News

The Basics
Bethlehem Steel FC vs. Tampa Bay Rowdies
Saturday, June 22, 5 p.m. ET
Goodman Stadium, Bethlehem, Pa.
Follow us for live updates on Twitter at @RowdiesGameday

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

Records
Bethlehem: 4-7-4 (W-L-T), 10th place; 2-5-3 at home 
Tampa Bay: 8-1-6 (W-L-T), 1st place; 4-0-2 on road

Rowdies Notes
The Tampa Bay Rowdies have seen their cushion at the top of the Eastern Conference standings slip to just one point following a loss and a draw in their last two matches. Tampa Bay conceded a late goal to Charleston in the 88th minute of last week’s match to drop two points in a 1-1 draw.

Sebastian Guenzatti scored his team-high seventh goal of the season last week to put the Rowdies ahead in the 39th minute. He scored five goals last season and was Tampa Bay’s leading returning scorer. He has started every USL Championship match this season.

Flipping a trend from recent seasons on its head, the Rowdies have actually been much better away from Al Lang Stadium this season than at home. Tampa Bay has averaged 2.33 points per game on the road with a record of 4-0-2 (W-L-T), compared to 1.78 points per game at home. The Rowdies were 4-10-3 away from home last season and 3-6-7 in 2017.

The Rowdies will be without midfielder Dom Oduro this week while he serves a one-game suspension due to yellow card accumulation. This is Oduro’s second suspension of the season. He previously missed the win over Swope Park on May 25 after being red carded May 18. He has played in every league match this season for which he was not suspended.

More than one-fifth of the Rowdies roster has previously played for the Philadelphia Union or Bethlehem Steel in their careers. Goalkeepers Chris Konopka and John McCarthy, midfielder Leo Fernandes and forward Antoine Hoppenot were all on the Union roster at some point, while forward Brandon Allen started last season with Bethlehem on a USL contract.

After a lengthy injury layoff, Yann Ekra returned to action last week with a 10-minute cameo off the bench against the Battery. It was his first action since sustaining an ankle injury in training on April 20. Prior to his injury, Ekra has featured in all six matches of the season.

Suspended
Dom Oduro (yellow card accumulation)

Injury Report
DOUBTFUL – Jaime Siaj (quad strain)
QUESTIONABLE – Leo Fernandes (hamstring)
QUESTIONABLE – Andrew Tinari (groin)
PROBABLE – Shawn Barry (ribs)

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (June 19, 2019) – Jordan Doherty is the youngest player to appear in a league match in the Modern Era of the Tampa Bay Rowdies and is among the youngest to ever feature for the Rowdies going all the way back to the Golden Era Rowdies in 1975.

But to him, this is nothing new.

Doherty is just 18 years old but he’s been at this a while. He left his native Ireland shortly after turning 15 to pursue a career in the sport, moving across the Irish Sea to join the youth academy at Sheffield United.

By the time he was 17, he was playing up two age groups for Sheffield’s Under 23s. As if playing with young men six years older wasn’t a responsibility enough, Doherty actually captained the team of his much older peers.

“I first captained the U23s when I was 17,” he said. “I felt very honored to do that. For the manager to put that trust in me at a young age and give me the chance to lead the boys was really special.”

Fast forward a year and Doherty has again crossed the water to join a team as its youngest member. He is with the Rowdies on a season-long loan from Sheffield United. Doherty made his professional debut in the Rowdies season opener, coming off the bench in the final minutes to help close out a 1-0 road win over Memphis 901 FC.

To him, it was just the next step in a burgeoning career. But to the Rowdies, it was hugely significant to have a player as young as 18 playing in meaningful matches.

“In England there’s a lot of players even younger than 18 making their first team debuts even at 16 or 17 years old,” Doherty said. “When I came over here, people reacted as if I was a baby, which I thought was pretty funny. My opinion is if you’re good enough to play, age doesn’t matter.”

Doherty has continued to prove his worth this year, appearing in nine matches so far primarily as a defensive midfielder. This year, he’s won half his tackles and more than half of his duels while completing 74 percent of his passes and drawing more than twice as many fouls as he concedes.

