ST. PETERSBURG – A first half onslaught from CF Montreal took the match away from the Tampa Bay Rowdies as the visitors powered to a 5-1 win at Al Lang Stadium on Sunday night.
The match was delayed by over an hour due to the severe weather that unleashed in the Tampa Bay region but the match eventually got started and Montreal wasted no time in getting the rout going.
Djordje Mihailovic opened the scoring 10 minutes into the match and two minutes later it was doubled through Romell Quioto. The third came through controversial circumstances when Zach Brault-Guillard collided with Evan Louro in the 40th minute and the ball dribbled into the net. The Rowdies players protested arguing that their goalkeeper had possession but the referee disagreed and allowed the goal to stand.
Right on the stroke of half-time Mihailovic capitalized on a counter-attack and finished his brace and the Canadian’s fourth.
The second half was a different story, the Rowdies started strongly, only to crack again in the 64th minute to an Amar Sejdic goal. That would be the last good news for CF Montreal as they went down to 10 men following a headbutt on Aaron Guillen.
Tampa Bay got a consolation goal in the 89th minute when a free-kick swung in by Lewis Hilton found Steevan Dos Santos who headed it home for the final 5-1 scoreline.
There was some odd drama in the match when one of the assistant referees went down with an injury. Rowdies Performance Coach Pete Calabrese stepped in to fulfil that role to conclude the match.
Florida Soccer Report 