first place by beating the Red Bulls head-to-head on May 18 and have held it every week since then, lasting nearly three months on top. Some teams temporarily took the lead by playing midweek games, but come Monday, the Rowdies were always atop the table.

It seems that with 11 games to go in the regular season, the race for seeding will be extraordinarily tight.

3. Robinson’s big night
Heading into the season, young Rowdies goalkeeper Macklin Robinson figured to be Tampa Bay’s rarely-seen third goalkeeper, based on the profiles of John McCarthy and Chris Konopka. McCarthy has been the Rowdies regular starter and Konopka was picked for the U.S. Open Cup matches in May, leaving Robinson without minutes into the summer.

But the pecking order has changed in recent months, so when McCarthy has been unavailable due to injury, it’s been Robinson that has gotten the call.

His first three starts of the year came on the road, but Robinson finally got his chance to play at Al Lang on Saturday night and he made the most of it.

While he was beaten with one shot, he made seven spectacular saves including a series on denials on one-on-one chances after Birmingham broke through the back line.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (August 10, 2019) – The Tampa Bay Rowdies were handed a home defeat Saturday night, falling 1-0 to Birmingham Legion FC in their third defeat of the 2019 season.

This will be the first time since May 11-12 that the Rowdies (13-3-7, 46 points) are not in first place in the USL Championship’s Eastern Conference at the end of the weekend.

Tampa Bay was coming off a 5-0 road win over the Charleston Battery last weekend and looked to be picking up right where it left off in the opening 15 minutes of the match, pinning Birmingham (7-10-5, 26 points) deep in its own end.

The Rowdies had shots in the 8th, 10th and 13th minutes, but failed to score.

“I think we stopped doing the real basics that are a real staple of everything we’ve been good at,” Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins said. “Credit to Birmingham. They probably feel they survived an onslaught, came through that and should have scored their own goals before halftime.

“I really thought going into halftime at 0-0, we could have learned from the let off and gone on to take on the second half,” Collins said. “But we didn’t and we got punished. We never got back into it. It’s a big learning lesson for everyone tonight.”

Once the opening quarter of an hour passed, Birmingham found its footing and bullied the Rowdies a little bit, earning only 36 percent of the possession but proving extremely dangerous on the counter attack.

With the Rowdies backline playing extremely high in possession, Legion FC earned numerous one-on-one chances against Tampa Bay goalkeeper Macklin Robinson, but Robinson was up the task. He made heroic saves to deny breakaways three times in the first half.

Birmingham opened the second half strong, with Eddie Opoku firing a laser into the top of the net from a sharp angle in the 49th minute to give Legion FC a 1-0 lead.

Tampa Bay tried to get back into the match but was ultimately unable.

The Rowdies best scoring chance in the second half came in the 75th minute when forward Juan Tejada put an acrobatic shot on target, but Tampa Bay was unable to break through.

Robinson made seven difficult saves on the night in a strong performance despite the defeat.

“We had plenty of chances,” Robinson said. “Their goal and opportunities came from our mistakes so it’s one of those things where we still think it comes down to us. It’s an unfortunate result.”

The Rowdies will now have to think about this defeat for 11 days as they’re heading into a bye weekend before returning to action on the road against North Carolina FC on August 21. Tampa Bay will then return home on short rest to host Memphis 901 FC on August 24. Tickets for that match are available here.

Scoring Summary
Birmingham: Eddie Opoku – 49th minute (assisted by Anderson Asiedu)

Caution Summary
Birmingham: Brian Wright – 66th minute
Birmingham: JJ Williams – 70th minute
Tampa Bay: Pape Diakite – 83rd minute
Birmingham: Kyle Culbertson – 88th minute

Starting Lineups
Rowdies XI (3-5-2): GK Macklin Robinson; D Tarek Morad, Pape Diakite, Caleb Richards; M Malik Johnson, Jordan Doherty, Zach Steinberger (Juan Tejada 46′), Kwadwo Poku, Leo Fernandes; F Sebastian Guenzatti (c) (Jaime Siaj 74′), Lucky Mkosana (Andrew Tinari 59′)

Birmingham XI (4-4-2): GK Matt Van Oekel; D Kyle Fisher, Akeem Ward, Mathieu Laurent, Kyle Culbertson; M Anderson Asiedu, Prosper Kasim (Razak Cromwell 79′), Eric Avila (Joseph Holland 86′), Eddie Opoku (Gael Mabiala 90+3′); F Brian Wright, JJ Williams

The Basics
Tampa Bay Rowdies vs. Birmingham Legion FC
Saturday, August 10, 7:30 p.m. ET
Al Lang Stadium, St. Petersburg, Fla.
Follow us for live updates on Twitter at @RowdiesGameday

Tickets
Tickets for Saturday’s match are available by calling (727) 222-2000 or clicking here. Gates will open at 6:30 p.m., 60 minutes before kickoff. 