“People like me, Caleb (Richards) and Juan (Tejada) are just starting our professional careers but we were welcomed right away and it’s been unbelievable the way we all get along and enjoy our time together,” he said. “Everyone’s getting on and there’s a really good mentality where we all push each other to be better every single day.”

With Dom Oduro suspended this week due to yellow card accumulation, Doherty figures to be in the conversation to make his sixth start of the campaign this Saturday evening on the road against Bethlehem Steel FC.

“I’ve been really enjoying my time here and working hard on the training pitch,” Doherty said. “Once I’m playing I’m enjoying myself and I work really hard for the team. I just want to learn as much as I can from the players around me and the coaches. I want to get as many minutes as I can on the pitch and hopefully win a championship. That’s something I really want to achieve this year.”

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (June 16, 2019) – The Tampa Bay Rowdies came up just short of a victory Saturday night, conceding an equalizer off a set piece in the 88th minute to draw 1-1 against the Charleston Battery.

Here’s Three Things from the match…

1. Stats not enough
It was another statistical domination for the Rowdies on Saturday night as the fatigued Battery came with a clear gameplan and executed it well. Charleston is always a good team and one the Rowdies have traditionally struggled against. Tampa Bay has only beaten the Battery once in seven all-time meetings. Charleston’s plan was to sit in deep, keep the Rowdies outside the 18-yard box and hope for a set piece or two to try and score.

The Rowdies had 68.2 percent of possession (a season-high) and completed 586 passes (also a season-high) but they simply didn’t have the cutting edge to turn those advantages into a win. For comparison, Charleston completed only 280 passes.

“Our general, all-around play was slacking the sharpness that we’ve had,” Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins said. “I thought at times in the first half we played some excellent stuff, moved the ball well and we could cut them open but when we got the goal I thought we’d move on from that. But we’re definitely a team that needs to learn how to play when we’re ahead. I think we maybe took a backwards step and started making some poor decisions. It’s definitely a learning process.”

2. Guenzatti fires again
Rowdies forward Sebastian Guenzatti continued his positive start to the season Saturday night, firing home his seventh goal of the year to pace the Rowdies. Seven goals in 15 matches is a healthy return of a goal just about every other game. Guenzatti opened the year with two penalties in the Rowdies first three matches, but all five goals since then have come from open play or corner kicks.

He completed more than 80 percent of his passes, hit the target with every shot he took and won more duels than he lost.

3. Some healthy, some not
Rowdies midfielder Yann Ekra returned to the field last night for the first time since April 13 after missing two months with an ankle injury. Defender Shawn Barry was on the bench for the first time since sustaining a rib injury in Nashville on May 8. That appearance came after Barry had missed three matches with an ankle injury.

Ekra and Barry were both key players in the early season for the Rowdies. Ekra played in all six matches before his injury, while Barry played in all but one, missing the Saint Louis FC match while on international duty with Puerto Rico.

While those two players are just about ready to return after two long injury layoffs, the Rowdies were without Andrew Tinari and Leo Fernandes due to minor injuries on Saturday night. Fernandes hasn’t played since May 28 due to a hamstring injury, while Tinari exited last weekend’s match before halftime with a groin injury. Fernandes and Tinari alone count for eight of the 14 assists the Rowdies have this season, perhaps explaining why the offense didn’t quite click into high gear against Charleston. Neither is expected to be out too much longer.

ST. PETERSUBURG, Fla. (Jun. 15, 2019) – The Tampa Bay Rowdies came up a couple minutes short of a victory Saturday night, conceding late to draw 1-1 with the Charleston Battery at Al Lang Stadium.

Sebastian Guenzatti’s 39th minute goal looked to be the game-winner but Battery forward Ian Svantesson scored in the 88th minute to earn a result for his side.

The Rowdies (8-1-6, 30 points) remain atop the Eastern Conference standings after drawing their first match since May 1.

“It’s a point and we’ll try and keep it in perspective,” Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins said. “It’s definitely two points dropped, although (Charleston) might think the same. For ourselves, it’s definitely a disappointing result but, more than anything, a disappointing performance.”

Charleston (5-3-6, 21 points) nearly scored in the opening minute only for Nicque Daley to push his shot wide.

