Rowdies rally around teammate with season debut Saturday 

TAMPA, Fla. - A new season for the Tampa Bay Rowdies comes with renewed hopes and dreams. 

"I think we've got a squad that's got a lot to prove," said Rowdies head coach Neill Collins.

Even with a hefty roster overhaul in the offseason, the Rowdies newest names and faces are hoping to fit right into a team culture that has become synonymous with success on the pitch.

"It's a winning mentality and it is truly a family in the locker room," says midfielder Zach Herivaux. "It's something that I've been looking for in my career."

Saturday, the Rowdies finally get to put that winning mentality on display in their season opener. 

"I'm sure if you spoke to all the coaches across both divisions of the USL, they'd all feel pretty good at this moment in time," Collins said. 

All of that optimism, however, went right out the window when the Rowdies learned they would have to play the season without their biggest star.

In the 75th-minute of the Rowdies third and final preseason game, star forward Leo Fernandes, the team's longest tenured player and the 2022 USL MVP, went down with a torn achillies tendon. 

"There's no replacing a player like Leo inside and outside," said defender Aaron Guillen. "Obviously, the quality he brings to the field he showed last year by being MVP." 

The loss of Fernandes for the season, meanwhile, goes far beyond the 20 goals and nine assists he produced during his MVP campaign last season. 

"You can't quantify losing such a leader and character like Leo," Collins said. 

Now, as a team prepares to start a new season, it also prepares to carry out without, but for, one of their own. 

"He's the one that needs our support," said Collins. "These guys get to go out and play. It's about us always being greater than the sum of our parts."

Leo Fernandes, however, is one part that the Rowdies are sure to miss on the field. The Rowdies, meanwhile, kickoff their season against the Indy Eleven Saturday at Al Lang Stadium at 7:30 pm.