Soccer Bowl 2012

Soccer Bowl 2012
NASL Championship Series 2012
Event	Soccer Bowl
	on aggregate; Tampa Bay Rowdies won 3–2 on penalties
First leg
Date	October 20, 2012
Venue	National Sports Center, Blaine, Minnesota
Man of the Match	Jeff Attinella
Attendance	4,642
Second leg
	After extra time
Date	October 27, 2012
Venue	Al Lang Stadium, St. Petersburg, Florida
Attendance	6,208
	← 2011 2013 →

NASL Championship Series 2012 was the North American Soccer League's postseason championship final of the 2012 season. Also known as the NASL Championship Series 2012, the event was contested in a two-game aggregate match between the Tampa Bay Rowdies and, the defending 2011 NASL champions, the Minnesota Stars. The first leg was held on October 20, 2012 at National Sports Center, in Blaine, Minnesota, while the second on October 27, 2012 at Al Lang Stadium, in St. Petersburg, Florida.

After a two-day competition, both sides were tied at three points apiece. Following extra time, the game went to penalty shoot-out. In the end, the Tampa Bay Rowdies were victorious and became the 2012 NASL champions.^[1]^[2]

Background

The defending Soccer Bowl champion Minnesota Stars finished sixth in league standings with 35 points and a record of 8-11-9. They qualified for the NASL playoffs as the low seed of six teams. The Stars defeated the third seeded Puerto Rico Islanders in a single-match quarterfinal game, 2–1. In the two-legged semifinals Minnesota defeated the top-seeded San Antonio Scorpions, 2–1, on aggregate. The victory allowed them to advance to their second straight Soccer Bowl.

The Tampa Bay Rowdies finished in second position on the league table with a record of 12-9-7 for 47 points, which was two points behind San Antonio's table-topping total of 49. As the number-two seed in the playoffs the Rowdies earned a quarterfinal bye. Tampa Bay faced the fourth seeded Carolina RailHawks in the semifinals, winning 5–4 on aggregate, which earned them the right to play in Soccer Bowl 2012.

Game summary

Minnesota won the first leg, 2–0, on goals by Amani Walker in the 67th minute and Martin Nunez in injury time. Without an away-goals rule, at a minimum Tampa Bay needed to win the return leg by any two-goal margin to keep hope alive. In the second leg Carl Cort scored on a rebound for the Rowdies in the 25th minute and Keith Savage scored in the 51st minute to level the series. The Stars quickly regained their advantage on a score by Lucas Rodríguez in the 52nd minute. Dan Antoniuk's dramatic 86th minute goal leveled the aggregate at four apiece, and a few minutes later teammate Shane Hill was given a straight red card during injury time. With neither team able to score in extra time, the match moved to penalty kicks. Luke Mulholland, Raphael Cox, and Fafà Picault all converted from the spot for Tampa Bay, while Rowdies goalie Jeff Attinella saved three of Minnesota's five attempts to secure the Soccer Bowl title for Tampa Bay.

Championship results

Team 1	Aggregate	Team 2	First leg	Second leg	Attendance
Tampa Bay Rowdies	3–3	Minnesota Stars	0–2	3–1 (a.e.t.) (Penalty Shoot-out 3–2)	October 20 National Sports Center 4,642 October 27 Al Lang Stadium 6,208

First leg

October 20, 2012

8:30 pm EDT

F – 1st Leg

Minnesota Stars	2–0	Tampa Bay Rowdies
Amani Walker 67' Kentaro Takada 84' Martin Nunez 90+4'	Report Report Report 3	Mike Ambersley 48'

National Sports Center, Blaine, Minnesota

Attendance: 4,642

Referee: Kevin Terry, Jr.

Minnesota Stars

Tampa Bay

Second leg

October 27, 2012

7:30 pm EDT

F – 2nd Leg

Tampa Bay Rowdies	3–1 (a.e.t.)	Minnesota Stars
Carl Cort 25' 58' Mike Ambersley 26' Keith Savage 51' Luke Mulholland 82' Dan Antoniuk 86' 90+1' Shane Hill 90'	Report Report Report 3	Justin Davis 32' Simone Bracalello 45+1' Lucas Rodríguez 52'
Penalties
Luke Mulholland Raphael Cox Fafà Picault Carl Cort	3–2	Neil Hlavaty Devin Del Do Kyle Altman Simone Bracalello Lucas Rodríguez