The Rowdies were the better team on the night, dominating the ball and shots, but the Battery hung tough in difficult conditions after playing 120 minutes in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Thursday night before traveling to Florida.

It was a well-deserved lead when Sebastian Guenzatti scored his team-high seventh goal of the year to put the Rowdies up 1-0 shortly before halftime. He let a pass from Malik Johnson run across his body and stepped around one defender before firing a right-footed shot to beat Battery goalkeeper Joe Kuzminsky.

Tampa Bay had a number of chances to double its lead but ultimately couldn’t convert. Just four of the 17 shots the Rowdies tallied were on target.

On the other hand, Charleston provided good value with six shots on target of nine total. The Battery did it with just 32 percent possession.

The Battery scored in the 88th minute off a long free kick that was nodded toward target by Jarad van Schaik and then tapped in by Svantesson to tie the match at 1-1.

“One hundred percent (we needed a second goal,)” Collins said. “We should have scored a second goal. We didn’t play well enough. Although we had chances, they were poor in the second half. … I thought the second half was probably the poorest we’ve been. We got what we deserved, ultimately.”

Tampa Bay now faces the prospect of going back on the road to take on Bethlehem Steel FC next weekend at a venue to be announced. The Rowdies will return home Saturday, June 29 to host Ottawa Fury FC. Tickets are available here.

Scoring Summary
Tampa Bay: Sebastian Guenzatti – 39th minute (assisted by Malik Johnson)
Charleston: Ian Svantesson – 88th minute (assisted by Arthur Bosua)

Caution Summary
Charleston: Kyle Nelson – 29th minute
Tampa Bay: Sebastian Guenzatti – 58th minute
Tampa Bay: Dom Oduro – 86th minute
Charleston: Nico Rittmeyer – 90th minute

Starting Lineups
Rowdies XI (3-5-2): GK John McCarthy; D Tarek Morad, Pape Diakite, Caleb Richards; M Malik Johnson, Kwadwo Poku (Yann Ekra 80′), Zach Steinberger, Dom Oduro, David Najem (Jordan Doherty 75′); F Sebastian Guenzatti (c), Brandon Allen (Juan Tejada 63′)

Charleston XI: GK Joe Kuzminsky; D Kyle Nelson (Nico Rittmeyer 49′), Taylor Mueller (c), Jarad van Schaik, AJ Paterson; M Romario Piggott (Dante Marini 68′), Vincenzo Candela, Angelo Kelly, Kotaro Higashi; F Arthur Bosua, Nicque Daley (Ian Svantesson 82′)

The Basics
Tampa Bay Rowdies vs. Charleston Battery
Saturday, June 15, 6:30 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 5:30 p.m., 60 minutes before kickoff. Fans that purchased a Rays to Rowdies doubleheader package can enter the stadium via the Midfield Gate on 1st St. SE at 4:30 p.m. for the pregame party.

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

Records
Tampa Bay: 8-1-5 (W-L-T), 1st place; 4-1-3 at home 
Charleston: 5-3-5 (W-L-T), 8th place; 1-3-1 on road

Rowdies Notes
The Tampa Bay Rowdies will look to bounce back from their first loss of the USL Championship season tonight against the Charleston Battery. The Rowdies were beaten 3-1 by North Carolina FC at home last weekend, but remain in first place at nearly the halfway point of the regular season.

Zach Steinberger came off the bench last week to score his second league goal of the season in the 54th minute, receiving a long outlet pass from Tarek Morad and chipping it over North Carolina goalkeeper Alex Tambakis with his first touch. Steinberger also scored in the Second Round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, so he has three goals in all competitions this year.

Following Saturday’s defeat, the Rowdies are now 4-1-3 at home for an average of 1.88 points per game this year in eight matches at Al Lang Stadium. Tampa Bay has been about a half point better on the road, averaging 2.33 points per game away from home.

David Najem is back this week after missing last week’s match while away on international duty. He made his international debut and played 90 minutes for Afghanistan against Tajikistan last week in Dushanbe. Najem returned to Florida and trained regularly this week.

After a lengthy injury layoff, Yann Ekra is just about set to return to action. He suffered an ankle injury in training on April 20 and missed a total of 10 matches in all competitions. He was available off the bench last week but did not enter the game. He had played in all six matches the Rowdies played before his injury.