How to Watch
The match will be broadcast online on ESPN+ here. International viewers can watch online here.

Records
Tampa Bay: 13-2-7 (W-L-T), 1st place; 6-1-4 at home 
Birmingham: 6-10-5 (W-L-T), 12th place; 2-5-3 on road

Rowdies Notes
The Tampa Bay Rowdies return home following a two-game road spell with mixed results. The Rowdies suffered their first road loss of the year in New Jersey on July 26 but bounced back to earn the biggest road win in modern team history in Charleston on August 3. In Tampa Bay’s 5-0 win over the Battery last weekend, Lucky Mkosana scored the fastest goal in modern team history, putting the Rowdies ahead just 32 seconds into the match. He scored again three minutes later, ultimately earning a spot in the USL Championship Team of the Week.

The Rowdies also got big contributions in the Charleston game from Malik Johnson and Zach Steinberger, both of whom recorded both a goal and an assist. Johnson earned an honorable mention on the Team of the Week bench. Also in the Charleston game, Jaime Siaj scored his first goal for the Rowdies. He missed the first 19 matches of the season due to a combination of injuries but has now come off the bench in three consecutive matches.

Rowdies midfielder Andrew Tinari appeared off the bench late in the Charleston match, making his first appearance since June 8 due to injury. He assisted Siaj’s goal, moving him into a tie for the team lead in assists (5) with Leo Fernandes. Tinari also has three goals in his first season with the Rowdies.

The Rowdies remain in first place in the USL Championship’s Eastern Conference but the race is ever tightening. New York is just two points behind and Indy is six points back but with two games in hand. The Rowdies have fallen behind the Western Conference’s Phoenix Rising FC in the race for first overall. Phoenix has one more point than the Rowdies with a game in hand as well. Tampa Bay’s leading scorer Sebastian Guenzatti (12 goals) was nominated for Player of Month for July but ultimately finished third despite winning the fan vote.

The Rowdies kept a clean sheet last weekend in Charleston, their first clean sheet since August 1 against Birmingham. After keeping nine clean sheets in 13 matches to open the year, Tampa Bay then went eight matches without one prior to last weekend.

Injury Report
QUESTIONABLE – Shawn Barry (leg)
QUESTIONABLE – Yann Ekra (leg)
QUESTIONABLE – John McCarthy (leg)
QUESTIONABLE – Leon Taylor (leg)

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (August 6, 2019) — Tampa Bay Rowdies forward Lucky Mkosana was named to the USL Championship Team of the Week on Tuesday for the first time since rejoining the Rowdies in June.

Mkosana scored the fastest goal in team history 32 seconds into the match against Charleston on Saturday night and then added a second goal only three minutes later to put the Rowdies up 2-0 less than four minutes into the match.

Additionally, forward Malik Johnson earned an honorable mention on the Team of the Week bench after scoring a goal and adding an assist against the Battery.

The full Team of the Week is below.

GK – Frederik Due, Hartford Athletic: Due recorded a three-save shutout that included a crucial penalty kick save to keep the game scoreless early in Hartford’s 3-0 win against Bethlehem Steel FC.

D – Steve Jasso, Real Monarchs SLC: Jasso won 9 of 12 duels, completed 45 of 51 passes and 2 of 2 dribbles as the Monarchs shut out Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC in a 1-0 victory on Friday night.

D – Amobi Okugo, Austin Bold FC: Okugo scored both goals, completed 28 of 33 passes and won a combined 8 of 10 duels and aerial duels in Austin’s 2-2 draw on the road against New Mexico United.

D – Thomas Janjigian, Reno 1868 FC: Janjigian scored the opening goal, completed 54 of 65 passes and made seven clearances as 1868 FC took victory on the road against Rio Grande Valley FC.

M – Lebo Moloto, Nashville SC: Moloto had one goal and one assist, recorded four key passes and completed 42 of 54 passes overall as NSC took a 2-0 victory against the Swope Park Rangers.

M – Kenardo Forbes, Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC: Forbes recorded a pair of assists, had seven key passes overall and completed 74 of 77 passes to pace the Hounds in a 4-0 victory against Memphis 901 FC.

