Home vs. Loudoun United Preview

Date: Saturday August 17, 2024

Kickoff Time: 7:30 pm EST at Al Lang Stadium in St. Petersburg, FL 

Records: Tampa Bay Rowdies (40 pts 11W-7D-4L); Loudoun United FC (30 pts 8W-6D-8L)

Standings: The Rowdies are 3rd in the East and Loudoun United are 8th.      

Another road trip for the Rowdies has fans scratching their heads. The team is back home this weekend and only needs to travel across the bridge to St. Pete. This distance shouldn’t impact the players as much. Good thing, because they’re in need of a win to re-start their chase of those ahead of them in the standings, but also to avenge the loss to Loudoun in June – only the second ever in the history of this fixture. Get to Al Lang this Saturday to cheer them on!

Can we also blame the ref for this one???

Unfortunately, dear reader, there were no controversies in this one worthy of online discussion. It leaves the Rowdies with only themselves to blame, seemingly, as manager Robbie Neilson said afterwards. “Especially in the first half, I thought we were poor. We’re a team that wants to go and press teams, be aggressive and get after it. We were a couple yards off it all over the park.”

This game looked like another in a long run of away fixtures that Tampa Bay just didn’t show up for in large part. It all sounds harsh; but, it follows more than this one match against Phoenix. This column and Rowdies fans all season have frequently come to the same conclusion: there is something about playing away from Al Lang that saps the strength of the Green and Gold. 

So what is it that is sapping their strength? Travel is certainly daunting and professional athletes will feel the effects of cross-country flights in their most important extremities – their legs. Of course, it should be noted that all teams in the US have to take part in this. (Please keep in mind poor Spokane Velocity and Zephyr, with so few opponents even in the same time zone.) 

Away games are not the end-all be-all for a team’s season. Louisville City, for example, only have one more away win. (Their record of 16 wins and two draws beats our 11 and seven, respectively.) What has driven fans mad and filled so much digital space in these columns is the caliber of opponent that has taken points off the Rowdies when they’re away from home. 

The Rowdies drew Phoenix Rising this past weekend. It is their third week under the tenure of current head coach, Diego Gomez, who is serving on an interim basis. The match before was a 2-2 draw vs. Monterey Bay. Just inside the playoff spots in the West (which is better than we can say for Phoenix), the Californians lost at home to Birmingham Legion 2-1 on Saturday. 

The Rowdies have beaten the likes of Indy Eleven and Sacramento Republic on the road. In the meantime, they lost to Loudoun, drew with struggling Pittsburgh and North Carolina, and by the skin of their teeth managed to scrape past Hartford Athletic. The totality of these results could point to a different potential issue: complacency against lower-placed teams. 

While Tampa Bay has beaten New Mexico, Charleston, LouCity, and the aforementioned contenders, they also drew at home against a poor El Paso. Fans will remember that game for its SportsCenter Top Ten-worthy goal. It was a fluke of a goal and a fluke of a result. Still, they couldn’t rally to get past another that was and is now at the bottom of the Western Conference.  

One of the clubs that has taken full advantage of Tampa Bay’s charitable play this season comes to town this weekend. They are barely within the playoff places and will be looking to shore that up with another win against the Rowdies. What most fans would hope is a swatting-away-a-fly type of match could actually answer larger questions about the team in general this year. 

We can beat Loudoun… right?

Now we move onto that game with all the expectation and arrogance of fans who are used to feeling good. Tampa Bay has more than just a good reputation in the USL Championship. Supporters around the Bay (around the world even) know the Rowdies have been one result from being title contenders or winners on multiple occasions – hence the tone of this article. 

If one club is pushing for places near the top of the league and wants to challenge for the trophy, another that is one point above the playoff line should not be posing issues. As stated above, though, this is a true test for the Green and Gold. This is exactly the type of team that has caused headaches so far in 2024. 

To compare them on paper it looks like there is a clear favorite. The away team is still largely an academy for DC United in Major League Soccer. Loudoun United are unfortunately not well supported, likely stemming from that relationship. They have talented players, to be clear. But, DC still want to put their best youngsters on this team until they’re ready to help out in MLS.

While Tampa Bay has stepped up its youth involvement this year, it is clearly a club with ambition beyond being a stepping stone. The goal for Robbie Neilson, just as it was before him, is to win the league, win the playoffs, and drape some silverware in the team’s colors. Every point is crucial for achieving the highest possible playoff position and earning the best advantages. 

Hence the frustration with all those draws and losses listed above. If the Rowdies are the contenders the fanbase – and this columnist – think they are, these are matches that need to be won. Go and swat this team away. Put three points in the bag. Get closer to Charleston and Louisville ahead of us. Earn more home games in a playoff setting. 

So will they? Playing at home has benefits. There are, of course, fewer anomaly games at home than away from it. The supporters section will be loud on any given weekend. That can boost an ailing player. The question is: how much boost will they need? Will the importance of this game be apparent from the start? Or will it seem like they know they’re playing DC’s reserves?

If the Rowdies come out from the jump guns blazing, pressing out of possession, getting looks, and taking shots, that could be a good sign. (It will take more than just this one game to reverse a bad trend.) It is effectively the business end of the season already – if we can overlook the first part of the year. Now is the time to dial in for every game and every point on the line. This team has the talent to win when it wants. They must want it all the time. 

Score Predictions from the RBLR Rowdies Podcast:

Carlos: 3-0 W 

James: 1-0 W 

Yurika: 2-1 W