John McCarthy finished as runner-up for the USL Championship Player of the Month award for May. He won the fan vote over eventual player of the month Jerome Keisewetter from El Paso Locomotive FC.

Injury Report
DOUBTFUL – Jaime Siaj (quad strain)
QUESTIONABLE – Shawn Barry (ribs)
QUESTIONABLE – Leo Fernandes (hamstring)
QUESTIONABLE – Andrew Tinari (groin)
PROBABLE – Yann Ekra (ankle)

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (June 14, 2019) — Tampa Bay Rowdies forward Juan Tejada has received his first national team call-up and is set to join Panama’s Under-23 team for Olympic qualifying in July.

Tejada and Panama will take on El Salvador in a two-legged series at this stage of qualification. The winner of the series will advance to the eight-team final qualifying round.

This will be Tejada’s first involvement with Panama’s national team and is just the latest step in his blossoming career. Tejada played college soccer at nearby Eckerd College and played amateur soccer for the Lakeland Tropics in USL League Two. He joined the Rowdies this season as a preseason trialist and earned not only his first professional contract, but also regular playing time.

Tejada has played in all 14 league matches for the Rowdies this season, starting nine of them. He is second on the team in scoring with four goals.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (June 9, 2019) – The Tampa Bay Rowdies have finally lost a USL Championship match in 2019, falling 3-1 to North Carolina FC to end a 13-game unbeaten run. Zach Steinberger gave the Rowdies a lifeline with a beautiful goal in the second half, but it wasn’t meant to be.

Here’s Three Things from the match…

1. Beaten at last
The Rowdies have finally been beaten in league play. The first loss of the season came on June 8, obviously the latest date the Rowdies have suffered their first defeat of the year, despite starting this season on March 9, the earliest date in 10 years of modern history.

While it would make some logical sense that the Rowdies can now breathe a little easier without the pressure of playing with a lengthy unbeaten run on their minds, Head Coach Neill Collins politely pushed back on that notion Saturday night in his press conference. Surely the Rowdies couldn’t have gone an entire season unbeaten, right? Maybe, maybe not.

“This group doesn’t realize just how good they are,” Collins said. “You say we can’t go undefeated, but why not? I’ve seen Celtic in the Scottish Premier League recently go unbeaten. They’ve won nine out of nine trophies. You set your own standards and that’s what this group have been doing, so they won’t feel, ‘Oh it’s ok to lose a game because you went 13 unbeaten.’ The aim now is to get to one game unbeaten and that’s what we’ll start to work for Monday.”

Even after losing, the Rowdies remain in first place in the Eastern Conference, just with a smaller gap than before. Tampa Bay leads New York Red Bulls II by three points but the Red Bulls have a game in hand. The Rowdies will attempt to bounce back next weekend at home against the Charleston Battery.

2. Changing on the fly
The Rowdies had a rare subpar night defensively Saturday night, conceding three goals in one match after conceding a total of four goals in the 13 matches prior. Tampa Bay trailed 1-0 at halftime, its first halftime deficit since March 23 and just its second all season.

Collins responded with an aggressive substitution at the break, replacing center back Mohamed Kone with forward Antoine Hoppenot to try and create a little more offensively. The new look almost immediately took a hit with Dre Fortune scoring his second goal of the match in the 48th minute, but the Rowdies did settle into rhythm and play an inspired second half until North Carolina’s third goal but a damper on things.

Hoppenot created two chances and put both of his shots on target, but North Carolina goalkeeper Alex Tambakis had a great night in goal to make six saves. The Rowdies outshot their opponent 17-4 overall but only managed one goal from their seven shots on target. Conversely, North Carolina scored three times from three shots on goal.

3. Steinberger scores
While the Rowdies will be disappointed to lose, they can take some joy in Zach Steinberger’s spectacular goal in the second half.

Tampa Bay had recovered possession in their own half and Steinberger made a great run in behind North Carolina’s defenders while Tarek Morad had the ball at his feet. Morad deserves a ton of credit for spotting the run and playing the exact kind of pass the run needed, lobbing the ball forward for Steinberger to run onto.

