Rowdies switch focus to gain sharpness

Posted Mar 31, 2010 by Nick Murray

Updated Mar 31, 2010 at 02:17 PM

After four weeks of fitness training, FC Tampa Bay Rowdies coach Paul Dalglish is now looking to get the team match-sharp for opening day of the season, April 16 against Crystal Palace Baltimore.

With that in mind, the players have been working in one-on-one situations to work on their control and touch, and translating that into the eight-a-side scrimmages that have concluded practice.

“As good as it is to deal with one-v-one situations, it’s more about getting sharp,” Dalglish said. “I’m a big believer in coming up with sessions that use the ball to get the specific fitness you want. This week we’ve been trying to get sharpness and there’s no better way to do it that one-v-one situations.”

The work on getting sharper should be most visible in the final third of the field. Dalglish hopes it will be apparent when the Rowdies face the University of South Florida on April 10 as opposed to the way chances have been missed so far this preseason.

“We’ve created and had a lot more scoring chances than the scoreline suggests in preseason,” Dalglish said. “Although we’ve done well, I feel like we should have beaten Dallas, we should have beaten Philadelphia by more, and we had so many goalscoring opportunities against UCF that we’ve got to start being more clinical because when we start playing better and better opposition, we may only get two or three opportunities a game.”

Dalglish is forgiving of the chances that have been missed, though, pointing out that the finishing he and the players seek is usually the final thing to come as a side prepares for a new season. Add in the training sessions the players have been put through so far, which have meant tired legs and minds.

“We would never do this much work during the week leading up to games,” Dalglish said, “so it’s tough for the guys to play having done the sessions they’ve done.”

Which is why now, while still working hard, the side is focused on getting the sharpness it will need in just over two weeks.