| 2012 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Owners | Andrew Nestor | ||
| Head coach | Ricky Hill | ||
| Stadium | Al Lang Stadium | ||
| NASL | 2nd | ||
| NASL Playoffs | Champions | ||
| U.S. Open Cup | Third Round | ||
| Ponce De Leon Cup | Winners | ||
| Coastal Cup | Winners | ||
| Top goalscorer | League: Mike Ambersley (8) All: Mike Ambersley (11) | ||
| Highest home attendance | 4,710[1] (July 4 v.Fort Lauderdale) | ||
| Lowest home attendance | 2,194[2] (April 12 v.Carolina) | ||
| Average home league attendance | 3,116[3] | ||
The2012Tampa Bay Rowdies season was the currentTampa Bay Rowdies' third season of existence, and second in theNorth American Soccer League. Including theoriginal Rowdies franchise and theTampa Bay Mutiny, this was the 25th season of a professional soccer team fielded in the Tampa Bay region.
After their first season, the FC Tampa Bay Rowdies were forced by Classic Ink to discontinue use of the "Rowdies" name, resulting in their name beingFC Tampa Bay. Before the2012 season began, however, the team came to terms with Classic Ink to purchase the "Rowdies" name.[4]
In theprevious season, the Rowdies rallied to a third-place finish before bowing out in a first-round playoff match against eventual NASL ChampionsNSC Minnesota Stars. In 2012, the Rowdies finished second in the league with a 12–9–7 record. In the2012 playoffs, they first defeatedCarolina RailHawks FC, 5–4, on aggregate in the semifinals to advance to theSoccer Bowl. There they avenged the previous season's playoff loss by defeating defending champion, Minnesota, in theNASL Championship Series. They won the title in dramatic fashion, 3–2, on penalty kicks, after making up a two-goal aggregate deficit in regulation, and then surviving 30 minutes of extra time while short-handed.[5] For the region ofTampa Bay, it was the firstNorth American Soccer League championship since theoriginal Rowdies wonSoccer Bowl '75.[6]
as of August 25, 2012[7]
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This sectionneeds expansion. You can help byadding to it.(May 2012) |
Win Tie Loss
| March 3, 2012Intra-Squad Scrimmage | Orange Team | 5–3 | White Team | Tampa, Florida |
| 12:00 p.m. |  25' (o.g.)Hill 41'Hofstetter 41',58'Gray 54' | Report | Ambersley 20',46' Yamada 51' | Stadium:Monroe Middle School |
| March 10, 2012Preseason 1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 3–0 | Eckerd Tritons | Lakewood Ranch, Florida |
| 6:30 p.m. | Mulholland 17' Hofstetter 65'Gray 68' | Report | Hobbis 45'Duffy 59' | Stadium:Premier Sports Campus |
| March 14, 2012Preseason 2 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 2–0 | Tampa Spartans | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m. | Mulholland 33' Hill 55'Perucica 73' | http://www.rowdiessoccer.com/news/detail/lang/EN/uuid/1c3ta6igpyoto1tnepjrrgflna/rowdies-post-2-0-victory-over-ut#.U9EgUuDDPHg TBR Report] [https://www.newspapers.com/image/314762596/?terms=Rowdies | Fekete 73' | Stadium:Walter Fuller Complex |
| March 17, 2012Preseason 3 | FGCU Eagles | 0–1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Fort Myers, Florida |
| 2:00 p.m. | Report | Savage 45' | Stadium:FGCU Soccer Complex |
| March 21, 2012Preseason 4 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Cancelled | UCF Knights | Tampa, Florida |
| 7:00 p.m. | Report | Stadium:Ed Radice Sports Complex | ||
| Note: Cancelled due to inclement weather. | ||||
| March 24, 2012Preseason 4 | USF Bulls | 0–1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Tampa, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m. | Report | Clare 1' Mulholland 79' | Stadium:Corbett Soccer Stadium |
| March 28, 2012Preseason 5 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 4–0 | Saint Leo Lions | Clearwater, Florida |
| 7:00 p.m. | Yoshitake 25' Arango 38'Yamada 83'Clare 84'Mulholland 85' | Report | Stadium:Countryside Sportsplex |
| March 31, 2012Preseason 6 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 3–4 | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | Auburndale, Florida |
