The 2019 Tampa Bay Rowdies season was the club's tenth season of existence, their third in the United Soccer League, and first in the newly named USL Championship. Including the previous Tampa Bay Rowdies, this was the 26th season of a franchise in the Tampa Bay metro area with the Rowdies moniker. Including the now-defunct Tampa Bay Mutiny, this was the 32nd season of professional soccer in the Tampa Bay region.
| 2019 season | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chairman | Stuart Sternberg | |||
| Head coach | Neill Collins | |||
| Stadium | Al Lang Stadium | |||
| USL Championship | 5th (Eastern Conference) | |||
| USL Cup | Quarterfinals | |||
| U.S. Open Cup | Third round | |||
| Top goalscorer | League: Guenzatti (18) All: Guenzatti (19) | |||
| Highest home attendance | League/All: 7,851 (October 12 vs. Indy) | |||
| Lowest home attendance | League: 4,022 (August 31 vs. Nashville, USLC) All: 1,342 (May 14 vs. The Villages, USOC) | |||
| Average home league attendance | 5,497 | |||
| Biggest win | 6–1 (21 September vs. Bethlehem, USLC) | |||
| Biggest defeat | 2–4 (14 August @ North Carolina, USLC) | |||
|
| ||||
Club
editRoster
edit- As of June 26, 2019[1]
| No. | Position | Player | Nation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GK | John McCarthy |  United States
|
| 3 | DF | Ryan Felix | United States
|
| 4 | DF | Tarek Morad | United States
|
| 5 | DF | David Najem |  Afghanistan
|
| 7 | MF | Yann Ekra |  France
|
| 8 | MF | Zach Steinberger | United States
|
| 11 | MF | Leo Fernandes |  Brazil
|
| 13 | FW | Sebastián Guenzatti |  Uruguay
|
| 14 | FW | Malik Johnson |  Canada
|
| 15 | MF | Andrew Tinari | United States
|
| 17 | FW | Juan Tejada |  Panama
|
| 18 | MF | Dominic Oduro |  Ghana
|
| 19 | DF | Shawn Barry |  Puerto Rico
|
| 20 | DF | Caleb Richards (on loan from Norwich City) |  England
|
| 21 | GK | Macklin Robinson | United States
|
| 22 | MF | Jordan Doherty (on loan from Sheffield United) |  Ireland
|
| 23 | FW | Leon Taylor | United States
|
| 26 | MF | Afrim Taku |  Albania
|
| 32 | FW | Jaime Siaj |  Jordan
|
| 33 | GK | Chris Konopka | United States
|
| 42 | DF | Mohamed Kone |  Burkina Faso
|
| 44 | DF | Papé Diakité |  Senegal
|
| 77 | FW | Lucky Mkosana |  Zimbabwe
|
| 88 | FW | Kwadwo Poku | Ghana
|
Technical staff
edit
Neill Collins – head coach- Cheyne Roberts – assistant coach
Martin Paterson – assistant coach- Stuart Dobson – goalkeeper coach
- Pete Calabrese – performance coach
- Bentley Smith – kit man
Medical staff
edit- Andrew Keane – head athletic trainer
- Michelle Leget – assistant athletic trainer
- Dr. Mohit Bansal – team physician and orthopedic surgeon
- Dr. Vania Reyes – team physician, sports medicine
Front office
edit- Stuart Sternberg – owner
- Lee Cohen – vice president and chief operating officer
- Matthew Silverman – vice chairmen
- Brian Auld – vice chairmen
Competitions
editExhibitions
editThe Rowdies hosted Major League Soccer teams in the Suncoast Invitational for the fourth year in a row.
