Category: Articles

How To Beat Cancer by Selling Sports Bras

Posted on by RJ Allen
McCall Zerboni and Emma Bayer in September

Can a sports bra save a life?

When that sports bra is signed by a professional athlete and sold to raise money for the Keep-A-Breast Foundation, they can.

North Carolina Courage midfielder McCall Zerboni and 11-year-old Emma Bayer have teamed up since 2010 to help raise money by selling signed sports bras from professional women’s soccer players and then donating the funds to the Keep-A-Breast Foundation.

I asked Emma’s father, David, why the duo settled on Keep-A-Breast for their fundraising efforts. “Keep-A-Breast is focused on educating young women, so it seemed like a good fit for McCall & Emma, and the players of the soccer league. KAB has been very supportive. They send us literature, which we pass on to bra buyers and contributors.”

Bayer and Zerboni don’t just stop at the once a year auction, David explained. “In September, we went up to North Carolina for McCall’s game. It was breast cancer awareness night. We had done a Gofundme and raised $620 for a local charity up there (Pretty in Pink Foundation).”

Zerboni’s teammates have more than stepped up to help the cause. Abby Dahlkemper, Ashley Hatch, Darian Jenkins, Debinha, Denise O’Sullivan, Elizabeth Eddy, Jaelene Hinkle, Katelyn Rowland, Kristen Hamilton, Lynn Williams, Makenzy Doniak, Meredith Speck, Sabrina D’Angelo, Samantha Mewis, Samantha Witteman, Steph Ochs, Taylor Smith, Kelly Glendenning, and Brittany Bock have all signed and decorated sports bras in support.

A lot can be said for the league going back to the well of making NWSL players into role models. But in this case, I think Zerboni is showing that the players do play some role in showing the next generation they can do some good in the world.

If you are interested in bidding on one of the sports bras the link can be found here. Their Facebook can be found here, MZ & Emmers Sports Bra Auction for Breast Cancer.

Route Two Soccer – My end of the year ballot

Posted on by RJ Allen

It’s that time of year. With the close of the regular season, it’s time to start thinking about the end of the year awards. Here’s my take.

MVP

  1. Sam Kerr
  2. Marta
  3. McCall Zerboni
  4. Sam Mewis
  5. Julie Ertz

This is a close race, and I certainly wouldn’t argue with anyone who swapped first and second. Marta was incredible this year—the pivot of Orlando’s transition, the supplier of key passes, provider of holdup play, scorer of goals, and heart and soul of the team. Plus, I’m inherently skeptical of the goals-are-everything attitude which tends to dominate awards voting, and would really like to make the case for Marta.

But Kerr …

I think we’ll be talking for years about the season that Sam Kerr had in 2017. She was a force of nature and almost single-handedly kept Sky Blue afloat. That she played a role in that many goals, on a team so fundamentally limited, was nothing short of miraculous.

The top two are pretty clear in my mind, but there’s a lot more room for disagreement after that. I’m picking Zerboni third, though could just as easily go with her midfield partner Sam Mewis. Julie Ertz had a wonderful season, as the fulcrum of the Chicago defense, and as an important attacking force as well. The same goes for Jess Fishlock in Seattle. Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan missed time but were world-class when they played. Christen Press was the best in the league for the opening third of the season but then settled back to merely ‘good’ in the back half.

Ultimately, I chose Zerboni, Mewis, and Ertz to round out my top five. All three have been integral to their teams, but I picked Zerboni third because I think she is the absolute heart of the system North Carolina has built and sustained. Her work rate is unparalleled, and her ability to disrupt play unquestionable. Without a player like her, shielding the backline and stitching the attack together, the whole system would break down. It has been an incredible year for Zerboni, and she deserves immense credit for finding this next level of performance.

Rookie of the Year

  1. Ashley Hatch
  2. Meggie Dougherty Howard
  3. Mallory Pugh

In many ways, Rookie of the Year is the toughest category to define. In an MVP race, the quality is so high across the board that simply showing up is critical. You aren’t providing any value if you’re off the pitch. But for a rookie race, where the quality is generally lower, it’s less obvious. If Player A contributes 2000 minutes of league-average performance, there is a lot of real value there. But how to compare 2000 minutes of ‘average’ against Player B, who only managed 1000 minutes but was very good? From a team’s perspective, Player A is probably more valuable, especially given the low replacement level of the league right now. But from the perspective of deciding on a ‘rookie of the year’ award, it’s less obvious.

All of which is to say: I don’t have a clear method here, and in a very close race ultimately just went with my gut. And my gut tells me that Hatch was the best of the year. She scored goals, harassed the opposition, and almost seamlessly integrated into the North Carolina system. She played for a stacked team and therefore was only able to get about 1200 minutes, but I think she provided the best combination of bulk and peak performance.

To balance things out, my #2 is Dougherty Howard, who was an integral part of Washington’s team, stepping in to fill the holding role when Tori Huster was injured, and then doing very well as more of a #8 once Huster returned. She struggled at times, but it’s incredibly impressive to contribute that much and to play that many minutes, in a rookie year.

For my #3, I seriously considered Christina Gibbons (whose season shares a lot of similar characteristics with Dougherty Howard’s), Kailen Sheridan, and even Rose Lavelle. But ultimately I kept coming back to Pugh, who often struggled (understandably) to express herself for the Spirit. But she did enough to ultimately convince me.

Goalkeeper of the Year

  1. Adrianna Franch
  2. Katelyn Rowland
  3. Nicole Barnhart

Franch wins this one in a walk. She had some early season struggles with her distribution but improved significantly on that front. And in terms of shot stopping and control over the box, she was easily the best. Conceding just 20 goals in 24 games is impressive enough, and Franch wasn’t simply the beneficiary of a strong team defense. Her shots-on-goal per game ratio of 4.3 was on the low side, but not an extreme outlier (league average was 5.0). Which means her save/goal ratio was an extreme outlier. At 4.1, she was a full half point ahead of the closest competition, miles above the league average of 2.5.

Second place was also an easy call, with Rowland doing very well in every capacity. For third, I was tempted by a few names. Plenty of keepers had strong runs during the year: Kopmeyer and Labbe early, Sheridan in midseason, Harris toward the end. But ultimately I came back to the steadiness of Barnhart.

Defender of the Year

  1. Abby Dahlkemper
  2. Emily Sonnett
  3. Casey Short

I have no strong opinions on this one, and could easily have reversed the order, or swapped out these three for an entirely different set and still been pretty satisfied. To my eyes, Dahlkemper was the steadiest of the bunch, while Sonnett did a fantastic job reminding us why we were so hyped about her in the first place. Short, meanwhile, performed admirably at left back, with some decent play covering at center back when needed. Any of the three would be worthy winners. And I could equally make a case for players like Ali Krieger, Becky Sauerbrunn, Abby Erceg, Emily Menges, Kelley O’Hara, Taylor Smith, and Steph Catley.

Coach of the Year

  1. Paul Riley
  2. Tom Sermanni
  3. Vlatko Andonovski

The only real question here is which of Riley or Sermanni deserves first place. To me, it’s Riley. That North Carolina team has been incredibly impressive, relentless, and dominating all season. And while they’ve got plenty of great players, this is a true gestalt system, with many players doing far better than I would have guessed. They’ve integrated new faces without any trouble, swapped systems, handled injuries to key players without much difficulty, and stayed at the top of the league all season. There are more tactically savvy coaches, but none who got anything close to this sort of total buy-in from their team.

