It should be easy, right?
After all, you can fit a lot of soccer balls into a soccer net. So why should scoring be so difficult? Why isn’t it easier to fit a ball into the back of the net?
Well, there is a goaltender. And there are defenders, trying just to get a piece of the ball. There are officials’ calls and bad bounces and passes that just miss. There is the nature of the game, where opponents succeed in taking threats away.
And so it is that scoring a goal in soccer is an intricate thing to accomplish.
To which the Tampa Bay Rowdies say, yeah? Tell us about it.
In two preseason games, the Rowdies have yet to score a goal. Considering the Rowdies’ problems scoring a year ago, perhaps you have braced yourself. Yet, head coach Stuart Campbell insists that the Rowdies will have a potent offense this season.
The players believe it, too.
“This team has tons of quality going forward, tons,” said Tommy Heinemann. “Tons. It takes time. We’ve been moving around for 3-4 weeks. This week has been a lot better. It’s starting to click and you can see guys on the same page. A team has to get to know the movement of each others, the tendencies, the nuances of how they move that plays into the intricacies of scoring
“I think, without a doubt, it’s going to be a team that can put the ball into the back of the net.”
Danny Mwanga believes it, too. Mwanga, who is from the Congo, played last season for Orlando City.
“Absolutely,” Mwanga said. “I have no doubt. I’m looking at the quality of players we have. Brought in some guys from the MLS. It’s going to take some time for us to get the chemistry right, but we’re going to be able to score a lot of goals this year.”
Still, compared to other sports, scoring can be a demanding task. The Rowdies have given up only three goals in their two defeats.
“I don’t know if hard is a word I would use,” Heinemann said. “The game of football is a lower scoring sport compared to other sports. Does that mean it’s hard to score? I would use … intricate, maybe. It takes a lot of communication, a lot of timing. It takes 3-4 guys to be on the same page in the same moment. But scoring can be a simple thing too.”
Heinemann said that, so far, it has been frustrating. “Its elation for that 5-10 seconds you’re on top of the world.
“Part of the preseason is knowing it’s going to come,” he said. “Don’t misinterpret what I’m saying. It’s extremely frustrating when you have chances but don’t take them. You play to score and ultimately to win.”
The flip side of the low-scoring nature of soccer is the thrill that finally getting goal gives.
“It’s joy,” Heinemann said. “For a few seconds, you’re on top of the world. Of course, that can also be challenging to bring it back down. In soccer, a team is at its most susceptible to allowing a goal in the first few minutes after you score. You’re not thinking the way you should. But that feeling of scoring? It’s why you play, man.”
Mwanga, too, says that it can be difficult.
“It’s tough, it’s tough,” said Danny Mwanga. “You have the entire players on the field are playing for one goal to win a game, and you can’t win a game without scoring a goal you can’t imagine how intense that is you have both teams. It takes a lot of work. The timing has to be there.”
For the Rowdies, there are nine new players on the roster, and the preseason has been played against teams from the MLS.
Saturday night’s game is home against Montreal. Perhaps this time, the nets will see some action.
