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OTTAWA, Ontario, Canada (August 3, 2018) — The Tampa Bay Rowdies suffered an early blow Friday night at TD Place and never quite recovered in a 2-0 loss to Ottawa Fury FC.

The home team took a lead only 23 seconds into the match when a Tony Taylor shot from the corner of the box slipped through Tampa Bay goalkeeper Cody Mizell’s hands and into the net.

The Rowdies (7-9-5, 26 points) managed a few decent scoring chances on the night, but never really threatened to get a result after the early goal.

Tampa Bay was coached on the night by Joe Cole, who served as Acting Head Coach while Head Coach Neill Collins served a one-game suspension.

“It’s a tough result to take,” Cole said. “The last thing you want to do is concede a goal 23 seconds in. Cody was excellent last week, he made a mistake this week. We had more than enough time to get back into the game. We need to find a way as a group to stop conceding goals.”

Ottawa (9-9-3, 30 points) doubled its lead on a set piece in the 53rd minute when Nana Attakora got on the end of a Kevin Oliveira free kick.

Tampa Bay had a few chances, but couldn’t make them count in the defeat.

The Rowdies’ best chance of the night came in the 35th minute when Rowdies midfielder Junior Flemmings threaded a perfect through ball to Stefano Bonomo. With only the goalkeeper to beat, Bonomo couldn’t connect with the pass and the chance evaporated.

Playing in Ottawa, against a team that sits back absorbs pressure with everyone behind the ball regardless of the score, it was too tall a hill for the Rowdies to climb.

“Especially in this stadium, you can’t give up a goal that early,” Cole said. “It played right into their hands and we didn’t really have a chance to lay a glove on them. It’s one of those performances where we learned a lot about where we can get better.”

Tampa Bay now returns home for a crucial week. The Rowdies host the Charleston Battery on Wednesday night and then North Carolina FC on Saturday night. For tickets to those matches, call (727) 222-2000 or click here.

Scoring Summary
Ottawa: Tony Taylor – 1st minute (assisted by Steevan Dos Santos)
Ottawa: Nana Attakora – 53rd minute (assisted by Kevin Oliveira)

Caution Summary
Ottawa: Adonijah Reid – 46th minute
Rowdies: Hunter Gorskie – 79th minute
Rowdies: Papé Diakité – 83rd minute

Starting Lineups
Rowdies XI (4-3-3): GK Cody Mizell; D Hunter Gorskie, Tamika Mkandawire (c) (Leo Fernandes 72′), Papé Diakité, Max Lachowecki; M Michael Nanchoff (Alex Morrell 55′), Kwadwo Poku, Dom Oduro; F Junior Flemmings, Stefano Bonomo, Georgi Hristov (Leon Taylor 73′)

Ottawa XI (4-3-3): GK Maxime Crepeau; D Eddie Edward, Nana Attakora, Thomas Meilleur-Giguere, Onua Obasi; M Kevin Oliveira, Cristian Portilla (Jeremy Gagnon-Lapare 74′), Jamar Dixon (c); F Tony Taylor, Steevan Dos Santos (Chris Mannella 64′), Adonijah Reid (Adonijah Reid 67′)

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (August 1, 2018) — Tampa Bay Rowdies midfielder Junior Flemmings will be eligible to play Friday night against Ottawa Fury FC after a decision by the United States Soccer Federation.

Flemmings was shown a straight red card deep in first half stoppage time of last weekend’s match against New York Red Bulls II. The Rowdies appealed that card and the Federation has overturned the decision.

While Flemmings will be available for selection Friday night in Ottawa, the Rowdies will be without Head Coach Neill Collins, who will serve a one-game suspension following his dismissal against the Red Bulls.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (July 31, 2018) — Tampa Bay Rowdies forward Stefano Bonomo was named to the USL Team of the Week on Tuesday after scoring two goals in 50 seconds in Saturday night’s 2-2 draw against his former club.

The full Team of the Week is below.

GK – Owain Fôn Williams, Indy Eleven: Fôn Williams recorded a four-save shutout on Thursday as Indy scored a late 1-0 victory against Bethlehem Steel FC at Goodman Stadium.

D – Oscar Jimenez, Louisville City FC: Jimenez notched a pair of assists to help lead Louisville to a convincing 3-0 victory on the road against Ottawa Fury FC.

D – Cyprian Hedrick, San Antonio FC: Hedrick won 21 of 25 duels and recorded 18 clearances as San Antonio took victories against Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC and OKC Energy FC.

