Away to FLOOTD Preview
Date: Sunday November 10, 2024
Kickoff Time: 5:00 pm EST at New Stadium at NSU in Davie, FL
Records: Tampa Bay Sun (12 pts 3W-3D-3L); Fort Lauderdale United FC (10 pts 3W-1D-4L)
Standings: The Sun are 4th in the Super League and Fort Lauderdale are 5th.
Getting your first home win and doing it in style really puts the nerves at ease. The Sun were unable to break the deadlock in the first half; but, they exploded into life for the second. Lexington could not keep them out, and Cecilie Floe continued her hot start to life in Florida. Now this week, they will head to the southern part of the state to reignite a feud between this region and Fort Lauderdale. If you’re not traveling to watch the game, tune in to see how it goes on Sunday!
How many doubles will Floe score this season?
Through five games since making her debut, Cecilie Floe has four goals. Those only came in two matches; but, obviously this is cause for celebration. One of the harder things for the Sun to put together over the start of the season has been a consistent attacking threat. With Tash Flint now getting off the mark as well, it’s possible this becomes mostly a problem of the past.
Of course, it should be noted here that Floe and Flint scored from rather unlikely positions. It would be premature to say that all attacking issues are gone. While it’s good to see these two put the team on their backs, that is not easy to replicate again and again – and certainly not against clubs with a better defensive record than Lexington.
At moments, it was the visitors who looked most likely to go ahead. They hit the post twice in the second half. They also had a great chance off a corner kick about ten minutes before finding the back of the net from another. Tampa Bay manager Denise Schilte-Brown noted that this was even something she had talked with her team about beforehand, sadly to no avail on Saturday.
But, the match ended with a victory for her side. That is always positive, as it jumped them up the table into what would be a playoff position were the season called today. To stay in that position when it actually does come to a close, there still needs to be improvement in connecting the attack and the defense. That has been a common refrain in this column.
While Jade Moore and Jordyn Listro continue to develop an understanding of each other, the link between them and Floe or Flint up top is where DSB will be focused. In the post game press conference, another thing their coach noted was how they don’t want to revert to a team that just plays the hit-it-and-hope balls until something finally goes their way.
Instead, she said they would prefer to play attractive, attacking soccer. This is understandable and even admirable. What’s also understandable, then, is that there will be some kinks to work out along the way. Listro’s importance is underlined every game.
Ahead of her, though, the most frequent starters, Sydny Nasello and Carlee Giammona, continue to work out the timing of their runs to open up space for each other and those around them. It’s the duty of left back Kristen Edmonds and right back Talia Staude to get wide down the flanks. This whole bunch at times needs a little too long to combine in an effective way.
Fans will be hopeful that while these bits and pieces are put more in line, the strikers up top can paste over any problems behind them. If it keeps up like this weekend, that’s not a bad bet to make. However, as mentioned, Lexington have a leaky defense – the worst in the league. So it’s far from a given that Floe and Flint can do this every week if they’re asked to.
Do we have to hate Fort Lauderdale on principle?
While the Sun have managed to turn things around following a less-than-stellar road trip, their opponents this week are in the Super League doldrums, having lost their three straight. The normal response for any Tampa Bay-native would be to laugh. Soccer in Florida goes back farther than in a lot of places around the US. Specifically it goes back in Tampa and Fort Lauderdale.
On the men’s side of things, the Tampa Bay Rowdies and Fort Lauderdale Strikers used to play each other in the old North American Soccer League throughout the 70s. While professional women’s soccer was a long way away back then, you can rest assured that there are people around both soccer communities who remember how things were.
Healthy, non-violent or -criminal rivalries (I’m looking at you, Orlando) are helpful to the soccer landscape in America. It drives narrative and brings in extra focus where often the sport can get overlooked. If the idea of a Floridian derby puts this on more local news channels throughout the state, all the better for both teams at these early stages of their being.
So maybe “hate” isn’t the right word. But, as Dr. Cox once said on Scrubs, “I megaloathe you all,” Fort Lauderdale. With that out of the way, the newest iteration of an ancient (?) rivalry kicks off this weekend. Tampa Bay fans should try to get down there and make sure all those South Floridians know which fanbase is best. On the field, it’ll help the Sun to compete as well.
This appears to be a good time to travel there as well, with the aforementioned losses stacking up. Only one of those was at home; although, the opponent is interesting. After struggling to overcome Lexington, Tampa Bay was able to strike first and ultimately put the match to bed. This was only a few weeks after the club from Kentucky beat FLOOTD on the road.
If all signs point up, what could be the possible pitfalls in the Sun’s path? There’s the playing side of things and then there are the players. One name to know is Addison McCain, or Addie for short. With six goals this season, she leads her club in that metric. With NWSL experience, the Texan is a potential force in the USL Super League.
If the Sun can shut off distribution to her, they should be in good shape. Fort Lauderdale have had trouble connecting lately – even more than the Sun have. United’s two wingers, Gianna Gourley and Sh’Nia Gordon, have been a big part of their attacking play so far. This means that while Edmonds and Staude look to get forward, they will need to watch their back all the while.
If the Sun can get a win here, it will be more than just three points. FLOOTD are the only club Tampa Bay hasn’t played yet. (They were due to meet earlier in the season before hurricanes postponed that.) This should be the opening salvo of hopefully decades-long rivalry. You only get the chance to get that first win once. DSB will know that as a long-time Tampa resident.
Score Predictions from the RBLR Sun Podcast:
Liz: 1-1 D
Tom: 3-0 W
Yurika: 2-1 W
James: 1-0 W
