Rowdies lose regular-season finale; still have a chance for NASL playoffs

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After all the ups, after all the downs, the Tampa Bay Rowdies now look … to Jacksonville.

In the aftermath of a 2-0 defeat at the hands of the New York Cosmos, the Rowdies find themselves the world’s biggest fans of the Jacksonville Armada. If Jacksonville, the league’s 10th-place team in the Fall Season, can beat the Fort Lauderdale Strikers, the Rowdies will make the NASL playoffs.

If Fort Lauderdale draws or wins, however, the Rowdies’ season is over.

The Cosmos scored the only goals of Saturday’s match in a four-minute burst early in the second half. Raul Gonzalez Blanco scored in the 54th minute, and Sebastian Guenzatti scored the second. The Rowdies best scoring chance came in the 71st minute Richard Menjivar shot just over the goal.

The Rowdies had an eight-point advantage of the Strikers after the Spring season, but they were only the eighth-best team in the NASL in the Fall. Tampa Bay is tied for last in scoring in the Fall with Jacksonville.

Gary Shelton is one of the most recognized and honored sportswriters in the history of the state. He has won the APSE's national columnist of the year twice and finished in the top 10 eight times. He was named the Florida Sportswriter of the Year six times. Gary joined SaintPetersBlog in the spring, helping to bring a sports presence to the website. Over his time in sports writing, Gary has covered 29 Super Bowls, 10 Olympics, Final Fours, Masters, Wimbledons and college national championships. He was there when the Bucs won a Super Bowl, when the Lightning won a Stanley Cup and when the Rays went to a World Series. He has seen Florida, FSU and Miami all win national championships, and he covered Bear Bryant, Bobby Bowden and Don Shula along the way. He and his wife Janet have four children: Eric, Kevin, K.C. and Tori. To contact, visit [email protected].