D – Ramon Martin Del Campo, Fresno FC: Del Campo won 16 of 20 duels and recorded 21 clearances as the Foxes earned road draws against both OKC Energy FC and Tulsa Roughnecks FC.

M – Matthew Srbely, Toronto FC II: Srbely scored once, recorded a pair of key passes and won a penalty kick as Toronto won its first game of the season, defeating Nashville SC on Saturday night.

M – Nico Rittmeyer, Charleston Battery: Rittmeyer’s first two professional goals set the Battery on the way to a 3-0 victory against longtime rival the Richmond Kickers at MUSC Health Stadium.

M – Brenden Aaronson, Bethlehem Steel FC: The 17-year-old Aaronson recorded his first goal and assist in the pro ranks as Steel FC swept to a 4-1 victory against ATL UTD 2 on Sunday evening.

M – Charlie Ward, San Antonio FC: Ward completed 65 of 65 passes and provided the assist on Ever Guzman’s late winner as SAFC defeated OKC Energy FC for the first time in its history.

M – Wal Fall, Saint Louis FC: Fall scored the game-tying goal from the penalty spot and then recorded the assist on Sam Fink’s stoppage-time winner as Saint Louis defeated Reno on the road.

F – Foster Langsdorf, Portland Timbers 2: Langsdorf scored a pair of goals to lead T2 to a 4-3 victory against the LA Galaxy II on Saturday afternoon at StubHub Center.

F – Stefano Bonomo, Tampa Bay Rowdies: Bonomo scored a pair of goals as the Rowdies played to a 2-2 draw with the New York Red Bulls II on Saturday night at Al Lang Stadium.

Bench: Michael Nelson (RGV), Wuilito Fernandes (NC), Pedro Ribeiro (FRS), Antonee Burke-Gilroy (SEA), Sebastian Velasquez (SLC), Jeremy Ebobisse (POR), Faris (BST)

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (July 29, 2018) — The Tampa Bay Rowdies will likely have very mixed emotions after Saturday night’s 2-2 draw against the New York Red Bulls.

After a bad start, the Rowdies roared to life and took a well-deserved lead and they were flying high before a double dismissal deep into first half stoppage time changed the course of the night for good.

Here’s Three Things from the match…

1.  The boiling point
Tampa Bay was under heavy pressure from the New York Red Bulls as the half wore down, but it looked like the Rowdies would escape the first half with their 2-1 lead and have a chance to regroup during halftime and come back out and shut things down in the second half.

No such luck, though, as Junior Flemmings was whistled for a foul right in front of the fourth official in the ninth minute of stoppage time and was shown a straight red card. Neill Collins protested the decision, which he would was influenced by New York’s bench suggesting it was an elbow to the head, and Collins was dismissed as well, leaving the Rowdies without both Flemmings and their head coach for the second half.

In his postgame press conference, Collins asked for a little more consistency from referee crews across the league. We’ll let him speak for himself, but the gist is that the Rowdies have had a player sent off before halftime in three of his eight home matches as coach so far for soft red cards.

2. The Bonomo and Flemmings Show
Stefano Bonomo and Junior Flemmings, both former Red Bulls II players, put on a show against their former club Saturday night, continuing their excellent form.

Both players scored against Indy Eleven a week earlier and they picked up where they left off Saturday night. Flemmings drew a penalty in the seventh minute with an incisive cut toward goal. Bonomo converted the penalty with a perfectly-placed kick into the side netting that New York goalkeeper Evan Louro didn’t have a chance at saving even though he dove the correct way.

Only 14 seconds after play was restarted, Flemmings took advantage of a lazy pass in midfield, picking up possession and racing toward goal again. Bonomo darted to the penalty spot and slotted Flemmings’ pass through Louro’s legs for his second goal in 50 seconds.

The chemistry that Bonomo and Flemmings have from their three years playing together in New York is paying major dividends for the Rowdies as their attack looks extremely potent.

3. Suspensions all around
Tampa Bay was without leading goalscorer Georgi Hristov as he served a one-game suspension Saturday night for yellow card accumulation. Hristov is eligible to return next week when the Rowdies visit Ottawa Fury FC, but the Rowdies figure to be without Junior Flemmings and Neill Collins in Ottawa following their dismissals Saturday night.