That said, Sermanni deserves immense credit for what he’s done in Orlando, particularly given the clear limitations of the roster. His big moves (including relying heavily on Kennedy and Weatherholt to anchor the midfield – which, raise your hand if you saw that coming) have worked splendidly, and the team looks more unified and more dangerous every week.

In third place, I went for Andonovski, not because his team looked particularly great this year. But unlike other teams facing serious difficulties, FCKC never folded. Even when the results weren’t coming, you could see them working hard, and see how they were going to get better. So it was no real surprise when things turned back around and they started moving back up the table.

Team of the Season

Sam Kerr – Alex Morgan – Christen Press

Marta – Sam Mewis – McCall Zerboni

Casey Short – Abby Dahlkemper – Emily Sonnett – Kelley O’Hara

Adrianna Franch

Most of these should be obvious from the comments above. Toughest call was leaving out Ertz, but I already have Zerboni in my XI to fill that role, so I chose to go with Press as a third striker instead.

Second XI

Megan Rapinoe – Lynn Williams – Shea Groom

Lindsey Horan – Jess Fishlock – Julie Ertz

Allysha Chapman – Ali Krieger – Becky Sauerbrunn – Taylor Smith

Katelyn Rowland

Williams didn’t score as many goals this year as in 2016, but I think she might have been a better all-around player. Groom may raise some eyebrows, but she was excellent for KC, supplying plenty of goals and assists directly, but contributing even more to the set-up. I went back and forth several times on Horan, who frustrated me at times this year. But on the whole, I think she did enough to justify a spot. Allysha Chapman had a marvelous year and was a big part of Boston’s defensive turnaround.

Honorable mentions (i.e. – the toughest exclusions): Amandine Henry (more minutes and she’d have made it), Naho Kawasumi (a magician, but drifted out of games a little too often), Vanessa DiBernardo (excelled in the #10 but was less effective in other roles, and missed time), Abby Erceg (could absolutely make a case for her as the best CB), Steph Catley (slow start but excellent second half), Sofia Huerta (really coming into her own), Angela Salem (the heart of the Breakers’ setup), and Christine Sinclair.

 

The Unknown International: Estefania Banini

Posted on by RJ Allen

[media-credit name=”Kelley Piper” align=”aligncenter” width=”300″][/media-credit]

The NWSL may be the American soccer league, many of its most talented players come from all over the world. This series looks at some of the best internationals in the NWSL, analyzing their role and impact on their national team and their NWSL club, as well as their overall style of play. This week, we will be looking at Washington Spirit and Argentinian striker Estefania Banini.

Who Is She?

Estefania Banini is a 27-year-old striker from Mendoza, Argentina. Like many of her fellow female footballers, particularly from Latin America, Banini struggled to play the game that she loved as a child. Her parents took her from club to club in Argentina, until they finally found a team that would take their five-year-old daughter. Despite these difficulties, Banini found success. She spent three years with Colo-Colo in the Chilean women’s league, winning the championship each season. When she came to the United States, some coaches expressed hesitation in what they perceived as a lack of professional experience. But she proved them wrong. She joined the Washington Spirit and played a critical role in their run to the NWSL Championship in 2016. She has been compared to fellow Argentine striker Lionel Messi and Brazilian superstar Marta. But struggles with her federation have left Banini struggling to break out on the international stage.

Argentina National Team

Argentina has one of the best men’s national teams in the world, with two World Cup titles and an appearance in the 2014 World Cup Final to prove it. One might think, then, that they would have at least a decent women’s side as well. But this has not been the case. In fact, Argentina’s women’s team has been largely silent for the last few years, to the point of falling out of FIFA Rankings due to their inactivity. Banini earned her first cap in 2010 but has seen few opportunities to play for them in the years since. Before their friendly against Uruguay this August, the team hadn’t played since 2014. With a shift in management, the AFA recently began to prepare for the Women’s Copa America, to be played in Chile next year. This seemed like a positive sign, but the team is now on strike–due to lack of payment and poor training conditions. Banini has been working against the odds her whole life and will continue to do so as the Argentina women’s team fights for respect.

Washington Spirit

While Banini has struggled with her national federation, she has found nothing but success at the club level. After three years and consistent championships with Colo-Colo in the Chilean league, Banini signed with the Washington Spirit and joined the NWSL. She started in the first four matches for the Spirit in 2015 before an injury sidelined her for the remainder of the season. But she came back in 2016, earning 9 starts in 13 appearances and playing in both postseason games. Even in limited time, her five goals were enough to earn her the Spirit Golden Boot. But amidst the Spirit’s roster restructuring last winter, Banini looked overseas and chose to play with Spanish side Valencia. However, midway through the 2017 season, she rejoined the Spirit. She earned 6 starts in 9 matches with the squad, and while they will not be traveling to the postseason this year, many are interested to see where the squad goes in the future. In particular, the partnership between Banini and Mallory Pugh was something to watch this season and could be something to keep an eye on in the future. Only time will tell.

Unapologetically Cool: 5 Reasons Ashlyn Harris and Umbro Works

Posted on by RJ Allen
Kelley Piper

There was a lot of material to write about this week – the NWSL playoffs are set, something is brewing with the Brazilian National Team, Pass The Ball just kicked off (with a little help from Julia Roberts and Ellen DeGeneres), and I still have a lot of thoughts on Sam Kerr not being a finalist for FIFA Female Player of the Year. But I needed a little break from so much seriousness this week, and I also needed a little retail therapy. So where does that leave us? With five reasons why the Ashyln Harris/Umbro partnership is going to be a successful one. Ready? Set? Lets talk about it!

Everyone Loves A Throw Back

On August 15, when news broke of Harris becoming the first female ambassador for the Umbro brand I thought two things. First, “That is so cool that she is breaking the mold being the first female sponsor.” And then, “You can still buy Umbro in America?”

I know that may sound harsh, but it’s true. Whenever I think of Umbro I think back to my glory days on a half-pitch with my Umbro checkerboard shorts, my little league rec soccer team that my dad coached, and orange slices and Capri Suns at half-time. It was glorious … and it was the 90s. Since then I haven’t seen Umbro around. But luckily, this can play to the advantage of the brand. Let’s not lie, the 90s are kind of in right now. And us millennials love to honor them with a throwback anytime we can. Harris and Umbro have taken this into account too. They know when the Umbro heyday was. So, along with a normal Spring ’18 premier line that Harris will help contribute on, the brand will also be releasing ‘classic lifestyle’ and ‘heritage’ pieces of some of their best throwback threads. So, get your credit cards ready, mid-to-late-twenty-somethings. You’re going to want some of this!

 

She Could Be A Champion Soon

Along with being a 3x NCAA Women’s Soccer Champion, and a World Cup Champion, there is a good chance that Ashlyn Harris could soon add NWSL Champion to her list of accolades. The Orlando Pride has been playing exceptionally well lately, and because of that, there is a chance that the stock in their fan-favorite starting goalkeeper will rise come the playoffs. And if the Pride do win it all, well, that means that Harris gets some more publicity through winning. As a brand, Umbro will be happy about that. Because winning sells. Let’s not lie. You don’t want to buy the basketball shoe of someone who’s team is sitting in last place. It’s not quite the same in the soccer world, but there is definitely some correlation with winning and sales. Everyone likes a winner. And a winner who rocks a throwback? Even better. Sign me up.

 

Her Fans Fan HARD!

