August 10, 2022 – United Soccer League Championship (USL) – Tampa Bay Rowdies News Release
ST. PETERSBURG, FL – On Thursday, the USL Championship announced that Tampa Bay Rowdies Head Coach Neill Collins was voted Coach of the Month after leading the Rowdies to a perfect record of five wins in five outings in July.
Collins – the reigning USL Championship Coach of the Year – has seen his side excel over the past three months on the heels of a rocky start of the 2022 campaign. The Rowdies have not lost since late April and are unbeaten in their last 13 matches, including 11 wins.
At 38 years old, Collins is still a relatively young head coach but also the second longest tenured head coach in the league as he pushes the Rowdies to claim a league title in his fifth season in charge. Only PIttsburgh Riverhounds SC’s Bob Lilley has held his post for longer.
“I’ve gained so much experience,” noted Collins. “Every game, every training session, every up and down, hopefully it all makes you better if you reflect on it. That’s what we’ve tried to do as an organization, improve every year on the field. We look at every part of how we prepare to be on the field. There’s a lot of learning still to be done.
“You speak to coaches that have been doing it 20, 30 years and I think you feel that you never get there fully, but you strive to get there and that’s what we’re doing. It’s gone by quickly and I’ve enjoyed it, but obviously lots to work towards.”
Tampa Bay’s current 13-match unbeaten run equals the previous longest undefeated streak in club history, set at the start of the 2019 season. Collins was also at the helm for that season, and the Rowdies have only grown in strength over the years. From the start of the 2019 season up until this point, no team has posted more victories in the Rowdies, who have won 69 matches in 113 outings.
“All the players should take credit,” said Collins. “The guys that have been here are fantastic at setting the standards and maintaining the standards, but then the guys coming in always add something new. Look at someone like Jake LaCava coming from an MLS club and really embracing the opportunity and being part of the team. There’s other new players who have done so well. That all comes down to the players. The new guys have to want to be here, want to be part of things. Then it’s up to the guys that have been here to make them feel a part of things.”
This Saturday, the Rowdies meet the team with the second most over the last…