Additionally, Joe Cole is one yellow card away from picking up an accumulation suspension of his own.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (July 28, 2018) — A pair of controversial dismissals derailed the Tampa Bay Rowdies’ night on Saturday as they settled for a 2-2 draw against the New York Red Bulls II at Al Lang Stadium.

The Rowdies led 2-1 after a wild opening 10 minutes and retained that lead until first-half stoppage time when the match took a sudden turn.

In the ninth minute of added time, Rowdies midfielder Junior Flemmings was whistled for a foul against Red Bulls midfielder Cristian Casseres Jr. Flemmings was shown a straight red card and ejected from the match, with Tampa Bay Head Coach Neill Collins ultimately being dismissed as well for dissent against the decision, which he felt was made because of the dramatic reactions from Casseres and the New York bench, rather than the foul itself.

“All we ask for is a modicum of consistency (from referees),” Collins said. “I respect how hard the referees’ job is and I respect that they’re not going to get every decision right, but when you look at 11 games (since I became coach) and three red cards in the first half for nothing more than, at most, a yellow card, it makes my job even more difficult. It’s very, very frustrating.”

Playing down a man and without their head coach on the sideline, the Rowdies (7-8-5, 26 points) faced an uphill task to protect their 2-1 lead and win the match.

New York (8-6-8, 32 points) had 77 percent of the possession after halftime, but the Rowdies got past the hour mark without conceding.

Tampa Bay’s lead wouldn’t last much longer, though, with New York’s Brian White heading a Chris Lema cross past Rowdies goalkeeper Cody Mizell for the equalizer in the 62nd minute.

Though New York held much of the ball from there on, neither team really created a ton of danger. The short-handed Rowdies did not register a shot in the second half after posting seven in the first half.

It was a slow and miserable denouement after a match that started at breakneck pace.

New York’s Jared Stroud opened the scoring barely more than a minute into the match with a right-footed curler from the corner of the box, but Tampa Bay struck back immediately.

Flemmings cut into the box in the seventh minute and drew a penalty, which was scored by Stefano Bonomo a minute later to pull the match even at 1-1.

Bonomo was back on the attack less than a minute later, beating New York goalkeeper Evan Louro for his second goal of the night in the ninth minute. Only 50 total seconds passed between Bonomo’s two goals and his second goal came only 14 seconds after the Red Bulls restarted play.

Flemmings and Bonomo are both former Red Bulls players who combined for 41 goals for New York in their time there.

“Junior set up one goal and drew the penalty,” Collins said. “He should have scored a third, but then we lose him and go to 10 men against a team that was already playing really well. Credit to our boys because they played well in the second half. We lost a goal, but overall we made it tough for them to bring us down and we ended up fairly comfortable.”

With another point in the bag, the Rowdies will head to Canada next week to take on the Ottawa Fury FC on Friday, August 3 before returning home to host back-to-back matches against the Charleston Battery on August 8th and North Carolina FC on August 11. For tickets to those matches, call (727) 222-2000 or click here. 

Scoring Summary
New York: Jared Stroud – 2nd Minute (Assisted by Tom Barlow)
Tampa Bay: Stefano Bonomo – 8th Minute (Penalty)
Tampa Bay: Stefano Bonomo – 9th Minute (Assisted by Junior Flemmings)
New York: Brian White – 62nd Minute (Assisted by Chris Lema)

Caution Summary
New York: Hassan Ndam – 17th Minute
Tampa Bay: Stefano Bonomo – 35th Minute
Tampa Bay: Dominic Oduro – 45th+ Minute
Tampa Bay: Junior Flemmings – 45th+ Minute (Red Card)
Tampa Bay: Cody Mizell – 88th minute 

Starting Lineups
Rowdies XI (4-3-3): GK Cody Mizell; D Papé Diakité, Max Lachowecki, Tamika Mkandawire, Kyle Porter; M Joe Cole (c) (Hunter Gorskie 72′), Dominic Oduro, Kwadwo Poku; F Junior Flemmings, Stefano Bonomo (Leon Taylor 77′), Leo Fernandes (Michael Nanchoff 62′)

New York XI (4-3-3): GK Evan Louro; D Niko De Vera, Kevin Politz, Hassan Ndam, Lucas Stauffer (Allen Yanes 83′); M Chris Lema, Andrew Tinari, Vincent Bezecourt (Cristian Cásseres Jr. 40′); F Jared Stroud, Tom Barlow (Ben Mines 75′), Brian White

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (July 25, 2018) — If you were impressed with new Tampa Bay Rowdies defender Papé Diakité’s performance in his club debut on Saturday night, wait until you hear about the week he had leading up to it.

