March 31, 2017 USL Toronto FC II--Match Preview: Toronto FC II at Tampa Bay Rowdies (from rowdiessoccer.com)
Match Preview: Rowdies Host Toronto FC II By Rowdies Communications, 03/31/17, 7:15PM EDT The Basics Tampa Bay Rowdies vs. Toronto FC II Saturday, April 1, 2017, 7:30 p.m. ET. Al Lang Stadium, St. Petersburg, Fla. Follow us for live updates on Twitter @RowdiesGameday Tickets A limited number of tickets remain for Saturday’s match, so get yours while you still can. To purchase tickets, call (727) 222-2000 or click here. How to Watch The match will be broadcast on thisTV Tampa Bay and on the USL’s Youtube channel here. Parking There are several options for parking at Al Lang Stadium and around downtown. Parking in Lot A, right in front of the stadium, costs $5. Lot A opens at 4 p.m. For more parking options, click here. Rowdies Notes The Rowdies continue their homestand Saturday night with a home match against Toronto FC II, which is also coming off a win on opening weekend. Tampa Bay made its United Soccer League debut last weekend, beating Orlando City B 1-0 in front of a sellout crowd at Al Lang Stadium. Georgi Hristov scored the lone goal of the match in the 57th minute, converting a penalty kick won by Leo Fernandes. Hristov was an honorable mention for the USL Team of the Week, earning a spot on the bench. Though the Rowdies only scored once in the win, Tampa Bay’s attack looked potent, tallying 21 shots in a dominant performance. Six Rowdies made their competitive Rowdies debut last weekend, with Akira Fitzgerald, Damion Lowe, Luke Boden, Marcel Schäfer and Fernandes all in the starting lineup, plus Alex Morrell coming off the bench as a late substitute. A few more Rowdies could be in line to make their debut this week, with midfielder Darwin Jones and forward Deshorn Brown both recovered from injuries that sidelined them last weekend. Scouting Toronto FC II The Reds flew cross-country last weekend to spoil Phoenix Rising FC’s debut in its new stadium with a 1-0 win in the desert. Ryan Telfer scored the only goal of the match in his professional debut. Telfer attended York University in Toronto before signing with his local pro team. While 2016 was a banner year for Toronto FC in Major League Soccer, with TFC winning the Eastern Conference before an eventual loss in the MLS Cup Final, but TFC II didn’t fare as well. TFC II finished in 12th in the 14-team Eastern Conference, missing the playoffs by nine points. Raheem Edwards, TFC II’s leading scorer from 2016 with six goals, was in Toronto FC’s lineup against Sporting Kansas City on Friday night, ruling him out of Saturday’s TFC II match against the Rowdies.
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