Tampa Bay 1-1 Brooklyn Review

Date: Saturday February 22, 2025

Result: Tampa Bay 1-1 Brooklyn FC

Records: Tampa Bay Sun (22 pts 5W-7D-4L); Brooklyn FC (30 pts 9W-3D-3L)

Standings: The Sun have dropped to 5th in the table.      

Another week in 2025 and another draw for the Sun. While this was likely the most impressive among those games, points are still hard to come by for Tampa Bay. At this moment, they sit outside the playoff positions, which only allot four spots. There is no reason to panic about that while we’re still in February. But, the results will have to come sooner rather than later. 

How did we handle Brooklyn?

In this column last week, I predicted (hoped for?) a little bit of rust from the visiting side. That was not what fans saw when Brooklyn stepped onto the field to take on their beloved Sun. In fact, the away team was up for the game, flying into tackles and passing as if they’d never been away. Tampa Bay handled the onslaught, though, and came out with their heads held high. 

Sitting deeper to start the game, the Sun absorbed early pressure while finding their feet. Head Coach Denise Schilte-Brown had prepared for this, stating after the game, “it might have looked like [Brooklyn] had the better run of the game. But, for the most part, when they did have the ball, it was behind our block, so we were allowing them to have that possession. Once they entered, I think we managed it well.”

She continued, saying that her side began to add more pressure when they didn’t have the ball. “When we started playing in higher blocks, it was difficult for them to manage us.” This was true for the goal, as Tampa Bay won the ball three different times in the opposition half before anything could develop into a shot at goal. Jade Moore was the unlikely benefactor in the end. 

“It was something the coaching staff have asked of me: to affect play a little bit more going forward,” Moore said. “I was actually being pretty lazy in that moment. I actually swapped with Tash as a nine. I was like, ‘you go be a midfielder for a minute.’ And I found myself in the nine-position.” Flint’s through ball to Moore went into the box, and the latter stroked it home. 

After the match, manager Schilte-Brown praised her squad as having done nearly everything she asked of them. Naturally, it’s not the case that they could prevent every shot Brooklyn sent their way. However, they were mostly able to limit the New Yorkers to taking their chances from far out, meaning every attempt on target had a lower chance of going in. 

The thing about Brooklyn is, even if you can limit their shots to worse positions, they can still punish you. Keeper Ashley Orkus made a number of big saves; but, she couldn’t do anything about the hit from Mackenzie Pluck in the 57th minute. The midfielder was free at the top of the 18-yard box and had all the time in the world to set herself. That’s where the team could’ve done better.  

Still, maintaining this scoreline against the league leaders is nothing to sneeze at. The Sun are currently in the middle of a transition from the formation they used for the whole first half of the season to a three-at-the-back system with wingbacks stepping into the attack. Most players are getting used to new responsibilities and new positioning to be more effective in this setup. 

The manager made note of a specific metric, “aggressive actions,” in the press conference, stating they intended to do better in that facet of the game. While fans will always be looking for more goals, DSB and her charges will point to improvements made in these stats as important to the overall game. As players return from injury and international duty, the team’s ability to press with that desired intensity will go up. 

Players of the Game: 

Liz: Paige Almendariz

Tom: Jade Moore

RBLR Score Predictions Standings:

Lizzie: 15

Tom: 8

Yurika: 7

James: 7