The third reason that Ashlyn Harris and Umbro will be successful with their Spring ’18 collection has to do with the amazing fan base that Harris has surrounding her. They are supportive, and loyal, and loud. Don’t believe me? Check out social media whenever the USWNT lineup comes out before a game. No matter what – regardless if Harris is starting or not – the most intense debate begins on who the best American goalkeeper is currently. And Harris’ fans do not stand down. They will back their girl to the death, and I love that about them. Umbro should love that about them too. Because even though Harris only has about 400k followers on Instagram, they are some of the most loyal followers in the world. They will make sure to get the word out about the new line, and they will be sure to rock it themselves. No doubt about that.

 

She Breaks The Mold … And So Does Umbro

My favorite thing about Ashlyn Harris is that she is herself one hundred percent of the time. And the person she is, isn’t necessarily what the mainstream soccer world always wants her to be. And neither is Umbro. And that is what makes them such a good fit for each other. They are both unapologetically unique and true to themselves. Umbro hasn’t changed its course or its mission, and Harris isn’t one to be pushed into following the crowd. Neither one of them is your normal cookie-cutter soccer player or soccer brand. And neither is afraid to break the mold. They both stand for something and represent something almost pure. They are both here for the game and to live the style that they want. And that is what the fans of both the brand and the champion goalkeeper want too – to love the game and be who they are. That’s why it works. That’s why it’s a brand/player duo that makes people want to buy the product and cheer for the individual.

 

It’s Swanky Stuff

I mentioned earlier in the article that I needed a little retail therapy this week. In turn, I am currently writing this article rocking some checkered Umbro shorts. And let me tell you, they feel amazing … just like they did when I was six and following the ball around the pitch with no sense of what my position was actually supposed to be. And that’s what I really enjoyed about the Umbro pieces I recently bought. They were a good material, they were relatively inexpensive, and they brought me back to a time when life was simpler. They also got me a compliment at the local deli from the man standing behind me as I waited for my pastrami sandwich. “Are those, Umbro? That’s so cool!” I know, kind deli customer – you don’t have to tell me. Overall, I would definitely buy more Umbro apparel, and I am really excited to see what Harris does with the Spring ’18 line.

So there you have it, my friends – a different take on my weekly 5er. You can check out Ashlyn Harris and the rest of the Orlando Pride this postseason, and make sure to be on the lookout for some sweet-action Umbro apparel. Whether you are a Harris fan or not, this brand lives, eats, and breathes the beautiful game and if you are reading this article, the chance is that you do too. So give them another shot. Your inner child would want you to.

A Conversation with Orlando Pride Coach Tom Sermanni

Posted on by RJ Allen

It’s been a long road for Orlando Pride Head Coach Tom Sermanni. The 2016 season of the Nation Women’s Soccer League brought many challenges to Sermanni’s side as they finished ninth in the table for their inaugural campaign. The start of the 2017 looked to bring more of the same for Orlando, but the gaffer was able to ride out only one win in the first seven matches, and eventually guide his team to a playoff spot, a first for an expansion team in the league.

With the regular season coming to a close, and the post season on the horizon, Coach Sermanni was kind enough to speak with me after the home match versus the Portland Thorns. The Pride had just earned its first point ever against Portland, so I took the opportunity to talk football with Coach.

Backline Soccer (BS): So Tom, the season is coming to an end you’re hoping to go into the playoffs, how much time have you spent thinking about the draft and into next year?

Tom Sermanni (TS): Not, honest, not a lot of time on the draft because at this time we only have a third round draft pick, so it really, that’s not…unless we do some trading, and that’s not really a major priority for us. To be honest, but we already for several weeks now started to–

At this point, Coach Sermanni took the time to greet Thorns defender Meghan Klingenberg who was a player for him in his time as manager of the United States women’s national team. He wished her well, and his face reflected his genuine feelings for her. Without missing a beat, Tom picked up where he had left off.

TS: So, it’s about looking at where we need to strengthen the team; we need to work out what we’ve done. What I think we’ve done very successfully is bring in good international players. We need to look at how many international spots we got next year, and where we can strengthen from there. One of the difficulties we’ve had coming in as a new team is to be able to get good quality domestic players, because teams don’t give them up. When you come in as a new team it’s hard to do that, so we’ve had to look at the international market and be creative in other areas. So obviously, the international market is something we need to look at.

BS: Any other options?

TS: The other one is looking at players– U.S. players, who perhaps have gone overseas to play and want to come back to the league. So we kind of cast the net out there. We got some names that we want to talk to, and hopefully chip away and strengthen (the team).   

BS: How did you improve the team between last season to this year?

TS: I think what we’ve done is made significant progress with the strength of the squad this year. Obviously, it was the management that brought Marta, but we brought five other players in here. I think if you include Marta, we brought in six very good players who have contributed, so we got the bases of a very good squad. So it’s now a case of just adding little bits and pieces to the structure that’s in place.

BS: So this season for the league there’s been a bit of turnover for the coaches, what are your thoughts on that. For a coach, most of the time your last day is going to be a bad one.

TS: Yeah. (Tom once again pauses to have a quick exchange post match with players exiting the locker room, then without missing a beat picks right back.) It’s always disappointing when I see a coach lose a job because we’re all out there working hard. At the end of the day in any league, some teams have got to win and some teams have got to lose. It doesn’t mean just because your team is losing that you’re necessarily doing a bad job. You look at particularly the Sky Blue occasion, they were really still right in the frame to make the top four at that stage. I feel for coaches that lost their job during the season, and also in the women’s game there tends to be a little bit more stability, so I’m hoping that the status quo can be maintained a little bit better, and coaches are allowed to have time to build the teams.

BS: Now, do you think you’d want to see more female coaches come into the league or do you think it’s hard to find a quality female coach?

TS: Look, I think that’s a complex question. The simple answer is yeah, we need to see more and more females coming into the profession, and as the game continues to develop professionally then there’s a greater chance of that happening. What you have to do is build over time depth of coaches. When you go to a typical coaches course, there might be 40 guys and there might be two women. Out of the 40 guys, maybe only ten of those guys get jobs, so if you only have two women maybe none of them are getting jobs. So for me, it’s a bigger issue than just saying bringing women professional coaches in, it’s an issue where there needs to be more at the youth level, development level staying in the game, and working their way in the system. I think a lot of time, there’s what I call “talking-ism” which doesn’t do anybody any good, but see we want a woman for this job, so they put a woman in the job whether that’s the right fit for her or the right fit for the team. I’m ranting about this in a long winded way because this is something I do believe in strongly. We need to encourage more and more women to be in the women’s game, but there needs to be more then it goes to the top. Does that make sense?

BS: Yeah, it does.

TS: There’s a lot of players now that have been professional players for several years now for their career, and if they finish, stay in the game at the coaching level. That’s what you want to look at. The other reality is that coaching is a tough job. When I say it’s a tough job, it’s a job that is fickle. There’s no security. You don’t know what going to happen. The hours are unsociable, you’re on the job 24/7 which is still great. It’s just the reality of the job, and often when females leave the game they go on to start another life…for women when their career looks like it’s coming to an end, they often have to think about “Okay, where am I going to go to actually start making a living for all the money I’ve given up being a poorly paid professional.” So there’s a whole range of stuff around getting more women’s coaches. There needs to be a big effort to more so then you get more in NWSL.

BS: If you had to have another assistant or Coach Smith left, what qualifications would a female have to have for you to add her to the staff?

TS: No different to a male. It’d need to be someone that you think has good knowledge of the game. Who is able to relate to the players, is able to work in with the staff, same as it would be for a guy. It’s not different. Hopefully, it could be one of the senior players saying “Look, I’m looking at retiring. I’m interested in coming on in the coaching staff.” I would take them onto our coaching staff in a heartbeat, but you’re still looking at the same thing. You’re still have someone who’s going to be able to do the job or you think has potential to do the job.