| February 2, 2019 Preseason | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–0 | Birmingham Legion FC | St. Petersburg, FL |
Allen  |
Report | Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: Closed-door |
| February 9, 2019 Preseason | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 4–2 | UCF Knights | St. Petersburg, FL |
| Oduro Poku Tejada trialist |
Report | Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: Closed-door |
| February 13, 2019 Preseason | Orlando City B | 1–2 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Montverde, FL |
| Report | Steinberger Ekra |
Stadium: Montverde Academy Attendance: Closed-door |
| February 16, 2019 Suncoast Invitational | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 0–1 | D.C. United | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Diakité  47' |
Report | Acosta 3' Arriola 34' (Acosta) |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium |
| February 20, 2019 Suncoast Invitational | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 0–0 | Montreal Impact | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:00 EST (UTC−5) | Report | Jackson-Hamel 23' |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium |
| February 23, 2019 Preseason | Tormenta FC | 3–2 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Statesboro, GA |
| 17:00 EST (UTC−5) | Micaletto 15' Phelps 19'Morrell 23', 56'Dennis 49' |
Fernandes 26' Hoppenot 80' |
Stadium: Erk Russell Park |
| February 24, 2019 Preseason | Georgia Southern Eagles | 0–4 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Statesboro, GA |
| 7:00 EST (UTC−5) | Wintermeier Allen , Tejada |
Stadium: Erk Russell Park |
| March 2, 2019 Preseason | USF Bulls | 1–2 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Tampa, FL |
| 19:00 EST (UTC−5) | 10' |
Report | Guenzatti 16' Poku 85' |
Stadium: Corbett Soccer Stadium |
| March 17, 2019 Midseason | Tampa Bay Rowdies | – | Stetson Hatters | St. Petersburg, FL |
| EST (UTC−5) | Stadium: Al Lang Stadium | |||
| Note: No result published. | ||||
| April 14, 2019 Midseason | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 5–1 | Sarasota Metropolis FC | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 10:30 EST (UTC−5) | Taylor , , Allen Poku |
Moriarty (pen.) |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium |
USL Championship
editStandings
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Indy Eleven | 34 | 19 | 6 | 9 | 48 | 29 | +19 | 63 | Conference Quarterfinals |
| 4 | Louisville City FC | 34 | 17 | 9 | 8 | 58 | 41 | +17 | 60 | |
| 5 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 34 | 16 | 10 | 8 | 61 | 33 | +28 | 58 | |
| 6 | New York Red Bulls II | 34 | 17 | 6 | 11 | 74 | 51 | +23 | 57 | |
| 7 | North Carolina FC | 34 | 16 | 8 | 10 | 57 | 37 | +20 | 56 | Play-In Round |
Source: USL Championship Standings
Rules for classification: 1) total wins; 2) total goal differential; 3) total goals scored; 4) points earned against top four Conference finishers; 5) disciplinary points; 6) coin toss or drawing of lots
Rules for classification: 1) total wins; 2) total goal differential; 3) total goals scored; 4) points earned against top four Conference finishers; 5) disciplinary points; 6) coin toss or drawing of lots
Results summary
edit| Overall | Home | Away | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
| 34 | 16 | 10 | 8 | 61 | 33 | +28 | 58 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 33 | 14 | +19 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 28 | 19 | +9 |
Last updated: 27 April 2019.
