Rowdies Unable To Score In Draw Against San Antonio
Tampa Bay Rowdies were away in San Antonio, Texas this past Saturday. Neither team were able to find the back of the net, and the match ended in a 0-0 draw.
Coming off an impressive win against Birmingham Legion FC, Tampa Bay Rowdies looked to keep their momentum going.
The Rowdies started off the match well, passing the ball around well and shooting on target. One of my biggest issues with the team this season is their refusal to shoot the ball from outside the box. This was a nice breath of fresh air to see the team taking shots from range.
Russell Cicerone had a great shot from distance that barely missed the goal. After receiving the ball from Charlie Ostrem in space, Cicerone fired on his right foot from the corner of the box. The shot just went wide of the San Antonio net.
In the 31st minute, a nice pass found Emil Cuello in space, with Rowdie fullback Dion Acoff tracking back. Cuello attempted the shot, with Ethan Bartlow getting a very nice block to deny the effort. The chance fizzled away after Acoff was fouled in the box moments later.
The halftime whistle went with the score at 0-0.
San Antonio were the better team in the second half. Jahmali Waite played really well in the second half, making save after save.
In the 60th minute, after a poor giveaway from the Rowdies defense, Akeem Ward found himself with a great opportunity to shoot. A desperate Max Schneider slide tackle blocked the effort and cleared it out for a corner.
In the 87th minute, a point-blank shot was saved by a strong forearm save by Jahmali Waite. A fantastic save kept the game tied in the dying minutes of the game. Waite followed this save up with another impressive save a few minutes later, denying San Antonio any chance of scoring.
Overall, it was a pretty disappointing game from Tampa Bay. SAFC have been in rough form recently, and it felt like the Rowdies were outplayed a lot, especially in the second half. If it wasn’t for great goalkeeping or last ditch defending, it very easily could have been 3-0 to the hosts.
Despite the result feeling like a loss, they got a point from the match. They were lucky to have gotten results elsewhere in the league to help them with their Players’ Shield hopes.
Around The League:
In the Eastern Conference, Charleston Battery closed the gap from 2nd place to six points. The Battery won 2-0 through an Emilio Ycaza brace over a 10-men Rhode Island FC.
Ycaza’s first goal was a penalty, and his celebration was one of the best I have ever seen. His second was a rebound off a free kick, which RIFC goalie Jacob Castro was unable to hold. Castro came in after starter Koke Vegas got a red card, which led to the free kick.
New Mexico stumbled again, losing at home 3-2 to Sacramento Republic FC. Despite two second-half goals from New Mexico, it was not enough to overcome the deficit.
El Paso Locomotive FC dropped points at home against FC Tulsa. Logan Dorsey took the lead in the 7th minute through a nice header in the six-yard box. Locomotive equalized after pouncing on a poor defensive pass. Roberto Davila scored a nice sliding effort to equalize the game in the first half. With no second-half goals, the teams walked away with a draw.
In the Players’ Shield race, Tampa Bay still leads with 52 points. El Paso is in 2nd with 47 points. Charleston is in 3rd with 46 points, New Mexico United has 43 points, but has a game in hand.
In the Eastern Conference playoff race, 6th-place Louisville City FC have 37 points. 7th-place Indy Eleven have 33 points, with 8th-place Rhode Island FC having 32 points. Just in 9th place, outside of the playoffs are Miami FC, who have 30 points. 7 points separate Miami and 10th-Place Birmingham.
Coming Up/Match Prediction:
The Rowdies are home to host Miami FC in the USL Championship on Saturday, October 3rd.
The two clubs have faced each other twice this season, with both games in Miami-Dade County. Both were wins for Tampa Bay, with one being a 3-2 win and the other a 4-1 win back in May.
The 3-2 win in July had the incredible Marco Micaletto goal from the midfield line. In that game, a silly second yellow card from Isaiah LeFlore sent the Rowdies down to 10 men.
After the loss to Tampa Bay, Miami went seven games winless. They have recently picked up form, winning their last two games.
Since Miami FC’s former top goalscorer now plays for the Rowdies, Arney Rocha is now the top goalscorer with seven goals. Rocha most recently found the net against Rhode Island FC two matches ago.
While Miami is Tampa Bay’s next match, Miami FC have a midweek match against the mighty Sporting Jax. While the Duval club has struggled in their inaugural season, they have the chance to tire out Miami FC before their game against the Rowdies. It will be interesting to see if any key players for Miami are rested for Saturday.
Miami are hunting for points, only being out of the playoff bubble by two points.
With this in mind, I am going for a 2-1 win. Arney Rocha is a talented player, and I can see him finding the net on Saturday. However, I think this Rowdie side will be fired up after the performance in Texas, and will be looking for goals. I can see them finding the net a couple times against Miami FC.