BS: There’s been some international teams that have also sacked their managers. I know you’re good where you’re at, but any temptation or a thought of jumping back into the international game?

TS: Going back into the international game? I enjoyed my time in the international game. Apparently, I was 50 to one for the England job, so I need people to put on money, so my odds get a bit more respectable. I would never say no, but obviously…and I don’t know what my future lies here. My contract is up at the end of the season. I enjoy my job, I enjoy the club. We have the basis of a very good team. So if I’m fortunate enough to be here next year, hopefully we can continue to keep growing this team. But I never discount anything, to be honest, I don’t say no I never want to go back to an international job. What I would say, pardon me, if I was going back to an international job it would need to be somewhere where I felt there was a chance to do something as opposed to just a job. So it would need to be a program that you think has potential to grow or you feel that you can take it somewhere.

BS: It’s a real trick because you have several countries that may not support the women’s game or you have New Zealand for example where you don’t have a lot of time together as a squad, and so it becomes an issue.

TS: Yeah, those are hard. Those kind of jobs are probably better for younger coaches coming up through, trying to make their mark on a team. They have the energy, and that kind of stuff. Probably not so much for someone at my stage of my career. So certain jobs that would appeal to me if they came up and if I was without employment, but I’m not out there looking. I enjoyed bits of the international game. You got every program that you think you can take somewhere. When John Herdman went into Canada, it was a real web, but the potential was there. When I went to Australia, there was a potential to move into Asia, so you’re building stuff, so when you got those situations. Then it’s good. Sometimes as a coach, you need to get a job because you haven’t got a job. Sometimes, you’re lucky enough to be in a job where you feel you can make a mark, and take a team somewhere you can build something. Generically, lucky most of the time to have those jobs, and this (Orlando Pride head coach) is another one that’s kinda got those qualities.

BS: You’re a manager that likes to build. You’re done a great job building the Pride, second year contending, the developmental academy, is there anything that you’d like to see in the club structure that you’d like to improve on?

TS: There’s not a lot to be honest. You’re restricted here. You say developmental, and it would be great to have that development phase all the way through, we have the academy, we have the ECNL which is part of it. Unfortunately, the college system comes in the way, and that stops that development. You don’t have control over the destiny of those players both being able to keep them, and at a critical time you don’t have your hands-on development with them because they are at college for four year. It’s difficult to get the development underneath here. Hopefully as this club progresses and it gets bigger, is younger teams getting into the philosophy of how Orlando Pride plays. You want to see that continuity, and maybe at sometime, down the track but I don’t think it’s anytime soon you might end up with a reserve team.   

BS: Changing gears a little bit, in your opinion, why is not a women’s open cup in the United States, and what needs to happen to get that on?

TS: I think the major reason is first of all, the difficulty that everyone’s had to get a professional league established, and you can go off in a whole range of different ways because then you’re juggling too many balls there. What we got to do is, we have to get this league set up and established. I read an article recently not about expansion, but about getting the standards of the ten teams higher. I’ve talked about that until I’m blue in the face, and I’m 100% in favor of that. So what we need to do with these ten teams, I mean Orlando Pride is up there, Portland is up there,and there a couple of others, and there’s a drop off. We need to get that right. That is priority number one. Get that right, then you can start at looking at other things. You don’t just want to be piecemeal, we’ll have a U.S. Cup and things aren’t all over the place. So for me, get this league right. Get ten teams, get standards we need to set. Conditions for players, training arrangements, standard of grounds, get all that sorted, then start adding to it.

BS: Do you think it’s the responsibility of U.S. Soccer to do that for the league. It’s the federation’s responsibility to have an open cup. Even though the federation supports the league, doesn’t NWSL have to do it.

TS: It’s a balance to that, but ultimately the federation is a major decision-maker. And I think they have said and are trying to do the right things, but again it’s a balancing act. The teams in the league that started this league five years ago when nobody wanted to come near it. Either  individual owners and groups of owners have put their heart and soul and the money in there. Then like anything the league jumps with teams like ours coming into it. There’s an old saying a fleet is as fast as its slowest ship. You then have to start bringing up those teams to a better standard, and that’s part of the federation partly responsible, the league itself is partly responsible, and the owners are partly responsible to say “okay, we’re in this, a new bar has been set, and we need to get to that bar.”

BS: It’s been five years of existence with the league, you’re still talking about stabilizing the league. How many more year are we talking in those terms?

TS: You have to go back historically here. You look at the MLS (Major League Soccer), and I was here in 2001 and MLS was on its knees, and that was at six, seven years in. If it wasn’t for (Philip) Anschutz bankrolling four or five clubs. It was a real (feeling of) which way is this going to go. You can go back ten years, teams are still playing in rubbish fields. It’s only ten years ago. New York City (FC) playing in a postage stamp. It’s a balance of time, patience, vision, organization, and then having the foresight to get things in place. It’s a real balancing act to get it right, and you have to have a little bit of patience, and at the right times you have to get the right decisions to get the league chipping on and improving.

BS: So there’s no set timeline, but in your opinion if you’re going to put a number on it…

TS: A couple of years. I think the idea of MLS team (affiliating with an NWSL team) is a great idea because you already have structure in place, you have finance in place, knowledge in place, facilities, you have the whole thing. So for me, what I believe it’s something the federation is working hard on. I think if I’m an MLS club, I think it’s great to have an Orlando Pride as part of it. I think we add a lot to this club, if it’s done properly, and I think from a financial perspective if you do it right, it’s actually not a financial burden. It’s somewhere where you add value to the club, so I would like to see in the coming years if the smaller owners are struggling to make the investments they’re making then MLS clubs then step in and take over the teams. But and I’m very, very conscious of this, the guys that were in there putting the money in there when nobody else was interested. You need to value what they have done for this league.  

Off the Bench with Backline Soccer: 2017, Week 22

Posted on by RJ Allen

[media-credit name=”Kelley Piper” align=”aligncenter” width=”300″][/media-credit]

Backline Soccer Recap:

Quick Fire Week 22 Game Previews:

We have arrived in the final week of the 2017 NWSL season before the playoffs arrive and what a season it has been! The four playoff teams are set: North Carolina, Portland, Chicago, and Orlando have all secured their spot. Let’s take a look at how the final regular season weekend matches up. 

Game 1: Portland Thorns vs. Chicago Red Stars

Portland Thorns record: 13-5-5
Position: 2nd
Total Points: 44

Chicago Red Stars record: 11-6-6
Position: 3rd
Total Points: 39

With second place securely locked up in the playoffs, I assume that Head Coach Mark Parsons will be looking at resting some starters to prepare for the home semi-final match the next weekend. Then again, this may be their semi-final matchup so they may want to test some things before that. With one of the best defenses in the league, they will look to contain the Red Stars attacking push. But the struggle they had last week against Orlando was spending so much time defending they were unable to get much going on the offensive end. This worked against Orlando but may not work against Chicago who will exploit the width that Orlando didn’t. So their task this week, if they want to win, will be to spur their offensive attack a lot more than they have been. 

