CHARLESTON, S.C. — The Tampa Bay Rowdies clinched a playoff place thanks to a 2-1 win against the Charleston Battery on Saturday night but that came not because of some domination but in spite of being statistically outplayed.
The Rowdies did manage to win a significant statistic, winning 13 interceptions to seven. That is ultimately what became the difference in the match. With a significant lack of possession, Charleston had a 58.6 percent share of the possession, the Rowdies needed to do something like stealing possession to make amends for giving up so much time without the ball.
Another key reason for the win came in two areas, crossing and clearances. Charleston swung in 31 crosses in the match but only at an accuracy of 19.4 percent. That mostly happened because of the defensive clearances as the Rowdies made 25 clearances to stop those efforts resulting in a clear chance.
Despite both teams having 12 fouls, Tampa Bay stayed out of the book more often, managing only three cards to the Battery’s six. By having fewer players on a yellow card the Rowdies were able to defend more robustly than Charleston, who had to be anxious about losing a player.
With less of the ball, Tampa Bay also had fewer chances, and as such to win had to be more clinical and this is seen in the shooting accuracy numbers. The Rowdies managed three shots fewer than Charleston but had the same number of shots on target, this led to a 42.9 percent shooting accuracy, with a 20 percent conversion rate.
Despite conceding a goal it was yet again a strong defensive performance which gave the Rowdies a vital win on its season.
Florida Soccer Report 