Tampa Bay Rowdies Jagermeister Cup Match vs. FC Naples Preview
Written by James Knowles
Date: Friday July 4, 2025
Kickoff Time: 8:00 pm EST at Paradise Coast Sports Complex in Naples, FL
Records: Tampa Bay Rowdies (4 pts 1W-1D-0L); FC Naples (3 pts 1W-0D-1L)
Standings: The Rowdies are 3rd in Group 6 of the 2025 Jagermeister Cup and Naples are 5th.
About a week after most of the USL Championship and League 1 teams played their latest Jager Cup matches, the Rowdies will now take center stage against a local rival on July 4th! Traveling down the coast to Naples, Tampa Bay will be looking to boost their chances of making the next round. Their opponents, currently going through it, will do everything in their power to cause an upset and turn their season around. Get tickets to make sure you don’t miss this one!
Can we beat them before penalties this time?
In the first ever season for FC Naples, there have already been highs and lows. This was encapsulated in the first ever meeting between them and the Rowdies. Tampa Bay went south to take on their new local rivals in an earlier round of the US Open Cup in what became a very emotional match. Only after extra time and a long penalty shoot out could the Green and Gold eke out a victory.
Skipping quickly past the Open Cup match that followed, each side continued to fluctuate in form. After Naples almost claimed the scalp of their higher-tier opposition, they continued to do well in league play until this past month. June has been tougher for them, though, with the team sliding down to fourth in the USL League 1 on 19 points.
In fact, Naples only has two wins overall since that Open Cup fixture, once against USL Championship side Charleston Battery in the Jager Cup and once in League 1. This is shaping up to be a good time to play what is still a very organized team on the Paradise Coast. It will be as well for the fact that the Rowdies have begun their own bounce back to better fortunes.
Tampa Bay fans will be quick to point out that the Rowdies’ roster is still impressive. There are good players in peak points of their careers. Notwithstanding costly injury problems, the side has plenty of talent – putting it together in the right formation and with the right plan has been the real problem. Each of those has seemingly improved of late.
Back to a more familiar 3-5-2 system with wingbacks involved in the buildup on either side, the Green and Gold are starting to remember who they are. The addition of Luis Alvarez to help in attacking plays and the return of Lewis Hilton have solidified positions of relative weakness from the middle part of the season so far. The midfield is playing with a better sense of self.
Still, breaking down Naples won’t be easy. They’ll obviously be up for a challenge: nothing gets the blood going like taking on a club from higher up the ladder. Being July 4th, even more weight is added to the occasion, with nearly everyone off work and having a good chance to attend. The hosts will have the added advantage of knowing their turf pitch better than the Rowdies.
Midfielders Chris Heckenberg and Kevin O’Connor will be central to Naples’ plans – as well as their formation. The two have several years of experience between them both in the USL and in other countries. They are savvy operators who’ll be looking to shut down passing lanes or clog the danger areas for Tampa Bay’s moves. Both will also want to kickstart attacks of their own.
But, the Rowdies’ wingbacks know their roles. With either Ollie Bassett or Luis Alvarez in front of Hilton and his usual partner Danny Crisostomo, Blake Bodily on the left and Thomas Vancaeyezeele on the right will try to add numbers and guile to the buildup. Execution in the interactions between them will dictate whether or not Tampa Bay can bypass the Naples midfield duo to create chances.