First Game Preview vs. Dallas Trinity
Date: Sunday August 18, 2024
Kickoff Time: 6:30 pm EST at Riverfront Stadium in Tampa, FL
Records: Tampa Bay Sun (0 pts 0W-0D-0L); Dallas Trinity FC (0 pts 0W-0D-0L)
Standings: This is the first game of the season.
How exciting it is to have a brand new professional soccer team in the Tampa Bay area! Under the United Soccer League umbrella the Sun will begin life in Tampa, only a short water taxi away from the heart of downtown! There isn’t much we know at this early stage to separate them from the competition; but, a great atmosphere can do wonders for those on the field. Get yourself and your family down to Blake High School on Sunday for an incredible, historic evening!
This is what we’ve all been waiting for!
After many months, the Tampa Bay Sun are less than a week away from taking the field for the first time ever. In their preseason friendly against Fort Lauderdale, a select number of fans got to see the renovations and views that await everyone who will see a match this season. There are players with patterns and formations and we will see the real thing this Sunday!
Before I can even discuss the game to come, it is necessary to note the conditions from this past weekend. The pitch looks amazing – as good as a turf field can. It is brand new and the typical black rubber pellets people know from their adult league games are not present. I was told avoiding carcinogens was the reason for that. Seems like a good idea to this columnist.
Additionally, the views around the stadium are immaculate. There are multiple views of the river behind the stands, a giant Sun banner hanging over the school itself, and all the room in the world for activities before and after a game (or during if you have small children). There should be a real party atmosphere when the serious business of playing soccer is paused.
Finally, a note on the location: this is a great place to host a sport. While it doesn’t appear the water taxi from Armature Works across the river is prepared yet, there are multiple short walks to cross it and those lead directly to Downtown Tampa. The amenities in and around Riverside Stadium legitimately make it one of the nicest in the league from the start.
With that out of the way, the soccer should be the foremost focus of this column. The roster is almost complete at this stage. Some players will not be available as soon as the season starts. However, because of the friendly against Fort Lauderdale, fans should have a relatively good idea about how this team should line up on Sunday.
Denise Schilte-Brown’s experience as a manager really shone through last weekend. She has capable players and she knows it. With them on the field, the Sun lined up in the formation du jour during much of the first half, the 3-2-5. It is common from Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City to every club aspiring to play like Pep’s City – which is most of them.
Jordyn Listro started as the right back (captaining the squad) and would come into the middle as the second of that midfield 2 when in possession. Wasila Diwura-Soale, the #6 on the roster, lived up to her number and played as the defensive midfielder, shielding the backline and looking for passes to the playmakers, mostly out wide.
The left back, Brooke Denesik, would push up to add numbers while either Sydney Nasello or Ashley Clark-Lemieux would look to come inside and combine with the striker. That striker, Riley Parker, was able to help bring both wingers and her two more attacking midfielders, Carlee Giammona or Erika Tymrak, into the play. This should create positive situations for attackers.
What do we know about Dallas Trinity?
Similar to our column related to the preseason friendly vs. Fort Lauderdale United, precious little. While our most immediate rivals from South Florida showed how they would handle the Sun’s play, Dallas doesn’t have much of a track record to speak of yet. Their manager, Pauline MacDonald, also doesn’t have a well known record, despite years of managing before now.
All of her experience as a coach comes with the Scotland under-17 women’s national team. It is safe to assume she will have a lot of tactical nous and the ability to apply it to a changing set of players. However, unless one has access to UEFA’s competitions for all age groups, it’s unlikely to have any idea of her preferences.
Defensively, MacDonald will have players who have played in Scotland, New Zealand, and the NWSL before. They will be at least familiar with Schilte-Brown’s preferred formation. Whether or not they can prevent chances from developing is another question. It wasn’t always the most fluid this past weekend; but, that’s to be expected this early on in the season.
DSB’s charges will get more comfortable with each other and develop more understanding of each other’s preferences as time goes on. Passes that were mistimed will happen less frequently and players will know where they need to be to open up the right options depending on who has the ball. “Can she hit it long? Can she put it where I need it?” All in due time.
The other issue when a team is just getting started comes from depth. While the Sun are currently unable to call on certain players, they have access to others. Several players not listed on the first team took to the field against Fort Lauderdale. Right now, it’s impossible to say which of those should be available on Sunday for the opener vs. Dallas.
However, many of them looked like they could handle the pace of the senior level – at least reasonably well. If a player goes down or just needs to be subbed after running in the hot and humid August sun, these younger players (who appeared to be there as part of an academy partnership) can step in and play a major role.
Perusing Dallas’ roster to the best of anyone’s ability, from what is available online, it appears as though there are some players with good experience. Looking past a starting XI, that may not be the case, though. Multiple players are just out of college and might not have professional-level know-how. They will need to lean on the older players and their manager more than others.
Chioma Ubogagu, Cyera Hintzen, and Allie Thornton will be Dallas’ most potent attacking threats. These are all players with a true wealth of experience. Tampa Bay’s Listro and center back Brooke Hendrix will be in charge of directing the players ahead of them to prevent chances from even developing. If they can do their jobs well and lead from the back, the pressing fans saw in spurts vs. Fort Lauderdale could lead the Sun from being out of possession to getting shots within seconds.
This is the first chance to take in professional women’s soccer in Tampa Bay. People could start their day at Armature Works, on a Hillsborough River taxi, across the water on the Riverwalk, or down the street at Hooch and Hive. Whatever your plans are, make sure they include the game on Sunday evening. The club wants to make this a sell-out – and they need your help to do it!
Score Predictions from the RBLR Sun Podcast:
Liz: 2-1 W
Tom: 3-2 W
James: 4-0 W
Yurika: 2-0 W
