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USL Tampa Bay Rowdies

Match Preview: Rowdies vs Pittsburgh

October 5, 2023 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Tampa Bay Rowdies News Release


Matchday 33

Tampa Bay Rowdies vs Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC

Saturday, October 7, 7:30 p.m. ET

Al Lang Stadium, St. Petersburg, FL

Tickets: Fans can purchase tickets or at the stadium box office starting at 4 p.m. on matchday.

Shirts Off Our Backs Auction: Fans can bid to win game-worn jerseys from their favorite Rowdies players, with proceeds benefitting the Rowdies Soccer Fund. Bidding is open now and will close at 9 p.m. ET on Saturday night. Click here to learn more and bid now.

Giveaway: The first 500 fans to arrive will receive a pair of thunder sticks from the presenting partner of Saturday's match, Bay First Financial.

Matchday Special: Fans can enjoy 25% off all Rowdies gear at The Bay Republic locations inside Al Lang Stadium and online at thebayrepublic.com from 6:30 p.m. ET until 30 minutes after the final whistle of Saturday's match.

In their final home fixture of the regular season, the Tampa Bay Rowdies will head-to-head with Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC, the team Tampa Bay is aiming to leap for the top overall seed in the playoffs. A straight up win won't be enough for Tampa Bay to jump Pittsburgh in the standings, though. Sitting three points behind Pittsburgh at the start of the weekend, the Rowdies must record a two-goal victory in order to jump past Pittsburgh by virtue of goal differential in head-to-head meetings.

From August 5 to Now

It's only been two months since Tampa Bay last met Pittsburgh, falling 1-0 at Highmark Stadium. As they have through much of the second half of the season, the Rowdies were short-handed for the matchup in Pittsburgh. Center back Forrest Lasso was out due to suspension, while midfielders Sebastian Dalgaard and Lewis Hilton were both missing because of injury. Hilton and Dalgaard have both returned to action in recent weeks. Forward Cal Jennings, who now has scored nine goals in his last nine matches, was also limited to a role off the bench while he nursed an injury.

For just the third time in his tenure, Rowdies Head Coach Nicky Law was able to field a full bench in last week's win over Loudoun. That full bench even included reigning 2022 USL Championship MVP Leo Fernandes, who made his first gameday roster since rupturing his Achilles in February.

Series History

The Rowdies have a record of 5 wins, 4 losses, and 4 draws in the league play versus Pittsburgh. The two sides also met in the 2015 U.S. Open Cup, with Pittsburgh claiming a 1-0 win at Highmark Stadium.

East's Best Attack Meets East's Best Defense

Saturday's matchup between Tampa Bay and Pittbsurgh is a meeting between the Eastern Conference's elite teams. Tampa Bay's 57 goals leads all teams in the east, while Pittsburgh comes into the weekend having conceded a conference low of just 29 goals.

Cal Jennings Golden Boot Hunt

With three matches left in the regular season, Rowdies forward Cal Jennings is firmly in the hunt to claim in the USL Championship's Gold Boot, awarded to the league's top scorer in the regular season. Jennings has 17 tallies heading into Wednesday, two behind the league's current scoring leader, Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC's Albert Dikwa.

Milestone Watch

Rowdies defender Conner Antley is nearing his 100th appearance for the Green & Gold. Heading into this weekend, Antley has 99 appearances for the Rowdies in all competitions. Antley is one of a handful Rowdies to reach the milestone in 2023. Teammates Jordan Doherty and Lewis Hilton did so in recent weeks, while Aaron Guillen, Yann Ekra, and Sebastian Dalgaard all did so in the first half of the year.

Injury Report

OUT: Zachary Hherivaux, Abel Caputo

QUESTIONABLE: Aaron Guillen, Dayonn Harris

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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