Source: Match reports
Results by round
editUpdated to match(es) played on 9 March 2019. Source: Match reports
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss
Results
edit| March 9, 2019 1 | Memphis 901 FC | 0–1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Memphis, TN |
| 19:00 EST (UTC−5) | Metzger 58' Sandoval 87'Najem 90+1' |
Report | Guenzatti 4' (pen.) Richards 11' |
Stadium: AutoZone Park Attendance: 8,062 Referee: Mike Lavergne |
| March 16, 2019 2 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 2–0 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Barry 26' Steinberger 86' (Barry) |
Report | Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 7,234 Referee: Elvis Osmanovic |
| March 23, 2019 3 | Saint Louis FC | 1–1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Fenton, MO |
| 14:00 EST (UTC−5) | Dacres 22' Fink 26' |
Report | Diakité 63' Morad 73'Guenzatti 76' (pen.) |
Stadium: Toyota Stadium Attendance: 4,037 Referee: Ismir Pekmic |
| March 30, 2019 4 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 0–0 | Loudoun United | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Oduro 38' |
Report | Pilato 16' Verfurth 61'Saravia 82' |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 5,893 Referee: Gabriele Giusti |
| April 6, 2019 5 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 4–0 | Hartford Athletic | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Guenzatti 37', 78' (Fernandes), 67' Najem 58'Tinari 71' (Fernandes) |
Report | Williams 73' de Wit 86' |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 4,360 Referee: Thomas Snyder |
| April 13, 2019 6 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–1 | Louisville City | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Tinari 15' Hoppenot 21'Guenzatti 75'Ekra 78'Oduro 85' |
Report | Jimenez 68' Williams 85'Thiam 88' |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 5,707 Referee: Lorant Varga |
| April 24, 2019 7 | Atlanta United 2 | 1–4 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Kennesaw, GA |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Williams 30' Fernando 34' (Pereira)Carleton 63'Wyke 69'Campbell 85' |
Report | Oduro 36' Diakité 39'Fernandes 45' (Tinari)Morad 59'Campbell 67' (o.g.)Tejada 87' (Fernandes)Allen 90' (Fernandes) |
Stadium: Fifth Third Bank Stadium Attendance: 1,537 Referee: Lukasz Szpala |
| April 27, 2019 8 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–1 | Charlotte Independence | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Guenzatti 17' (Tinari) Oduro 30' |
Report | Oduro 11' (Thicot) Martínez 25' |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 5,651 Referee: Daniel Gutierrez |
| May 1, 2019 9 | Indy Eleven | 0–0 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Indianapolis, IN |
| 19:00 EST (UTC−5) | Barrett 13'  20' |
Report | Taylor 88' |
Stadium: Lucas Oil Stadium Attendance: 8,035 Referee: Elvis Osmanovic |
| May 8, 2019 10 | Nashville SC | 0–1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Nashville, TN |
| 20:00 EST (UTC−5) | King 36' |
Report | Tejada 34' (Guenzatti) Morad 90'Kone 90+1' |
Stadium: First Tennessee Park Attendance: 6,628 Referee: Guido Gonzales, Jr. |
| May 18, 2019 11 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 2–0 | New York Red Bulls II | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Tejada 29' (Tinari), 58' (Poku) Oduro  72'Diakité 90+1' |
Report | Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 7,210 Referee: Ismir Pekmic | |
| Note: Diakité was initially given a yellow that was changed to a red card upon further review by the league's Independent Discipline Panel.[2] | ||||
| May 25, 2019 12 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–0 | Swope Park Rangers | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Hoppenot 81' Fernandes 82' (pen.) |
Report | Wilson Harris 78' Alexsander 81'Akhmatov 83' |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 5,688 Referee: Thomas Snyder |
| June 1, 2019 13 | Birmingham Legion | 0–2 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Birmingham, AL |
| 20:00 EST (UTC−5) | Lopez 28' Kasim 69' |
Report | Johnson 20' Guenzatti 28' (Tinari)Tinari 44' (Johnson)Richards 71' |
Stadium: BBVA Compass Field Attendance: 4,102 Referee: Matthew Thompson |
