USL Championship Matchday 02
Tampa Bay Rowdies at FC Tulsa
Saturday, March 15, 8 p.m. ET
ONEOK Field, Tulsa, OK
2025 Records
Rowdies: 0-0-1 (0-0-1 on the road)
Tulsa: 1-0-0 (0-0-0 at home)
Broadcast: Tune in on Tampa Bay 44 or ESPN+.
The Tampa Bay Rowdies are back on the road for their second matchup of the USL Championship this Saturday. After narrowly falling 1-0 in their season opener versus Las Vegas Lights FC, the Rowdies will be aiming to secure their first win of the season as they face off against FC Tulsa at ONEOK Field.
Last week’s defeat in Las Vegas was only the second time in the modern era that the Rowdies have lost their season opener. The last time the Rowdies dropped their first match was the 2012 season, which they eventually finished as league champions. A loss to kick off the new season is never ideal, but it won’t matter much if find a way to be the team that wins the last game of the year.
Building on the Positives
While the result in Las Vegas did not go their way last week, the Rowdies were more encouraged than discouraged by the overall team performance following the match. They held a sizable advantage in possession and chances created over the hosts and conceded on the only chance they gave up all night. With the result in their rear-view mirror, the Rowdies will want to be more ruthless in converting their chances.
“When you look at the whole performance, I think that we actually did very well,” said Rowdies Head Coach Robbie Neilson. “We created a lot of chances, dominated the game, but lost a poor goal from an error. That happens in football. Now it’s about taking the positives and building on those for this weekend.”
Developing Connections
The Rowdies starting lineup last week featured six players brought in during the offseason. Given the amount of new squad members, the expectation was that it would take some time for all the new pieces to click together.
“The main thing for us trying to develop those connections within the team, because we are quite a new team,” said Neilson. “We’ve had a number of new players come in, especially in that forward area. We’re working on Ollie Bassett and Woobens Pacius building that connection and understanding with Manuel Arteaga. It’s starting to come together, but I think it’ll take a few games to get there.”
Midfielder Ollie Bassett was one of the new faces in the starting lineup. The former Canadian Premier League MVP registered two of Tampa Bay’s shots on target in the match in his USL Championship debut.
“It was nice to get my first taste of football in the USL,” said Bassett. “I’m still learning the system and the guys I’m playing with, but I feel more confident in training every single day.”
Scouting Tulsa
Saturday marks the seventh competitive meeting between the Rowdies and Tulsa. The Rowdies have picked up five wins and one draw in their previous battle with Tulsa, outscoring them 19-5 in the stretch.
Much like the Rowdies, Tulsa’s squad has undergone a fair amount of turnover in the offseason, with a dozen players returning from last season. Tulsa also has a new head coach in Luke Spencer, who was promoted from assistant to charge last November. Spencer knows what it takes to win in the USL Championship, having helped Louisville City claim league titles as a player in 2017 and 2018. The former Louisville striker’s first match at the helm went well, with Tulsa picking up an impressive 1-0 win on the road against Phoenix Rising FC. They’ll hope to take the momentum from that win into Saturday’s home opener against the Rowdies.
“Tulsa has a similar system to Las Vegas, they press in a similar way,” said Neilson. “They maybe have a bit more energy in the forward line. Defensively, Tulsa are solid. So, I think it might be similar to the game we saw in Las Vegas.”
Rowdies Availability Report
OUT: Leo Fernandes, Endri Mustali
