Rowdies Reflections: Welcome Back
June 13, 2021 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Tampa Bay Rowdies News Release
The Tampa Bay Rowdies were welcoming their largest crowd since 2019 on Friday night against Loudoun United FC, so the last thing they wanted to do was let those home supporters down. In the end, the Rowdies secure their sixth victory of the year with goals from Sebastian Guenzatti and Foster Langsdorf.
Still, Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins feels the club didn't showcase what they're truly capable of on Friday night. A few quality chances were squandered and the squad didn't consistently maintain the high intensity they aim for every time they're out on the field.
"Hopefully in the future we can give the fans even more to shout about," said Collins. "Just to have them back and behind us is what we've been waiting for. We just hope between now and the end of the season we can really give this group of fans some special nights."
Fortunately, the Rowdies have 11 more fixtures at Al Lang left on the calendar, giving them ample opportunity to put on the more ideal performance Collins is looking for.
A Shocking start
Loudoun tried spoiling the mood on Friday with a goal just 4 minutes into the match. The Rowdies were not nearly alert enough as the visitors quickly worked the ball down the right wing and played a cross in for an unmarked Robert Dambrot to smash into the net.
Prior to that scoring sequence, the Rowdies had not conceded a goal in the first five minutes of a match since 2018.
"I think when your defense has been as good as ours has been it's almost kind of like a shock to the system when you give up a goal as early as that," said Collins. " I think when we look back at it we'll be disappointed in terms of a lack of concentration to do the right things. We've spoken to them all week about how Loudoun will punish you. They've got good players. The league table doesn't do them justice and they showed that tonight. That's something we'll need to learn from quickly."
Loudoun found a few more chances on the night, but the Rowdies never gave up anything cheap like the opening goal again.
This is the second straight match in which the Rowdies have given up the first goal. Last week in Charlotte they failed to find a way back into the match as the attack struggled to produce any chances. Against Loudoun, though, the Rowdies were up to the challenge and created what they needed to complete the comeback.
"When you've been ahead in the first five games and you go behind last week and you go behind today, it's just different," said Collins. "It gives the game a totally different context. That's why with statistics you always need context. Tonight we got the goal before halftime and I thought we'd come on better in the second half earlier. It took us until really late to start creating the chances that we want. But it's a good character moment. It means we've (completed a comeback), so it gives us belief that we can do that in the future."
Seba's Still The Talisman
It's no coincidence that the Rowdies are off to their best start in club history while captain Sebastian Guenzatti is also off to his most productive start since joining the club. His strike on Friday was his fifth goal of the season, putting him halfway to matching his 10-goal tally last season. He still has a ways to go in order to match the club's single-season scoring record of 19 goals, which he set himself in 2019.
Friday was also Guenzatti's 97th appearance for the Green and Gold and his 41st goal overall with the club. Guenzatti has played all but two minutes of the Rowdies' USL Championship season so far. Only keeper Evan Louro and Tampa Bay's three center backs have played every minute. Plenty of responsibility is always on the captain's shoulders, but Guenzatti's been carrying even more these first two months of the season while several other Rowdies attackers work their way back from injuries.
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