| June 8, 2019 14 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–3 | North Carolina FC | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Steinberger 54' (Morad) Hoppenot 61' |
Report | Fortune 19' (Albadawi), 48' (Ewolo) Albadawi 28'Miller 77' (Speas) |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 5,167 Referee: Rosendo Mendoza |
| June 15, 2019 15 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–1 | Charleston Battery | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Guenzatti 39' (Johnson), 58' Oduro 86' |
Report | Nelson 29' Svantesson 88' (Bosua)Rittmeyer 90' |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 5,082 Referee: Michael Radchuk |
| June 22, 2019 16 | Bethlehem Steel | 1–2 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Bethlehem, PA |
| 17:00 EST (UTC−5) | Chambers 29', 90+1' (pen.) Turner 50'Borgelin 54'Fontana 57' |
Report | Tejada 13' (Steinberger) Guenzatti 34' |
Stadium: Goodman Stadium Attendance: 505 Referee: David Barrie |
| June 29, 2019 17 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 2–1 | Ottawa Fury | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 20:00 EST (UTC−5) | Oduro 28' Tejada 36' (Najem)Guenzatti 43', 90+2' (Mkosana) |
Report | François 22' Oliveira 53' |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 5,396 Referee: Greg Dopka |
| July 7, 2019 18 | Swope Park Rangers | 1–3 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Kansas City, KS |
| 17:00 EST (UTC−5) | Kuzain 37' Smith 38'Segbers 45+3'Vanacore-Decker 72' |
Report | Tejada 14' (Ekra) Guenzatti 39' (pen.)Steinberger 45+1'Johnson 54', 58' (Guenzatti)Diakité 62' |
Stadium: Children's Mercy Park Attendance: 507 Referee: Mark Allatin |
| July 13, 2019 19 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds | 1–1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Pittsburgh, PA |
| 19:00 EST (UTC−5) | Kerr 52' (pen.) |
Report | Morad 13' Diakité 51'Mkosana 84' (Poku) |
Stadium: Highmark Stadium Attendance: 3,045 Referee: Victor Rivas |
| July 20, 2019 20 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 4–1 | Saint Louis FC | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Guenzatti 33' (Fernandes), 36' (Mkosana) Oduro 69'Fernandes 79' (Barry)Richards 90+1' (Guenzatti) |
Report | Calvert 20' Hilton 71'Greig 87' (Hilton) |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 4,520 Referee: Sergii Demianchuk |
| July 26, 2019 21 | New York Red Bulls II | 2–0 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Montclair, NJ |
| 19:00 EST (UTC−5) | Jørgenson 17', 34' (Tolkin) Duncan 27' 62'Barlow 47'Lema 51'Buckmaster 88'Nealis 90+4' |
Report | Guenzatti 23' Diakité 37' |
Stadium: MSU Soccer Park at Pittser Field Attendance: 1,089 Referee: Luis Guardia |
| August 3, 2019 22 | Charleston Battery | 0–5 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Charleston, SC |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Guerra 21' 42' Anunga 31'Mueller 64' |
Report | Mkosana 1' (Steinberger), 4', 62' Johnson 34'Steinberger 47' (Johnson)Siaj 82' (Tinari) |
Stadium: MUSC Health Stadium Attendance: 2,640 Referee: Lukasz Szpala |
| August 10, 2019 23 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 0–1 | Birmingham Legion | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Diakité 84' |
Report | Opoku 49' (Asiedu) Wright 66'Williams 70'Culbertson 88' |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 4,949 Referee: Dejan Susak |
| August 21, 2019 24 | North Carolina FC | 4–2 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Cary, NC |
| 19:00 EST (UTC−5) | Fortune 19' (Rennicks) Miller 50', 79' (Taylor)Diakité 76' (o.g.) |
Report | Guenzatti 32' (Poku) Diakité 72'Tejada 90' (Fernandez) |
Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park Attendance: 2,833 Referee: Michael Radchuk |
| August 24, 2019 25 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 5–0 | Memphis 901 | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Poku 11', 62' (Johnson) Fernandes 28', 81' (Guenzatti)Tinari 45+5' (Johnson)Johnson 87' (Kone) |
Report | daSilva 36' Charpie 47' |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 4,835 Referee: Kevin Broadley |
| August 31, 2019 26 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–2 | Nashville SC | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Guenzatti 49' Mkosana 90+3' |
