Rowdies' Leo Fernandes returns to team training

TAMPA, Fla. - Although it has been over six months, Leo Fernandes' teammates on the Tampa Bay Rowdies still remember when their season changed. 

"It was a heartbreak. I can remember the exact moment vividly. It stings," recalled defender Forrest Lasso. 

This was the day Leo Fernandes' season ended before it began. 

"You heard a really big 'pop,'" Fernandes remembered.

"I couldn't put any weight on it, and you knew it was really bad."

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The "pop" heard by Fernandes wound up being a ruptured Achilles tendon, an MRI later revealed.

Surgery soon followed and the reigning USL Championship MVP was ruled out thanks to the injury sustained during a preseason exhibition match. 

"Once that happened, a lot of things went through my head, but mostly, just disappointed," Fernandes said. 

While his season may have been lost, Fernandes always wanted to return to train with the team. 

He didn't think it would happen so soon. 

"It was like signing my first pro contract again," said Fernandes.

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"It was such a good feeling to put the cleats back on and kick the ball."

For the last few weeks, the Rowdies' star forward has been back training with the team in some capacity as he inches closer to his comeback. 

"When you hear about these injuries, they take a long, long time (to recover from)," Fernandes said.

"So, for me to be back on the field in six months, I'm very pleased."

Currently, the Rowdies have no plans to allow Leo Fernandes to play this season. 

Still, his mere presence on the training pitch is providing a boost to his teammates as they chase the top spot in the Eastern Conference standings.

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"He provides something that no one else can," Lasso said.

"What he gives off the field, but then on the field he contributes as an offensive presence, but who he is as a leader is unparalleled. Hopefully, he's back any day now."

While Fernandes may not be back "any day now," the MVP can't quite bring himself to rule out a return in 2023 just yet. 

"You never know," Fernandes said.

"If I'm feeling unbelievable and great, I would love to play. But right now, the goal is to, each and every day, get back and stronger than I was before. "

Meanwhile, despite a slow start to the season, the Rowdies have kept up the status quo without their star scorer. 

With eight games left in the regular season, the Rowdies are just one point behind Pittsburgh for the top spot in the USL Eastern Conference, with two games in hand. 

The Rowdies can take sole possession of first place with a win Wednesday night in Memphis.