Courtesy of Tampa Bay Rowdies
By Daniel Hernandez
The Rowdies are looking for silverware in its 48th official season as a club and Neill Collins will be leading the team once again in his fifth season as the Rowdies’ head coach.
The Rowdies had a six-week preseason and have one main goal towards this ongoing current USL championship season.
“We’re striving to win a championship and this year we’ve had a good six-week preseason. We played a strong couple of games this year in preseason so that has really helped us prepare,” Collins said.
Many summer transfers have also occurred during the summer transfer window and the Rowdies have welcomed some new and returning players. New signings like Ariel Martinez, Phil Breno, and Felix Schroeter have added quality depth and talent to the current squad. Returning players like Forrest Lasso and Lucky Mksona have brought experience and leadership to the team.
“It’s always good trying to bring returning players back to bring consistency and when you add new players it’s always exciting,” Collins said.
Even though there were positives from the transfer window, there were also negatives for the club. 31-year-old attacking midfielder Leo Fernandes ruptured his Achilles in early March which has forced him to miss all of the 2023 season. He was a key player for the Rowdies last season with twenty goals and nine assists in thirty-five matches. He was also rewarded with the 2022 USL championship MVP award.
“Losing Leo Fernandes was a huge blow because of the impact he had last season. He is such a talented player that is currently on the way to recovery,” Collins said.
The Rowdies have made it to two consecutive finals in the past three years. The 2020 final was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the following year the Rowdies lost to Orange County SC in the final.
Collins believes that making it so far has been a main aspect of motivation for the past couple of seasons and this season.
“I think coming off of 2020 it motivated the boys to get to the final the following season. Coming off disappointments is where the motivation starts. My goal this season is to give the fans a championship,” Collins said.
Collins had a very experienced professional career as a player that has prepared him for his current position as head coach for the Rowdies. He played for teams like Wolverhampton Wolves, Sheffield United, Leeds United and the Rowdies.
“Having those experiences gave me the opportunity to play for some good coaches. I learned from their strengths and flaws. My goal is to experience the highest level as a coach and right now my goal is to achieve the best with the Rowdies,” Collins said.
Collins is 39 years old, which is a young age for a coach in the world of soccer, or football as they call it in the rest of the world. He believes that to improve as a young coach you must take any opportunity to coach at any level.
“You’ve got to just get out there and coach. Coaching anywhere like grassroots, recreational and high school will be beneficial for young coaches to gain experience,” Collins said.
The Tampa Bay Rowdies are currently No. 8 in the eastern conference with the regular season ending at the end of October which means there is still time to move up the table and perhaps win another United Soccer League championship.
