The Tampa Bay Rowdies hosted Birmingham Legion in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Round of 32, romping to a 3-0 lead in the first half before the Legion stormed back and forced extra time. The home team eventually scored a wonder goal, courtesy of Manuel Arteaga, on the way to a 6-4 win after 120 jam-packed minutes.
The first 45 of those were very one-sided, with 10 shots for Tampa Bay and just two for Birmingham. Rowdies coach Robbie Neilson decided to use this match to rotate his squad, and the Rowdies still overwhelmed the Legion with balls over the top and intense pressing when out of possession.
Left wingback Blake Bodily created a number of chances for the Green-and-Gold. Originally up against Dawson McCartney, the Legion right back had to switch sides following an injury to their starting left winger, Diba Nwegbo. Neither McCartney nor his replacement Mujeeb Murana were able to contain the Rowdies’ attacks, however. Bodily would have two assists in the first 45 minutes.
While the Legion had almost as much possession as the home team, what they could achieve with it was initially lacking. Enzo Martinez and Tyler Pasher, two of Birmingham’s most lethal players, frequently had to drop deep to receive the ball and turn with it. Both moved higher up the field to apply further pressure in the second half. That would lead to an unlikely turnaround.
After a hat trick for forward Cal Jennings, Tampa Bay took its foot off the gas, thinking 4-0 would be adequate to get the job done. This allowed Legion to creep back into things late in the game. Enzo Martinez scored in the 82nd minute, followed by second half-substitute Kobe Hernandez-Foster seven minutes later to halve the deficit.
In stoppage time, Tyler Pasher scored a double, including one from the penalty spot, to take the match to extra time. Rowdies fans could be heard booing anything and everything at the end of regulation, stunned that somehow it was actually 4-4.
In the extra 30 minutes that followed, the Rowdies had much of their usual starting XI on the field. This played out to good effect for the home team. The wings are where Tampa Bay thrives – and interplay from out wide led to a pair of goals scored by Manuel Arteaga. While the second was a good finish off a deflected shot, the first was a screamer, something in between a bicycle and a scissor kick that every striker dreams about when they go to sleep.
All at once, a Rowdies crowd that previously was shell-shocked roared to life again. A red card deep into extra time for their hero Arteaga could not dampen the hometown fans’ spirits at the final whistle. Jennings said after the game, “we can be better; but, we survived and we’re moving on.” Manager Robbie Neilson seemed to feel the same way: “It was an entertaining game. It was a stressful game in the end; but, we managed to get over the line – and we’re now in the next round of the Cup, which was really important for us. It’s the furthest we’ve been before.”