| Yoshitake 11' Ambersley 64',84'Yamada 82' | Report | Herron 16' Lorenz 27'Hassan 46'Shanosky 59'Anderson 84' | Stadium:FYSA Auburndale Complex |
All times from this point on are Eastern Daylight Time (UTC-04:00)
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Antonio Scorpions(X) | 28 | 13 | 8 | 7 | 46 | 27 | +19 | 47 | Playoff semifinals |
| 2 | Tampa Bay Rowdies(C) | 28 | 12 | 9 | 7 | 37 | 30 | +7 | 45 | |
| 3 | Puerto Rico Islanders | 28 | 11 | 8 | 9 | 32 | 30 | +2 | 41 | Playoff quarterfinals |
| 4 | Carolina RailHawks | 28 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 44 | 46 | −2 | 40 | |
| 5 | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | 28 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 40 | 46 | −6 | 36 |
| Overall | Home | Away | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
| 28 | 12 | 9 | 7 | 37 | 30 | +7 | 45 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 18 | 8 | +10 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 19 | 22 | −3 |
Last updated: September 23, 2012.
Source:Match reports
| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stadium | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | A | H | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A |
| Result | L | W | D | D | W | L | L | W | D | L | L | W | W | W | W | L | W | W | W | D | D | L | D | W | D | W | D | D |
Win Tie Loss
| April 7, 2012Match 1 Ponce De Leon Cup | Puerto Rico Islanders | 1–0 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Bayamon, Puerto Rico |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Addlery 21' Delgado 25'Fojo 43'Cunningham  59'Addlery 69' | Report | Hill 45' Yamada 68'Sanfilippo 90' | Stadium:Bayamon Sports Complex Attendance: 952 Referee: Javier Santos |
| April 14, 2012Match 2 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–0 | FC Edmonton | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Yamada 20' Hill 82' | Report | Joseph-Augustin 26' Oppong 67'van Leerdam 78'Hatchi 84'Saiko 90+2' | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 3,129 Referee: Fotis Bazakos |
| April 18, 2012Match 3 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–1 | Carolina RailHawks FC | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Yoshitake 70' | Report | Shriver 65' | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 2,288 Referee: Armando Villarreal |
| April 21, 2012Match 4 | Atlanta Silverbacks | 1–1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Atlanta, Georgia |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Robertson 73' Navia 87' | Report | Antoniuk 70' Mulholland 84' | Stadium:Atlanta Silverbacks Park Attendance: 3,261 Referee: Ismail Elfath |
| April 28, 2012Match 5 Ponce De Leon Cup | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 3–1 | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Clare 27' Ambersley 62' (pen.)Rodrigues 63'Savage 90+' | Report 1 Report 2 | Ståhl 42' Restrepo 90' | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 3,536 Referee: Kevin Terry, Jr. |
| May 5, 2012Match 6 | San Antonio Scorpions FC | 2–0 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | San Antonio, Texas |
| 8:30 p.m.EDT | Kling 44' Denissen 53' (pen.)Cochrane 61'Pitchkolan 66' | Report | Arango 52' | Stadium:Heroes Stadium Attendance: 9,536 Referee: Hayer Reyes |
| May 12, 2012Match 7 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–2 | San Antonio Scorpions FC | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Antoniuk 55' Ramírez 78' | Report | Campos 53',90+4' Scott 61'Hill 63' | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 3,166 Referee: Javier Santos |
| May 19, 2012Match 8 | Atlanta Silverbacks | 2–3 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Atlanta, Georgia |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Davis 51' Moroney 64',89'Carr 80' | Report | Antoniuk 12',37' Yamada 60'Ambersley 78' | Stadium:Atlanta Silverbacks Park Attendance: 5,000 Referee: Marcos de Oliveira |
| May 25, 2012Match 9 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 0–0 | Minnesota Stars FC | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Campbell 69' | Report | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 3,182 Referee: Ted Unkel |