New signings always involve a lot of moving parts, particularly when the player is overseas. Plane tickets must be purchased and visas must be applied for, in addition to all the standard red tape involved with contracts and registering players with the league office.

Diakité was home in his native Senegal last week when he agreed to sign with the Rowdies, setting the whole process in motion. 

While his future teammates were playing in Cincinnati on Saturday, July 14, Diakité was packing his bags for the trans-Atlantic move. While they were making the two-hour flight home to Tampa Bay from Cincinnati, Diakité was embarking on a much longer trip.

He flew eight hours from Dakar to New York and then boarded a three-hour flight to Tampa Bay, arriving Sunday afternoon.

After such a long journey, a nice, relaxing Monday would have been nice.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t on the docket.

Once his physical was completed first thing Monday morning, Diakité was straight into his new Rowdies uniform to play in a closed-door scrimmage in sweltering mid-morning heat at Al Lang Stadium. Diakité played 45 minutes, giving the Rowdies coaching staff a chance to see him play in person and assess his physical condition.

While the majority of his teammates underwent a regular training session Tuesday, Diakité and the group of players that had played Monday participated in a recovery session.

On Wednesday morning, Diakité finally got to train with the full Rowdies roster for the first time. In a normal week, Wednesday is the most grueling session for the players before the intensity of training is pared down to get everybody fresh and ready for the upcoming match.

Because of that, Thursday was another recovery session.

Fridays before Saturday matches are very light, more like a walkthrough for the match than a proper training session.

By the time kickoff of Saturday night’s match rolled around, Diakité had only really trained with the Rowdies once.

“I had one and a half training sessions before I made my debut,” Diakité said. “It was pretty crazy. I don’t think a lot of people know that. I always play with passion and with hunger, so it didn’t matter to me that I was tired and hadn’t really gotten to train with my new teammates.”

Throw in all the off-field stuff — paperwork, moving into a new apartment, video and photo shoots — and it was a taxing week for Diakité. It’s understandable why he started suffering from cramps around the 70th minute and ultimately exited the match in the 84th.

“It’s a rough time (joining a new club,)” Diakité said. “I didn’t get as much rest as I needed and the humidity was tough to deal with. I was dead. I felt fine fitness-wise, but I just felt heavy-legged because of the humidity and travel.”

You wouldn’t have known that by watching him play Saturday night, when he bossed the Indy Eleven attack around to the tune of eight clearances and two interceptions. To help the Rowdies win in his debut made all the hassle worth it.

“It feels great because I got a win with my new teammates,” Diakité said. “They helped me a lot and especially the coach and Joe (Cole) talking to me all the time on the field. It felt great that we scored early, it gave me a lot of confidence in my debut. The fans were amazing and I’d like to thank them for my warm welcome. It was a great debut.”

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (July 25, 2018) — If you were impressed with new Tampa Bay Rowdies defender Papé Diakité’s performance in his club debut on Saturday night, wait until you hear about the week he had leading up to it.

New signings always involve a lot of moving parts, particularly when the player is overseas. Plane tickets must be purchased and visas must be applied for, in addition to all the standard red tape involved with contracts and registering players with the league office.

Diakité was home in his native Senegal last week when he agreed to sign with the Rowdies, setting the whole process in motion. 

While his future teammates were playing in Cincinnati on Saturday, July 14, Diakité was packing his bags for the trans-Atlantic move. While they were making the two-hour flight home to Tampa Bay from Cincinnati, Diakité was embarking on a much longer trip.

He flew eight hours from Dakar to New York and then boarded a three-hour flight to Tampa Bay, arriving Sunday afternoon.

After such a long journey, a nice, relaxing Monday would have been nice.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t on the docket.

Once his physical was completed first thing Monday morning, Diakité was straight into his new Rowdies uniform to play in a closed-door scrimmage in sweltering mid-morning heat at Al Lang Stadium. Diakité played 45 minutes, giving the Rowdies coaching staff a chance to see him play in person and assess his physical condition.

While the majority of his teammates underwent a regular training session Tuesday, Diakité and the group of players that had played Monday participated in a recovery session.

On Wednesday morning, Diakité finally got to train with the full Rowdies roster for the first time. In a normal week, Wednesday is the most grueling session for the players before the intensity of training is pared down to get everybody fresh and ready for the upcoming match.