Chicago will need a draw or win to secure the third place spot in the playoffs or for Orlando to draw or lose. This week will be interesting if they decide to go the resting route to prepare for the semi-finals or go all out as this environment and team may be who their semi-final opponent is. By the end of last weeks match the Red Stars looked exhausted as their starters have been put through the ringer this season. If we assume no one rests this should be quite the matchup. While Chicago’s defense has suffered a bit over the last several games, Vanessa DiBernardo coming back to the field will help settle everyone around her and get Chicago clicking better. Chicago will also be without Yuki Nagasato this week due to red-card suspension. Chicago will need the offensive prowess of Christen Press and Sofia Huerta to make something happen for them up top. And the defense will need to make sure to not let Portland get any pockets of space to allow the likes of Hayley Raso to speed past them.

Game 2: Washington Spirit vs. Seattle Reign

Washington Spirit record: 5-15-4
Position: 10th
Total Points: 19

Seattle Reign record: 8-8-7
Position: 5th
Total Points: 31

Washington was only able to put two field substitutes on the field last week due to injury and by the end, the team just looked exhausted. I expect this week to see them put up a good fight in their last home match but that will entirely depend on what Seattle team shows up to play. Washington has some great pieces, save for the offside calls, Mal Pugh netted two goals last game for the Spirit. I expect her to be just as involved this week in sparking the offense. It will be up to the defense, which has struggled especially since Estelle Johnson went out, to stave off the Seattle attack.

Megan Rapinoe is out for the final match of the Reign 2017 season due to yellow card accumulation. With nothing left to play for but pride, I expect Seattle to come out blazing and playing a lot more free. This will also be the final match of her career for Elli Reed, who is retiring. Combine those two and I expect Seattle to not have too many issues this week with a depleted Spirit side. 

Game 3: Boston Breakers vs. Sky Blue FC

Boston Breakers record: 4-12-7
Position: 9th
Total Points: 19

Sky Blue FC record: 9-11-3
Position: 6th
Total Points: 30

Boston has had pockets of good throughout the season but find themselves in a very similar predicament to last year. Progress has been made but they still are not winning very much. With their big road win last week against the Spirit, they carry that momentum into their final match of the season to their house. This week Boston’s biggest task will be shutting down Sam Kerr and letting her capitalize on any opportunities because if they’re there, she’s taking them. Sky Blue’s defensive struggles have been apparent this season and Boston is starting to see a bit of a spark in their offensive. If they can take advantage of that weakness and the opportunities it will inevitably produce, we could see this game go either way.

Sky Blue will be looking to end their season on a high note after fighting to a good draw with the first-place Courage last weekend. Sky Blue saw a lot of opportunities last week against a tough team but could not finish their chances. But this week, with Boston on the struggling end of things as well, if they can capitalize on mistakes and opportunities from the Boston defense, Sam Kerr just might get that goal record this weekend. 

Game 4: North Carolina Courage vs. Orlando Pride 

North Carolina Courage record: 15-6-1
Position: 1st
Total Points: 49

Orlando Pride record: 10-6-7
Position: 4th
Total Points: 37

The Courage are coming into this game on short rest and with the shield locked up, I would not be surprised to see some starters resting. Both Jaelene Hinkle and Katelyn Rowland were completely rested and Taylor Smith saw limited minutes. This may have been in part to save players for this weekend’s match as it is also a potential match we will see in the semi-finals if current standings hold. This will be a deciding factor I think it what we may see in the outcome of the weekend. Overall, the Courage have not scored the most goals this season but enough to firmly cement their place at the top. Sam Mewis has been stellar and will be a threat both offensively and defensively this weekend. The Courage will be tasked with making sure that Marta and Alex Morgan are not given many chances to connect as the Pride engine relies on that a lot. 

The Pride are coming in this weekend with a lot less pressure as they were able to clinch the final playoff spot thanks to the result of the FCKC and Seattle game last weekend. The Pride would be pressed to treat this match like a playoff as this could very well be who they are facing in the semi-final but I can also see Head Coach Tom Sermanni giving some players a rest who may be dealing with slight injuries or fatigue. If I was a betting woman, I do not think we will see Steph Catley this weekend due to the small knock she took last week against Portland. The Pride need to make sure they are exploiting the wide areas against the Courage this week as Portland was able to shut down their entire offensive game last week by making them play too tight. While the Pride defense has gotten a lot better in the last several games, the Courage attack can give them fits if they do not keep their line tight and organized. 

Game 5: FC Kansas City vs. Houston Dash

FC Kansas City record: 8-9-6
Position: 7th
Total Points: 30

Houston Dash record: 7-14-2
Position: 8th
Total Points: 23

FCKC put a dagger in the playoff hopes of the Seattle Reign last week and have been on a successful run for their last several games. With the Dash clearly struggling on and off the field, I expect to see FCKC finish their season on a positive note. Look this week for them to exploit the defensive scramble that the Courage were able to mid-week. And if Becky Sauerbrunn plays like she did against Seattle, Houston will have a very hard time getting anything through the defensive line. 

Houston is coming into this game after a 4-0 loss and short rest. We saw a few players rest on Wednesday but I do not expect much of that today, seeing as it is the final game of their season. On Wednesday, their defensive struggled mightily against everything the Courage were throwing at them. This match they will face similar with Shea Groom and Sydney Leroux both springing the offensive attack. Amber Brooks has been a stalwart in defense but she is only one person and if Houston hops to make it out of this match unscathed, she and Jane Campbell will need a lot more help.

The Scouting Report:

We went live on Monday night with our weekly TSR. A reminder that you can catch TSR live every Monday night at 8pm EST on our YouTube channel. Make sure to follow the podcast on Twitter @ScoutingPodcast.

In case you missed the episode, catch up here:

6 Takeaways from NWSL: Week 21

Posted on by RJ Allen

Welcome, welcome, welcome, to Week 21 of the 2017 NWSL season. Things happened. People kicked balls. Players got political. Tobin Heath made her first appearance on an NWSL field since last year’s playoff game against the WNY Flash.

Oh, and our four playoff teams are locked in. I’ll write an actual intro when my mind isn’t jumping in a thousand different directions at once.

It was a busy week, y’all, so let’s dive right in …

Take a Knee – Elizabeth Wawrzyniak

Maybe you’ve noticed that I don’t actually talk about soccer a lot in my takeaways. I talk around soccer. For a lot of reasons, but mostly because I’m still learning the ins and outs. (DO NOT ask me what the offside rule is. Or whether it’s offside or offsides.) I don’t know the history like RJ, the strategy like Charles, or the people like Jacob. But what I do know about soccer is this:

It’s far more than just a game.

This weekend NFL fans and curious visitors to the world of the National Football League saw something pretty amazing happen. After a year of people paying attention to Colin Kaepernick’s kneeling protest for all the wrong reasons, until finally this week when, after 45 spilled some garbage out onto Twitter about the former 49er, we all started to focus on what mattered. That Kaepernick’s protest was a shout out for people to take a moment and really listen to what people of color and other minorities are trying to tell us all.

Over the past few years as a soccer fan, I’ve watched as these players fight for better and more equal wages. I’ve watched them support each other in coming out, in struggles with mental health, in obstacles on the field and off of it. I’ve watched them build networks of support for each other and for their fans. I’ve watched as Megan Rapinoe bravely joined Colin Kaepernick’s protest in the waning weeks of last season, long before most had made up their minds about whether he even had the right to take a knee. (Spoiler: it’s Constitutional.) And  I’ve watched as they work tirelessly to improve themselves, their play, their teams, and their sport for fans and for future players alike.

This weekend I watched as the National Anthem played at the Seattle Reign v FCKC match wound up, and Megan Rapinoe, Desiree Scott, Yael Averbuch, Sydney Leroux, USWNT captain Becky Sauerbrunn, Elli Reed, Lauren Barnes and Madalyn Schiffel made the decision to stay in the locker room instead of standing for the anthem.