| June 2, 2012Match 10 Ponce De Leon Cup | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | 3–1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Fort Lauderdale, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Thompson 53' (pen.) Anderson 54'Stewart 86'Orozco 88'Restrepo 90+2' | Report | Mulholland 33' Ambersley 62' | Stadium:Lockhart Stadium Attendance: 3,255 Referee: Kevin Terry |
| June 9, 2012Match 11 Ponce De Leon Cup | Puerto Rico Islanders | 2–0 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Bayamon, Puerto Rico |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Fojo 40' Rivera 73'Needham 81'vanSchaik 90+4' | Report | Picault 30' Arango 51' | Stadium:Bayamon Sports Complex Attendance: 1,012 Referee: Jesus Angel Delgado Lebron |
| June 16, 2012Match 12 | Minnesota Stars FC | 1–2 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Blaine, Minnesota |
| 8:30 p.m.EDT | Nuñez 8' Nuñez 25'Kallman 90+1' | Report | Yoshitake 45+1' Hill 45+1'Savage 85'Ambersley 89' | Stadium:National Sports Center Attendance: 2,908 |
| June 23, 2012Match 13 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 3–2 | San Antonio Scorpions FC | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Yoshitake 39',90' Mulholland 88' | Report | Greenfield 31' Bayona 52'Pitchkolan 59'Harmse 71' | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 2,559 Referee: Christina Ibañez |
| June 30, 2012Match 14 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 2–0 | Minnesota Stars FC | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Ambersley 55' Yoshitake 88' | Report | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 2,594 Referee: Kevin Terry |
| July 4, 2012Match 15 Ponce De Leon Cup | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 3–1 | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 6:30 p.m.EDT | Ambersley 30' Yoshitake 67'Antoniuk 85'Rodrigues 86'  90' | Report | Herron 19', 67' Orozco 26' 79' | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 4,710 Referee: Ismail Elfath |
| July 12, 2012Match 16 | Minnesota Stars FC | 2–1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Blaine, Minnesota |
| 8:30 p.m.EDT | Nuñez 30' Dias 37'Takada 44'Venegas 64' | Report | Ambersley 78' | Stadium:National Sports Center Attendance: 2,164 |
| July 15, 2012Match 17 | FC Edmonton | 0–1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Edmonton, Alberta |
| 4:00 p.m.EDT | Hatchi 36' Lam 70' | Report | Yoshitake 33' Mulholland 88' | Stadium:Clarke Stadium Attendance: 1,688 |
| July 21, 2012Match 18 Ponce De Leon Cup | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 2–0 | Puerto Rico Islanders | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Sanfilippo 57', 72' Ambersley 85' | Report | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 3,207 |
| July 28, 2012Match 19 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–0 | FC Edmonton | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Antoniuk 44' | Report | Arguez 20' Barthélémy 33' | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 3,149 |
| August 4, 2012Match 20 | Carolina RailHawks FC | 3–3 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Cary, North Carolina |
| 7:00 p.m.EDT | da Luz 21' Zimmerman 43',49'Garey 52'Stockley 59' | Report | Hill 17' Mulholland 86'Yamada 90+2' | Stadium:WakeMed Soccer Park Attendance: 5,002 |
| August 11, 2012Match 21 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 0–0 | Atlanta Silverbacks | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Mulholland 84' Arango 90' | Report | Willis 54' Randolph 70' | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 3,027 |
| August 19, 2012Match 22 | San Antonio Scorpions FC | 4–0 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | San Antonio, Texas |
| 8:30 p.m.EDT | Ramírez 8' Campos 17',29'Sattler 56'Bayona 90+2' | Report | Sanfilippo 45' Hill 49'Mulholland 52'Ambersley 56' | Stadium:Heroes Stadium Attendance: 7,024 |
| August 25, 2012Match 23 Ponce De Leon Cup | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 0–0 | Puerto Rico Islanders | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Cox 54' Mulholland 68' | Report | Nurse 34' Ibeagha 83' | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 3,125 Referee: Ted Unkel |