M – Sebastian Elney, New York Red Bulls II: Elney scored twice to lead the Red Bulls II to victory at home against Saint Louis FC while also winning 11 of 17 duels and recording two interceptions.

M – Chris Wehan, New Mexico United: Wehan had two goals and one assist across two contests as New Mexico took four points from fellow playoff contenders El Paso Locomotive FC and Austin Bold FC.

F – Bienvenue Kanakimana, ATL UTD 2: Kanakimana scored a hat trick, completed 20 of 21 passes and won 4 of 5 duels to lead Atlanta to a 4-2 victory against Loudoun United FC.

F – Lucky Mkosana, Tampa Bay Rowdies: Mkosana scored twice in the opening four minutes, completed 10 of 12 passes and won 3 of 4 duels in the Rowdies 5-0 victory against the Charleston Battery.

F – Stefano Bonomo, Sacramento Republic FC: Bonomo notched a pair of goals – including the eventual game-winner – and completed 3 of 4 dribbles as Republic FC took a 3-2 victory on the road against San Antonio FC.

Bench: Rafael Diaz (SAC), Napo Matsoso (LOU), Malik Johnson (TBR), Joey Calistri (PHX), Kevaughn Frater (NM), Jaime Chavez (FRS), Alex Dixon (HFD)

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (August 5, 2019) – The Tampa Bay Rowdies stormed to a dominant 5-0 win over the Charleston Battery on Saturday night, reclaiming first place in the USL Championship’s Eastern Conference after 24 hours in second.

Here’s Three Things from the match…

1. A record-setting performance
After some exhaustive research this morning, we can now confirm that Lucky Mkosana’s goal 32 seconds into the match was the fastest goal in modern Tampa Bay Rowdies history. It was the first goal the Rowdies have ever scored inside the first minute of play. Due to a lack of highlights, we cannot confirm the exact times of some of the other fastest goals, but the top five (and ties) are below:

1 — 1’ Lucky Mkosana at Charleston Battery, August 3, 2019
T-2 — 2’ Chad Burt at Legends FC (U.S. Open Cup), June 15, 2010
T-2 — 2’ Mike Ambersley at Jacksonville United (U.S. Open Cup), May 22, 2012
T-4 — 3’ Chad Burt vs Crystal Palace Baltimore, October 1, 2010
T-4 — 3’ Amani Walker at Carolina RailHawks, August 9, 2014
T-4 — 3’ Kyle Porter vs Jacksonville Armada FC II (U.S. Open Cup), May 16, 2017
T-4 — 3’ Lance Rozeboom vs Pittsburgh Riverhounds, May 19, 2018

But that wasn’t the only record set Saturday night as the Rowdies also logged their biggest road victory in modern franchise history. Tampa Bay had only ever won a match 5-0 once before but that match was at home against Ottawa last season. It was also the first time Charleston had conceded five goals at home.

2. Offensive firepower
While Tampa Bay’s Golden Boot contender failed to get on the scoresheet for the second week in a row, Sebastian Guenzatti’s teammates were there to pick the Rowdies up in a great attacking display. Yes, Charleston’s Ataulla Guerra was shown a second yellow and sent off late in the first half, but the Rowdies had already scored three times and put the match to bed by then.

Forward Lucky Mkosana scored twice in the opening four minutes. He now has three goals and two assists in 260 minutes with the Rowdies this season. Malik Johnson had a goal and an assist, as did Zach Steinberger. Jaime Siaj scored his first goal for the Rowdies. Andrew Tinari came off the bench for his first appearance in two months and picked up an assist.

He didn’t get his name on the stat sheet in any way, but Kwadwo Poku put in a monster performance to lead the Rowdies midfield. He completed a team-high 52 passes (35 in the opposing half) at an eye-popping 94.2 percent completion rate. His ability to drive the ball by dribbling defenders is a huge asset for the Rowdies. He also won 64.3 percent of his duels and made two tackles.

3. Sending the fans home happy
While the home fans didn’t enjoy Saturday night’s match, the loudest fans in the building certainly did.

A sizable set of Skyway Casuals and Ralph’s Mob members made the nearly 1,000 mile roundtrip to support the Rowdies in South Carolina. After scoring Tampa Bay’s third goal of the day, Malik Johnson made a point of bringing the team over to celebrate with the fans that made the trek.

Tampa Bay had never earned a point in three previous visits to Charleston (or even scored a goal), but the Rowdies put on a show for their fans on this occasion. The Rowdies are now 7-1-3 away from home this season. Seven road wins are a new Modern Era record.