Sports means something. This weekend, it has been the vehicle through which many in our country united to say that we will not stand for racial violence, oppression, discrimination, or brutality.

And, maybe this takeaway isn’t about soccer, but I needed to say it: I’m proud to be a fan of women’s soccer. I’m proud to be a fan of the NFL. And I’m proud to support those who took a knee today in defiance of injustice.

 

The High and the Low (Scoring) Game – Elizabeth Wawrzyniak

Some might look at the outcomes of the two games on Saturday and assume that one was automatically more interesting than the other. Sure, the Chicago Red Stars beat the Houston Dash 3-2. But what the non-soccer fan might not understand is that an outcome of 0-0, especially between two teams like the Orlando Pride and the Portland Thorns, doesn’t mean the game was lackluster or slow. In some cases, and certainly in this case, as far as I’m concerned, it meant the game was 90 minutes and stoppage time (where the fuck are my 16 seconds, ref!) of tense, “any moment might change the whole story of the game” play. Sure, goals are exciting. But if you really want an adrenaline rush, or a game spent sitting on the edge of your seat, the kind of game Orlando and Portland played this Saturday is the way to go. Multiple chances, multiple attempts and almost-there-just-a-smidge-too-wide shots, shots that should have had no chance but somehow come closer than anything else.

I mean, yeah, we all love a high-scoring game. The Seattle and Sky Blue games this year? Epic. But there’s also something about a game so tense you can feel the wire stretching tighter every time the ball moves from one side of the pitch to the other. That’s what we got in the Orlando v Portland game this weekend and damn, was it satisfying to watch.

Franch Makes History – Alyssa Zajac

Usually when a game ends in a 0-0 draw, there isn’t much to be said after the final whistle. That changed this weekend when A.D. Franch earned her 11th shutout of the season, breaking Nicole Barnhart’s record of 10 shutouts from the 2013 season with FC Kansas City. Quite the achievement, considering where the season started for Franch – being put in the starting spot after the unexpected departure of Michelle Betos, and struggling with pretty much every aspect of her game for weeks into the season. However, instead of writing off the season and solely depending on her defense to get through games, step by step she improved her play and figured out how to best work with the Portland backline. And it proved effective. The Thorns have home-field advantage in the playoffs, and could very well be on their way to a second NWSL title.
I’m about to use a Pokemon analogy, please forgive me. Watching Franch this season was like watching a Magikarp evolve into a Gyarados. That is, going from seemingly unassuming and a weak link on the pitch, to an intimidating opponent and a formidable force in goal.
With one game to go before the playoffs, I just have this to say: congrats, A.D. The record was hard earned, and well deserved.

Spoiler Alert: FC Kansas City Did The Thing – Alyssa Zajac

Back in Week 16, I wrote a takeaway about the final stretch of games were key to FC Kansas City, and how they could play spoiler to teams in the playoff hunt. Good job, past me – called it.

All seven games that remained in FCKC’s schedule were against teams still in playoff contention. Six of those games have passed, and FC Kansas City had a direct role in delaying one team’s playoff bid (Chicago), giving one team a playoff spot (Orlando), and ending the playoff hopes of a third (Seattle).

First up, Chicago. FC Kansas City beat Chicago 3-1, capping off a three-game skid for the Red Stars in Week 17. This game didn’t have a direct impact on playoffs, but it still was a significant result. Fast forward to when these teams met again in week 20, and Chicago needed a win to clinch their playoff spot. One 0-0 draw later, Chicago had to wait another week to try to make the playoffs (which they did, beating Houston 3-2).

Now, for Orlando and Seattle. Orlando, like Chicago, needed a win to claim the final playoff spot. However, after two draws against Seattle and Portland, Orlando needed either FC Kansas City to beat Seattle in Seattle or hope they could beat league-leading North Carolina. Seattle needed to win their final two games to even have a chance of claiming the final playoff spot.

Well, Orlando needs to send flowers or an Edible Arrangement to Kansas City, because FCKC did it. They went to Seattle and won, ending the Reign’s playoff hopes and handing the Pride the final playoff spot. What makes this even more impressive, is that not only did FCKC beat Seattle at home, they did so by ending a 28(!) game at-home scoring streak.

While their future location may be unknown, playing wise FC Kansas City has improved greatly in the last few weeks and shows good promise moving forward.

R.I.P. Washington Spirit – Luis Hernandez

I know the players on the Washington Spirit are fighting to the end of the season, but it’s almost comical how the team allowed the Boston Breakers to win on the road for the first time this season on the Breakers’ last attempt. It would not seem the Spirit are “tanking”, but things are lining up for Washington to end up at the bottom of the standings claiming the number one pick in the 2018 college draft.

It’s been rough for Spirit fans, as the team suffered a slew of injuries all season long. I questioned to myself what sort of things have to be going on in team practices where the injury bug kept biting the roster. Losing Stephanie Labbe after a promising start of the season didn’t help. How about seeing Kristie Mewis traded away twice and ending up in a spot where she may be able to prove her worth? Do Washington supporters look at Ali Krieger in Orlando leading another playoff run and wonder “what if?”

Chin up Spirit fans, you still have Mallory Pugh, the highlight of the season, and Andi Sullivan should end up in a Washington kit next spring.

The MVP race is locked up – Luis Hernandez

Sam Kerr is going to win the most valuable player award. She’s one goal away from breaking the season goal scoring record Kerr shares with Kim Little. She has also done most of the heavy lifting when it comes to the Sky Blue offense and is the main reason the team is currently sixth in the standings considering the defense has allowed a whopping forty-eight goals. This has been her year for both club and country, as she has been out of this world good with the Matildas, and should have been a finalist for FIFA World Player of the Year.

Another reason Kerr will win the MVP award is she is a lock to claim the league’s golden boot award with Megan Rapinoe missing the last match of the season for Seattle with a yellow card accumulation suspension, and Orlando’s Marta trailing Kerr by four goals. So for the fifth straight year in the league, the golden boot winner will be MVP. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing or Kerr doesn’t deserve the honor; it just seems the only measuring stick to most valuable player for a team is scoring league-wide. However, the whole point of having the golden boot is purely as a scoring award. The golden ball award (best player) winner in the World Cup doesn’t always go to the golden boot winner, and that’s all I’m saying.

Soccer Takes From Jake: End Of The Line

Posted on by RJ Allen

AND SO THE NWSL PLAYOFFS ARE SET
It’s weird that we’re getting two playoff preview matches on the final weekend of the regular season, but here we are. All four teams will go into them definitely with the intent of using them as film study for the semi-final matches next weekend. The results will surely help set a tone for the win or go home stakes of next weekend, so in a way you can look at the Portland/Chicago and North Carolina/Orlando matches as basically the first leg of the NWSL Playoffs.

HERE WE ARE, WEEK 22, THE FINAL WEEK OF THE REGULAR SEASON
And what a ride it has been.

PORTLAND THORNS OVER CHICAGO RED STARS
For your first NWSL Semi-Final preview, you have Portland hosting Chicago. Decades ago, in another sport, someone playing for Chicago wearing the number 23 lit up a team from Portland. I don’t see the Red Stars’ number 23 doing something similar. Portland is too well balanced of a team and at home, they will look to set the tone and show the Red Stars what’s to come next weekend in a win or go home scenario.