| September 1, 2012Match 24 Ponce De Leon Cup | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | 0–3 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Fort Lauderdale, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Laing 1' Tetteh 19'Ståhl 53' | Report | Arango 21' Picault 53'Sanfilippo 59' 82'Cox 80'Scott 88'Cort 90+4' | Stadium:Lockhart Stadium Attendance: 5,629 |
| September 8, 2012Match 25 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–1 | Atlanta Silverbacks | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Yamada 42' Ababio 53' 67' | Report | Horth 30' Carr 87' | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 3,754 |
| September 16, 2012Match 26 | FC Edmonton | 0–3 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Edmonton, Alberta |
| 4:00 p.m.EDT | Barthélémy 45' Rago 87' | Report | Antoniuk 21' Ambersley 39' 43'Mulholland 51' | Stadium:Clarke Stadium Attendance: 1,376 |
| September 19, 2012Match 27 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–1 | Carolina RailHawks FC | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 7:30 p.m.EDT | Arango 13' 22' | Report | Shipalane 61' | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 2,194 |
| September 22, 2012Match 28 | Carolina RailHawks FC | 0–0 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Cary, North Carolina |
| 7:00 p.m.EDT | Report | Frimpong 68' Hill 90' | Stadium:WakeMed Soccer Park Attendance: 7,310 |
| Carolina RailHawks | 1–2 | Tampa Bay Rowdies |
|---|---|---|
| Shriver 78' (pen.) Lowery 86'Franks 89' | Report | Ambersley 64' 90+' Arango 77'Attinella 83'Antoniuk 85' |
| Tampa Bay Rowdies | 3–3 | Carolina RailHawks |
|---|---|---|
| Hill 40' (pen.) Ambersley 65'Mulholland 84' 90+2' | Report | Shriver 14' Shipalane 18'Agbossoumonde 35'Zimmerman 86' (pen.) |
Tampa Bay won 5–4 on aggregate and qualified for the NASL Championship Series.
| Minnesota Stars FC | 2–0 | Tampa Bay Rowdies |
|---|---|---|
| Walker 67' Takada 84'Nuñez 90+4' | Report | Ambersley 48' |
| Tampa Bay Rowdies | 3–1 (a.e.t.) | Minnesota Stars FC |
|---|---|---|
| Cort 25' 58' Ambersley 26'Savage 51'Mulholland 82'Antoniuk 86' 90+'Hill 90' | Report | Davis 32' Bracalello 45+'Rodríguez 52' |
| Penalties | ||
Mulholland Cox Picault Cort  | 3–2 | HlavatyDel DoAltmanBracalelloRodríguez |
3–3 on aggregate;Tampa Bay won the 2012 NASL Championship onpenalty kicks.
Tampa Bay entered with the other U.S.-based teams from theNASL andUSL Pro in the second round. The first two rounds were drawn on May 1, 2012.
v Tampa Bay Rowdies| May 22, 2012Second round | Jacksonville United | 0–3 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Jacksonville, Florida |
| 19:00 EST | Donaldson 51' | Report | Ambersley 2' Antoniuk 19'Savage 65' | Stadium:Patton Park Attendance: 925 |
v
Colorado Rapids| May 29, 2012Third round | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 1–3 | Colorado Rapids | St. Petersburg, Florida |
| 20:00 EST | Antoniuk 19' Washington 56'Clare 90+2' | Report | Edu 17' (pen.) Akpan 33'Thompson 55'Marshall 57'Hill 90+1'Ceus 90+2' | Stadium:Al Lang Stadium Attendance: 3,086 |
The Ponce De Leon Cup was a fan-basedderby and trophy that was created in 2006. Participants were originallyUnited Soccer Leagues first division teams (later USSF-D2, then NASL teams) based in lands that Spanish explorer,Juan Ponce de León, had visited; namely Florida and Puerto Rico. It was awarded to the club with the best record in league games versus the other participants. The trophy itself was purported to have been destroyed in 2010 in a warehouse fire. 2012 was the final year that the cup was awarded, as thePuerto Rico Islanders ceased operation following the NASL season.
| Pos | Team | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 12 | 8 | +4 | 13 |
| 2 | Puerto Rico Islanders | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 6 | +2 | 12 |
| 3 | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | 8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 9 | 15 | -6 | 8 |