With the North Carolina backline badly beaten, Tambakis had to leave his line and try to make a play near the top of his box, but Steinberger beat him with a beautiful little chip for his second goal in league play this year. It was one of the nicest goals in recent memory at Al Lang. 

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (June 8, 2019) – For much of the second half, it felt like the Tampa Bay Rowdies would rally from a 2-0 deficit to extend their unbeaten run and earn a tough result, but it wasn’t ultimately meant to be as the Rowdies fell 3-1 to North Carolina FC in this first loss of the USL Championship season.

Tampa Bay conceded in the first half and fell to 2-0 down in the 48th minute before coming to life in a big way. Rowdies midfielder Zach Steinberger cut the deficit to 2-1 with a chip over North Carolina goalkeeper Alex Tambakis in the 54th minute. Steven Miller’s goal for the visitors in the 77th minute put the game out of reach once and for all.

The Rowdies didn’t play poorly on the night, despite the score. Tampa Bay outshot North Carolina 17-4 and racked up nearly 60 percent possession in the loss. The Rowdies had conceded four goals in 13 league matches prior to Saturday and nearly allowed that total over the course of the 90 minutes.

“That’s football,” Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins said. “You’ve got to give credit to North Carolina. They came here with a gameplan and the second goal gave them a great platform, but equally, there were moments in the game where we had some great play and just didn’t capitalize on it. That’s just football. It’s happened before and it’ll happen again. Hopefully we’re on the other end more often than not.”

Dre Fortune’s opening goal for North Carolina was basically the first chance of the match for either side. North Carolina took advantage of the Rowdies inability to clear a ball in the box and Nazmi Albadawi slipped the ball through the lines for Fortune to finish.

Tampa Bay had chances for the remainder of the first half but couldn’t find a way past Tambakis before halftime. The goalkeeper recorded six saves on the night.

Just after halftime, the Rowdies were caught out defensively as Donovan Ewolo found Fortune free in the box for a first-time finish past John McCarthy in net.

Steinberger’s goal in the 54th minute was a clever chip past Tambakis to give the Rowdies momentum in the second half.

Ultimately, the Rowdies couldn’t capitalize on that momentum as shot after shot bounced just wide or was saved.

North Carolina killed the match off in the rain as Steven Miller’s shot slipped through McCarthy’s gloves and went just inside the post to make the score 3-1.

“It’s a disappointing night, still I think the team gave it all until the end,” Rowdies captain Sebastian Guenzatti said. “We couldn’t find the goal. They scored two very good goals. … We leave disappointed but with our heads high because it’s our first loss of the season. We have to stay focused and get back to work during the week.”

Even with the loss, the Rowdies remain in first place in the USL Championship’s Eastern Conference heading into next week’s match against the Charleston Battery at Al Lang Stadium. That match is part of the first-ever Rays to Rowdies doubleheader event. It will follow the Rays vs. Los Angeles Angels game at Tropicana Field at 1:10 p.m. Combined ticket packages are available here.

Scoring Summary
North Carolina: Dre Fortune – 19th minute (assisted by Nazmi Albadawi)
North Carolina: Dre Fortune – 48th minute (assisted by Donovan Ewolo)
Tampa Bay: Zach Steinberger – 54th minute (assisted by Tarek Morad)
North Carolina: Steven Miller – 77th minute (assisted by Ben Speas)

Caution Summary
North Carolina: Nazmi Albadawi – 28th minute
Tampa Bay: Antoine Hoppenot – 61st minute

Starting Lineups
Rowdies XI (3-5-2): GK John McCarthy; D Mohamed Kone (Antoine Hoppenot 46′), Pape Diakite, Tarek Morad; M Malik Johnson, Kwadwo Poku, Andrew Tinari (Zach Steinberger 45+1′), Dom Oduro, Caleb Richards; F Sebastian Guenzatti (c) (Brandon Allen 74′), Juan Tejada

North Carolina XI (4-5-1): GK Alex Tambakis; D Sam Brotherton, Alex Comsia, DJ Taylor, Aaron Guillen; M Ben Speas (Austin Panchot 78′), Graham Smith, Dre Fortune (Viktor Igbekoyi 80′), Nazmi Albadawi, Steven Miller (c); F Donovan Ewolo (Robert Kristo 85′)