SEATTLE REIGN FC OVER WASHINGTON SPIRIT
The Seattle Impossible did not happen and for the second straight season, the Reign FC miss the playoffs. Where their offseason goes, I think is going to be dictated by if head coach/general manager Laura Harvey becomes the new manager of the England Women’s National Team. No one in their right mind will dispute her credentials, so we shall see what happens in the not too distant future. In the immediate future, Reign win this one on the field and who knows what happens around it in this year’s edition of The Bill Lynch Derby.

BOSTON BREAKERS AND SKY BLUE FC PLAY TO A DRAW
I’m glad the Breakers are keeping head coach Matt Beard for next season. It’s not his fault Rose Lavelle came back broken from national team duty. The development of the Breakers under Beard’s system should be allowed to have more time and with an actually healthy franchise player. While I don’t think we’ll get any solid evidence of what the 2018 Boston Breakers will be from this match, the comfort for the players knowing he will be back I think takes away some anxiety of needing to play for their future. Breakers open the scoring, but Sky Blue’s Sam Kerr answers back and yep becomes the new queen of most goals in an NWSL season, surpassing Kim Little.

NORTH CAROLINA COURAGE OVER ORLANDO PRIDE
North Carolina secured the NWSL Shield, but just like the preview of the Thorns/Red Stars match, this will be a preview of the number 1 seed versus the number 4. Orlando needs to win to move up to the 3 seed, but no way North Carolina loses this one going into the playoffs.

FC KANSAS CITY OVER HOUSTON DASH
It’s crazy to think that in one offseason, the NWSL could lose its two most successful coaches. Just as much as there is uncertainty over the future of Laura Harvey in Seattle, the same can be said about Vlatko Andonovski in Kansas City. Time will tell if we are going to see the last match of the Vlatko Andonovski Era in Kansas City, but take away that question, Kansas City is still the better team and handles Houston easily.

Here is your last music video break of the regular season.

Song: “Cut Chemist Suite” | Artist: Ozomatli

Route Two Soccer – Portland and Orlando Fight Out an Interesting 0-0 Draw

Posted on by RJ Allen

Portland showed how to defend against Orlando, without doing much to threaten on the other end

The Orlando Pride entered Saturday’s match against Portland on an offensive tear, winning five of their previous six games and scoring 17 goals in the process. But that high-flying attack ground to a halt against the Thorns and raised some questions about whether Orlando might be a bit of a ‘flat-track bully’ – beating up on their weaker opposition but struggling to break down tougher teams.

After all, Orlando’s five-game winning streak came against the teams currently ranked 10th, 6th, 9th, 7th, and 9th in the table. Meanwhile, against the other playoff teams, they’ve only managed a single win – and scored just six goals – in seven games.

Of course, this narrative may only be as strong as the current week’s results. And they could easily turn the tide next week. But there are some reasons to think that Orlando is uniquely likely to devastate weaker teams while struggling against more organized opposition. And the signs were all in clear evidence against Portland.

Orlando attack with lethal quickness

The hallmark of the Orlando attack is the speed of their assaults. The ball pings back and forth in the backline, while they wait for a chance to open. And when it does, they pounce. Marta is the orchestrator, finding pockets of space to receive the ball and quickly pass it along. Morgan is the tip of the spear driven through the opposition’s backline when she can rush onto the ball and bury her chances in the back of the net. And the supporting cast has done excellent work to facilitate this process. Camila has come into her own as a driving attacker. Ubogagu has finally found a role that allows her skill on the ball and quick touches to flourish. Weatherholt and Kennedy have done strong work as the water carriers who keep things afloat while the attacking four get themselves into position to spring an attack.

They have made a wonderful show of it over the past several months and done more than enough to earn their spot in the playoffs. But they, as yet, haven’t really shown that there’s much of a Plan B here.

Writing about Orlando back in May, I argued that they had turned a corner and looked ready to make a run up the table (for once, I got one right!). But I also noted that this progress was more a function of doubling down on a strength than it was about having solved their weaknesses. Put simply: Orlando doesn’t have much of a midfield.

Now, they’ve excelled in spite of that fact by moving the ball with lightning pace out of the back: sending balls over the top, or relying on Marta and Camila to pick out through-balls for the strikers to run onto. They are explosive in the attack, and it can simply be overwhelming if you lack team speed, or if your defensive unit is even slightly ragged. Leave five extra feet of space between the center backs and Morgan will slip right through and score before you have a chance to realize your mistake.

However, without a more diverse range of attacking options, you run the risk of good teams counteracting your strengths. And that’s exactly what we saw happen on Saturday.

Orlando needs space to run into; Deny them that space and the goals will dry up

Portland appear to have come into the match with a clear, and fairly simple, game plan: defend compactly and starve Orlando of the space they need to thrive.

That’s not an easy task. It depends on a comprehensive performance by the entire defensive unit. Defending deep can limit the danger from through-balls, but it also puts your back against the wall. One mistake in defensive positioning, one missed tackle, one poor clearance, and you could find yourself down a goal. But if the team is well drilled and the individual performers are up to the task, it can be stultifying.

In the center, Sonnett and Menges put on a clinic, consistently stepping up to clear away crosses and long balls up the middle. On the wings, Klingenberg and Reynolds worked hard to close down on wide attacks, not giving them time to pick out a pass, and ushering them into less dangerous positions.

Their midfield setup was also designed to facilitate this work. Portland is often quite fluid tactically, shifting freely from 4-3-3 to 4-5-1 to 5-4-1 and even stopping in a traditional old 4-4-2 in the middle sometimes. They shifted a bit less this week, with Sykes occasionally dropping back as an auxiliary fullback on the right, allowing them to set up a seven-woman backfield, as the back five combined with Long and Horan in the middle. The idea of dropping back is to put quick pressure on Orlando anytime they advance into the final third; not necessarily to win the ball but simply to disrupt and frustrate the Pride’s attack. Close down their passing lanes and you force them to either retreat or play a low percentage pass.

It’s a setup that demands a lot of the central midfielders, and to the extent that there was a problem, this is where it manifested. Allie Long has never really been a true holding mid, and some of the reasons for that were all-too-apparent here. She is a pretty good ball-winner but isn’t really a ‘holding’ midfielder, in the sense of managing space and providing a defensive shield. She overcommits to challenges, which is dangerous if she misses and lets the opponent behind her. But it’s even more dangerous when she connects. She drew one yellow and easily could have had two more. It’s the NWSL, where most refs operate on the principle ‘if the leg isn’t broken it wasn’t a booking,’ but even so, she was living on the edge. It was no surprise, therefore, that Parsons made a switch relatively early, bringing on Amandine Henry for Long in the 60th minute. The difference was immediate and noticeable. Presumably, Henry was being given a rest after a cross-continental flight to play for France. But if Portland and Orlando meet again, one would expect her to play the full 90 and bring a bit more calm and coherence to the role.

The final piece of the puzzle is physicality. As I have often noted, the NWSL is notable for the amount of rough play that goes uncalled. And Portland certainly counted on that. They aren’t an especially physical team, but they did their best to act like one in this game. With a pliant referee, they were able to get pretty stuck in and make things exceptionally difficult for Orlando. Morgan, in particular, seemed to get increasingly (and understandably) frustrated with the physical play, which disrupted her touch and movement.

All in all, it was a nice bit of tactical suppression. Coach Mark Parsons deserves credit for identifying Orlando’s weakness and moving to exploit it. And his players deserve a lot of credit for executing the plan well. The center backs and Franch in goal deserve special plaudits for their quick reactions and careful attention to the Pride strikers.