Because of that, Thursday was another recovery session.

Fridays before Saturday matches are very light, more like a walkthrough for the match than a proper training session.

By the time kickoff of Saturday night’s match rolled around, Diakité had only really trained with the Rowdies once.

“I had one and a half training sessions before I made my debut,” Diakité said. “It was pretty crazy. I don’t think a lot of people know that. I always play with passion and with hunger, so it didn’t matter to me that I was tired and hadn’t really gotten to train with my new teammates.”

Throw in all the off-field stuff — paperwork, moving into a new apartment, video and photo shoots — and it was a taxing week for Diakité. It’s understandable why he started suffering from cramps around the 70th minute and ultimately exited the match in the 84th.

“It’s a rough time (joining a new club,)” Diakité said. “I didn’t get as much rest as I needed and the humidity was tough to deal with. I was dead. I felt fine fitness-wise, but I just felt heavy-legged because of the humidity and travel.”

You wouldn’t have known that by watching him play Saturday night, when he bossed the Indy Eleven attack around to the tune of eight clearances and two interceptions. To help the Rowdies win in his debut made all the hassle worth it.

“It feels great because I got a win with my new teammates,” Diakité said. “They helped me a lot and especially the coach and Joe (Cole) talking to me all the time on the field. It felt great that we scored early, it gave me a lot of confidence in my debut. The fans were amazing and I’d like to thank them for my warm welcome. It was a great debut.”

TAMPA, Fla. – Tampa Bay Rowdies midfielder Junior Flemmings has been voted the USL Player of the Week for Week 19 of the 2018 season. Flemmings notched a goal and two assists to lead the Rowdies to a 3-1 victory against Indy Eleven this past Saturday night, a win that provided a major boost to Tampa Bay’s playoff hopes.

Flemmings received 67 percent of the poll conducted by a national panel of independent media representing every USL market. FC Cincinnati’s Forrest Lasso and the Swope Park Rangers’ Christian Herrera finished tied for second place with 11 percent apiece.

USL Team of the Week
GK – Christian Herrera, Swope Park Rangers: Herrera produced numerous spectacular stops as part of a seven-save shutout to earn the Rangers a 0-0 draw with Rio Grande Valley FC on Sunday.

D – Forrest Lasso, FC Cincinnati: Lasso scored his first two goals of the season, as FC Cincinnati took victories against both the Charlotte Independence and New York Red Bulls II.

D – Taylor Mueller, Charleston Battery: Mueller was strong in the center of defense for the Battery, winning three tackles and recording nine clearances in 1-0 victory against Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC.

D – Nana Attakora, Ottawa Fury FC: Attakora recorded 13 clearances and completed 21 of 24 passes to help Fury FC record a shutout in its 2-0 victory against Nashville SC on Saturday night.

M – Aodhan Quinn, Orange County SC: Quinn had a goal and two assists, as Orange County took four points from its road trip through the Midwest in contests against the Swope Park Rangers and Saint Louis FC.

M – Junior Flemmings, Tampa Bay Rowdies: Flemmings recorded a goal and two assists to lead the Rowdies to a 3-1 victory against Indy Eleven on Saturday night at Al Lang Stadium.

M – Charlie Ward, San Antonio FC: Ward scored an outstanding first professional goal to cap a performance that saw him complete 59 of 65 passes to help San Antonio to a 4-2 win against Real Monarchs SLC.

M – Sebastian Velasquez, Real Monarchs SLC: Velasquez scored both Monarchs goals, the first an outstanding solo effort, in a losing effort as Real fell 4-2 to San Antonio FC.

F – Marty Maybin, Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC: Maybin scored twice, as the Switchbacks took a 4-2 victory against Tulsa Roughnecks FC that provided a major boost to their playoff hopes.

F – Ilija Ilic, Louisville City FC: Ilic had a goal and assist, completed 25 of 30 passes overall and had four key passes, as Louisville swept to a 4-1 victory against the Charlotte Independence.

F – Daniel Rios, North Carolina FC: Rios had a goal and assist and completed 20 of 23 passes to help North Carolina FC to a 3-1 victory against Toronto FC II on Saturday night.

Bench: Joe Kuzminsky (CHS), Cristian Casseres Jr. (NY), Kyle Bekker (NC), Emmanuel Ledesma (CIN), Giovanni Godoy (OC), Omar Salgado (LV), Georgi Hristov (TBR)