Report | Moloto 44' Belmar 79' (Bourgeois) |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 4,022 Referee: Daniel Gutierrez |
| September 7, 2019 27 | Charlotte Independence | 1–3 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Matthews, NC |
| 19:00 EST (UTC−5) | Thicot 71' Roberts 83' |
Report | Tejada 7' (Fernandes), 49' (Guenzatti) Siaj 74' (Mkosana) |
Stadium: Sportsplex at Matthews Attendance: 1,930 Referee: Greg Dopka |
| September 14, 2019 28 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–1 | Atlanta United 2 | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Guenzatti 31' (Fernandes) Oduro 68' |
Report | Wyke 13' Conway 35' |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 4,367 Referee: Elton Garcia |
| September 18, 2019 29 | Ottawa Fury | 1–0 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Ottawa, ON |
| 19:00 EST (UTC−5) | Fall 56' 90+2', 90+1' (pen.) Gagnon-Laparé 62'Haworth 90+4' |
Report | Diakité 56' McCarthy 90+1' |
Stadium: TD Place Stadium Attendance: 3,200 Referee: Matt Souare |
| September 21, 2019 30 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 6–1 | Bethlehem Steel | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Ofeimu 20' (o.g.) Guenzatti 24' (Johnson)Poku 40' (Fernandes)Morad 42'Tinari 45+2' (Johnson)Mkosana 71' (Fernandes), 74'Taku 90+2' (Fernandes) |
Report | Cortés 54' Willis 65'Faris 69' (pen.) |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 5,513 Referee: Elvis Osmanovic |
| September 28, 2019 31 | Louisville City | 2–2 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Louisville, KY |
| 19:00 EST (UTC−5) | Matsoso 30', 79' (Jimenez) Craig 35' (Jimenez) |
Report | Morad 34' Jordan Doherty 36' 83'Guenzatti 45+1', 87' (pen.)Mkosana 89' (Barry)McCarthy 90+4' |
Stadium: Louisville Slugger Field Attendance: 10,630 Referee: Jon Freemon |
| October 4, 2019 32 | Loudoun United | 2–0 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Leesburg, VA |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Ndour 18', 50' (Odoi-Atsem) Nyeman 41' Hawkins 64' Wild 90+3' (Ku-DiPietro) |
Report | Guenzatti 64' Siaj 77' |
Stadium: Loudoun United Stadium Attendance: 1,738 Referee: Ismir Pekmic |
| October 12, 2019 33 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–1 | Indy Eleven | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Guenzatti 45+6' (pen.) Mkosana 64' |
Report | Barrett 64' Kelly 72' (Pasher), 88' |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 7,851 Referee: Lorant Varga |
| October 19, 2019 34 | Hartford Athletic | 2–1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Hartford, CT |
| 19:30 EST (UTC−5) | Williams 40', 47' (Hord) Gdula 62'Wojcik 90+3' (Lee) |
Report | Johnson 62' 68' Mkosana 73' (Guenzatti)Diakité 80' |
Stadium: Dillon Stadium Attendance: 4,674 Referee: Sergii Demianchuk |
USL Championship playoffs
editThe Rowdies clinched their spot in the single elimination 2019 USL playoffs on September 18, by virtue of the Charleston Battery losing, 3–1, to Atlanta United 2.
Conference Quarterfinals
edit| October 26, 2019 East | Louisville City FC | 2–1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Louisville, Kentucky |
| 7:00 p.m. EDT | Rasmussen 23' (McCabe), 24' (Ownby) Ownby 56' |
Report | Ekra 40' Diakité 70'Guenzatti 80' (Poku) |
Stadium: Louisville Slugger Field Attendance: 4,636 Referee: Farhad Dadkho |
U.S. Open Cup
edit| May 14, 2019 2nd round | Tampa Bay Rowdies  | 4–1 | The Villages SC | St. Petersburg, FL |
| 7:00 PM EDT | Kone 43' (Steinberger), 88' Steinberger 45+3'Allen 62' (Steinberger)Soronellas 83'Taylor 90+3' |
Report | Lopes 43' Gyau 62' (De Freitas) |
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 1,342 Referee: Matthew Miscannon |
| May 28, 2019 3rd round | OKC Energy FC  | 4–3 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Norman, OK |
| 7:30 pm CDT | Gordon 2' Boesetti 27', 30' Eissele 32' Brown 60' |
Report | Allen 20' (pen.), 47' Najem 24' Poku 34' |
Stadium: John Crain Field Attendance: 177 Referee: Elton Garcia |
Honors
editIndividual honors
edit- Papé Diakité (2nd team), Sebastián Guenzatti (2nd team)
References
edit- ^ "Roster". Tampa Bay Rowdies. Retrieved February 4, 2019.
- ^ "Oduro and Diakite To Serve One-Game Suspensions". RowdiesSoccer.com. Retrieved May 22, 2019.