And this has been a theme all year for Portland, who have secured a home playoff berth primarily on their ability to kill off games and frustrate the opposition. That’s certainly not what I expected going into the season, but it’s been interesting watching them adapt and manage games in this way.

Orlando needs a Plan B

The Pride have some devastating offensive pieces, but it’s possible that they aren’t quite the unstoppable force they seemed to be a couple weeks ago. This is a team built primarily around movement off the ball and use of open space. Deny them that space and they look far more human.

Portland, despite a lot of physical proximity to the goal, without the space in which to move quickly, they found little joy, often resorting to shots from distance or poor angles. All in all, they managed to get off 14 shots, but only two that were on target.

The problem is that they simply don’t have the resources to build attacks through intricate passing in tight spaces. Marta is, of course, one of the all-time greats under those conditions, and Ubogagu has her moments. But there isn’t much else. And with a limited set of options, the defense can over-commit to shepherding those players away from dangerous positions. As the saying goes: “you can’t stop Marta; you can only hope to contain her.” But without additional outlets to build intricate triangles around the defense, ‘containment’ will often be enough to get the job done.

We’ve seen a couple modest efforts at unlocking this problem, none of which have been developed fully enough to really work. First, you can push wide and send in crosses. The problem here is that Orlando isn’t particularly good in the air, and Portland (really) is. Second, you can shoot from distance and force them to come out to close you down. But this is problematic too because Orlando doesn’t have much in the way of good long shots, with Camila being the major exception. Third, you can turn defense into offense, pressing aggressively in your opponent’s half. Win the ball there, and you’ll have precisely the space that you were looking for.

This final approach was the most successful. For the opening 20-25 minutes, Orlando was pressing high and making things very difficult for Portland. This has been a consistent problem for the Thorns all season. It’s not entirely clear why they are still so listless playing out from the back, but it’s certainly an opportunity to be exploited. However, that sort of high press is exhausting, particularly in the Orlando afternoon sun. And it’s also dangerous. Orlando has made a lot of progress defensively from the early season problems, but that’s largely due to solidifying the shield in front of the backline. Press high and you risk opening up gaps there. Give a player like Sinclair space to operate, and you risk being hoist on your own petard. A quick outlet to Raso or Nadim could turn a broken press into a goal conceded in mere seconds.

Orlando have a very good team and will be very interesting to watch in the playoffs. But if they want to win the title, they would do well to think about how they will pierce this sort of deep defensive wall. After all, the three teams left for them to think about are far stronger defensively than the opponents they have been battering in recent weeks. A viable Plan B would go a long way toward making their dreams of winning a championship become reality.

MVA: 5 Reasons Tobin Heath Is The Thorns’ Most Valuable Asset

Posted on by RJ Allen

This past week has been a rough one for Thorns’ fans depending on how you look at it. They couldn’t come out with a win against Orlando, they had to deal with some of the worst officiating ever, and oh yeah, Amandine Henry and Nadia Nadim are calling it quits in the NWSL after this season. But there was one bright spot out of this week – Tobin Heath is back. And because of how the final stretch of this season is shaping out, and because of potential gaps in the roster for next season, Heath has just become Portland’s most valuable asset. Here are the five reasons why:

Spark From Off The Bench

I’ll be honest and say that I don’t think Tobin Heath should play a full match this season. She should come off the bench. Her back injury kept her off the pitch for the majority of this season, so it obviously wasn’t a small issue. And these types of injuries are tricky things. So she shouldn’t be pushed too hard too early for fear of reinjury. But we do know that she can go for at least 30 minutes, as could be seen from last week. So most likely, by mid-October (if the Thorns punch their ticket to the final), Heath could be solid for a whole half. And she would make the perfect spark coming off the bench. She is creative, and she is a playmaker – something Portland could definitely use. Sure, it didn’t work perfectly versus Orlando, but it could be beneficial come the playoffs. And let’s not lie, it would put the opposing team on edge to see her checking in.

No Season-Long Fatigue

Sure, Tobin Heath isn’t up to form. I don’t think that her team, or anyone else for that matter, expects her to be. She hasn’t played a full match all season. But that isn’t necessarily the worst situation in the world. Because even though she isn’t in full form, she doesn’t have the season-long fatigue that every other player in the league is feeling at the moment. Her legs aren’t tired. She isn’t warding off those tiny bumps and bruises that pop up throughout the season and pester the average player. Right now she is healthy, and she is energized. And because of that, she could be a lot of trouble for tired back lines that have put in too many miles and minutes on their legs this season. It also allows some of the Portland midfield to rest their tired legs if those late minutes prove too be too much for them.

She Is Easy To Integrate In And Out

As well as having the soccer IQ equivalency of a Mensa member, Tobin Heath has the very advantage that allows her to come back to her team at a moment’s notice with minimal prep time: familiarity. A good amount of her teammates are women that she has been playing with for years. Even if we take out Allie Long, Lindsay Horan, and Meghan Klingenberg, we still have players that Heath has played on the Thorns with for numerous seasons, like Emily Menges and a pretty good forward by the name of Christine Sinclair. So even if there is a little disconnect from newer players, Tobin Heath is familiar to a good amount of the team. And for Portland heading into the post season, that makes her time on the pitch very important.

Pull Off The Upset

Even though Portland is sitting pretty in second place currently, they are not the favorite to win the NWSL Championship…not by a long shot. Not when North Carolina is looking as solid as they are, Orlando is as creative as they are, and Chicago having a roster that reads like an all-star match lineup. But Portland now has Tobin Heath again, and she could just be that extra oomph needed in order to bring that trophy home to Oregon. Not only is she one of the most creative players on the pitch at any time, but she also knows her opponents as well. And that is what makes her such a strong asset. I mean, look at the other USWNT current and former players that Portland are potentially playing in the next few weeks – Alex Morgan, Julie Ertz, Allie Krieger, Christen Press, Ashlyn Harris….I could go on. And it’s not that the rest of Portland doesn’t know how to handle these players, but they don’t have the skillset that Heath has to exploit their opponents’ weaknesses in the same way. Couple all that knowledge and skill with a pair of fresh legs (see: reason #2) and what do we have? Some major potential for an upset. And that is definitely what Portland wants at the end of the day.

Next Season And Beyond

The final reason that Tobin Heath just became Portland’s most valuable asset in the past week has nothing to do with this season, but everything to do with next season, and maybe further into the future as well. Nadia Nadim and Amandine Henry are packing up shop and heading back to Europe. Heck, I can’t blame them – they probably want the possibility to make more than $45,000 a year. But this leaves rather large gaps for the Thorns to fill. Luckily, these gaps are ones that Tobin can help with. But this also highlights exactly why she is so important to the Thorns’ future and why they should take extraordinary care to keep her healthy the rest of this season. Tobin Heath loves Portland. She has outwardly said that she likes playing there. So she isn’t looking to hop ship and head on back to PSG anytime soon. In fact, she is helping to create the future for the Thorns in an even bigger way through her involvement in their Development Academy. Because of this, she is invaluable to the Thorns organization not just this year, but for many years to come. And in turn, they should treat her as such.

I’m not saying that Tobin Heath is the best player on the Portland Thorns currently. She’s far from it, in fact. But she just may be the most important player that the organization has. She could be the spark needed to ignite Portland’s offense, she could help pull off a pretty big upset in the NWSL, and she can form the future of the organization, as well as be their constant throughout her career there. Essentially, Tobin Heath is Portland’s Girl Friday. She can do it all. And that may be what they expect out of her in the next few weeks.