Matchday #5 – Tampa Bay Rowdies
For the second home match of the 2017 regular season, FC Cincinnati will take on the Tampa Bay Rowdies. These teams met in the 2016 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup with the Rowdies getting the better of FCC 2-0. Here are 5 Things to Know going into Wednesday night’s match as well as the new March to Matchday #5 podcast!
Where: Cincinnati, OH – Nippert Stadium
When: Wednesday, April 19th at 7:00 p.m. EST
Form: FC Cincinnati (2W-2L-0D, 6 pts.) 6th Place, Tampa Bay Rowdies (3W-1L-0D, 9pts.) 4th Place
Know your Enemy – Ref Assignments:
REF: JON FREEMON, AR1: Cory Richardson, AR2: Noah Matos, 4TH: William Gaither III
March to Matchday #5 vs Tampa Bay Rowdies – Podcast
Join host Bryan Weigel @bryanweigel as he welcomes Special Guest Dan Endonino from @UnusedSubsPod for the newest addition to Cincinnati Soccer Talk lineup. March to Matchday will provide an in-depth preview of the upcoming opponent as well as how FC Cincinnati can best defeat them. This show will hopefully fit in your drive time to work, to the pub on game day or lead you right up to game time. We hope you enjoy!
5 Things to Know
Change of Play: As the season progresses we are starting to see the team make modifications to how they play. Initially, this team came out against Charleston and had a large amount of possession, but lost. This past 
weekend we only had 44% possession and won. Lack of possession doesn’t mean we didn’t control the game, as we all saw. We were able to get forward with great efficiency, so much so that even Djiby’s average position on the field was actually behind the last defender and our heat map inside the Saint Louis penalty box showed we were in there with a high frequency. Was this a tactical approach based on Saint Louis or is this the new style? As they say, “It’s not how much possession you have. Rather what you do with the ball when you do have possession.” Does FCC go for possession or do they play a more compact game and counter with great efficiency using the width of field and wingers pace to create opportunities?
Djiby, Djiby, Djiby: Well by now I think the majority of Cincinnati and fans of the USL now know Baye Djiby Fall, affectionately known as just Djiby. Not only did he score four goals Saturday, but he has scored every goal for FCC this year. We all love a great goal-scorer and honestly, fans don’t care who scores as long as we win. In the long run, the team can benefit from another guy or two to deposit 5-8 balls each in the opponents nets to relieve some pressure off Djiby. But for now, we don’t care. Watch out for Victor Mansaray or Daryl Fordyce (if healthy) in the future.
2017 Opening Game “The Bailey” – Credit: Alex Vehr
Keep Showing the Love: It was another electric night in Nippert Saturday. This town has continued to show its support for the team with a USL opening game record crowd of 23,144. Now comes the hard part of this three-game homestand, a Wednesday game. Mid-week games are difficult on attendance but this city still showed up last year. Our 2016 season had two mid-week games in which we had 16,127 (NYRB2) and 14,157 (Rochester) show up. If Wednesday weather is good I would expect another strong walk-up crowd and 15,000 should not be a difficult expectation. Let’s keep the momentum rolling.
Stay Fresh: Wednesday’s game will be the second of three games in eight days. Manager Alan Koch may want to make some modifications to our lineup considering we will have the first place Louisville team traveling here Saturday. This may be the most difficult three-game stretch we will experience this year. We need to keep fresh legs for the entire year and utilizing our depth this week may be beneficial to year long goals. Do we see Mclaughlin for Dacres or Nicholson for a Center Back? We also did not play Weideman or Fordyce. Don’t be surprised if there is another new flavor in our lineup and/or twist on our formation.
Tampa Bay’s Broken Streak: The Rowdies traveled to that city to the south, Louisville, and were not shown much hospitality. Louisville ended Tampa Bay’s win streak at 3 games and christened them with their first loss, 2-1, of the season. Will the Rowdies be playing with attitude now? Were they duped by starting the season against two MLS2 teams then an old nemesis Ottawa (all at home)? Was Louisville’s field to narrow for their 4-2-3-1? Was it the travel? Or was it because Louisville plays on a baseball field? (wait so does Tampa Bay) Whatever the answer is, I do not expect a flat outing from the Rowdies come Wednesday. Cincinnati will need to be sharp especially with the likes of Joe Cole, Marcel Schafer, Georgi Hristov and Deshorn Brown in their arsenal.
Stay tuned to Cincinnati Soccer Talk for our Growler Cup Staff Predictions, 2017 FC Cincinnati Matchday Guide and more news and information leading up to the Saint Louis FC match!
Supporter Groups Pregame Match Parties
We encourage all fans to get down to Clifton early and enjoy themselves at the areas many restaurants and pubs. Many Supporter Groups hang out in the “Short Vine” area where you can join in the march to Nippert Stadium. Some of these locations can be rowdier than others, but families and opposing fans are encouraged to come out and join the various groups.
Die Innenstadt: Mecklenburg Gardens – 302 E University Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45219
The Pride: Ladder 19 – 2701 Vine St, Cincinnati, OH 45219
Queen City Firm: Mio’s Pizzeria Pub – 2634 Vine St, Cincinnati, OH 45219
Queen City Mafia: Short Vine Bearcat Statue Lot – 2700 Block of Vine St, Cincinnati, OH 45219
The Legion: Taste of Belgium Clifton – 2845 Vine St, Cincinnati, OH 45219
The Bailey Bastards: Hang Over Easy – 3 W Charlton St, Cincinnati, OH 45219
For more information, check out our matchday guide!
Viewing
TV: This contest is set for a 7 p.m. EST kickoff on Wednesday night. Broadcasting partner Sinclair Broadcasting Group will now air all FC Cincinnati home & away matched. Saturday’s match will be live on CW Cincinnati. The match will also be broadcast at FC Cincinnati’s pub partners or by Streaming internet on the WatchESPNApp.
RADIO: You can listen LIVE on FC Cincinnati’s radio partner ESPN 1530 AM which will simulcast the TV broadcast team. Tom Gelehrter will return as the play-by-play announcer for the team’s home matches along with Kevin McCloskey providing color analysis and Lindsay Patterson reporting from the sideline.
@khoetker for @cincysoccertalk
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