You may not have noticed, because Sky Blue FC is in their unfortunately usual form, but Kailen Sheridan is playing incredibly well. The superhuman goalkeeper for Sky Blue did everything humanly possible last week against the Houston Dash to keep her team in the game, only to have her own defense produce the play that led to their second consecutive loss in 2019.
Sheridan, a Canadian international, joined Sky Blue in 2017 and has made 20-plus appearances in each season she has played. Despite the team not being incredibly competitive over that stretch, she has proven herself to be an asset and finally made her way into the international first team in 2018 following an injury to Erin McLeod.
For an example of the difficulty Sheridan faced this past weekend, the Dash had 19 total shots with 11 of them on goal. She parried all but one, which was a result of a defensive error in the final 10 minutes. Sheridan was able to stop the one-on-one attempt but her own defense deflected a Sofia Huerta shot into the net. Despite showing an ability to stop just about everything else before this, was unprepared to have to stop her own team’s chances as well.
The frustration showed on Sheridan’s face. Sky Blue has mustered little offensively and the team’s best player, Carli Lloyd, missed a penalty earlier in the game that would have at least seen Sky Blue share the points.
Sheridan has played too well to be left in obscurity like this. Continuing to play on a team that has been ravaged both on and off the field may hurt her future chances as a starting keeper for the Canadian National team.
For now she will need to continue as a force for futility and hope that Sky Blue match her intensity in the games to come to dig themselves out of a situation that started some time ago
Backline Chat: Did You Know Hulu Has Live Games?
Charles Olney (@olneyce): Welcome to our Backline for week 3 of the NWSL season. The US National Team players will be leaving the league now for a few months So before saying goodbye to them for awhile, let’s discuss whose stock has risen or fallen the most based on the first three weeks.
Given that the coach is Jill Ellis, the most likely answer is probably ‘these games literally didn’t matter’ but let’s assume that they are paying attention and do care.
RJ Allen (@TheSoccerCritic): I think Christen Press has been playing really solid in the two matches for Utah and in her time on the pitch I’ve been impressed by Casey Short too.
Those two really stand out to me right now.
Luis Hernandez (@radioactivclown): Jill Ellis treats NWSL as her own personal version of Whose Line Is It Anyways where the results don’t matter for her.
Charles Olney: I think we all assume that what happened in these few games will have little to no importance in who actually starts in June. But while Alex Morgan is the almost-guaranteed center forward, she’s probably had the worst start of any US striker.
Luis Hernandez: Can we just say that any USWNT player who wears purple at the club level is glad to be in red, white, and blue now?
Charles Olney: I think that’s fair, Luis.
RJ Allen: There are a few in red and blue that might be glad to hear out to the US camp too.
Charles Olney: Emily Sonnett has looked pretty shaky.
Luis Hernandez: Minor knock to Harris, Morgan is a pass first, shoot second striker, and well I don’t know what to say for Ali Krieger
Charles Olney: If we all agree that fullback and central midfield are two of the key possible locations where decisions were still getting made, I think I’d say Casey Short made a strong case for herself. And that Andi Sullivan and McCall Zerboni didn’t do anything to hurt her case, while Allie Long didn’t do anything to help.
Luis Hernandez: Accurate.
Charles Olney: Morgan Brian has played really well, in limited minutes. Given what was reported last month, I definitely don’t think that will matter. But if there’s a surprise later this week, that’s probably why.
Luis Hernandez: I would consider Jane Campbell based on her performance with PKs.
Allison Cary (@findingallison): I think all of the US keepers have looked a little shaky to start the NWSL season.
RJ Allen: I don’t think it matters how good or bad the backup goalkeepers are at PKs. They will not play.
RJ Allen: Ellis is never going to sub Naeher for PKs.
Luis Hernandez: Ellis isn’t going to make a late match sub with PKs looming?
RJ Allen: There is no chance of that.
Charles Olney: I would be shocked if she made that move. Doesn’t feel like an Ellis thing.
Allison Cary: Yeah, I agree.
Charles Olney: And it’s not like Campbell had demonstrated exceptional skills. These were mostly just terrible penalties. Still takes work to save them, but I’d hesitate to read anything predictive into it.
RJ Allen: In a fair world Barnhart goes as the third goalkeeper but that ship is so far out to sea you can’t see it anymore.
Charles Olney: I guess I’d also say that players like Heath and Dunn and Sauerbrunn continue to be very very good. There’s not really any room to raise their stock, but they’ve been excellent.
RJ Allen: Dunn is the hardest of those three. Because her role for the US and her role for North Carolina are so disconnected. Ellis just doesn’t want Dunn in the attack and that’s where she’s most useful.
Charles Olney: It’s bizarre that the best (or second-best, given Sam Kerr) attacking player in the league will be playing fullback, but…here we are.
Luis Hernandez: I wish Horan and Pinoe hadn’t miss so much league time.
RJ Allen: That seems to have been not totally in their control. Seems to be Ellis wanting them to once they had knocks.
Luis Hernandez: I get it. Protect them in bubble wrap but still. There’s something to be said about playing to stay in form.
Charles Olney: Sure, but it’s a month and a half before the tournament starts. Any form from April will be long gone by then either way.
RJ Allen: They are going into a camp that is 2 weeks longer than it should be. I doubt one game for club is going to change much.
Charles Olney: *Jinx
RJ Allen: I’ll buy you a Coke.
Charles Olney: Alright, turning the question around slightly. We’ve talked about the players who will be leaving. But what about the teams that will have to operate without them? Who is going to be hurt the most by the departure of the national teamers? Who will be helped the most, relatively?
Luis Hernandez: I think it helps Sky Blue and Houston.
Allison Cary: I think it hurts Chicago and Portland.
RJ Allen: Orlando, Chicago, Portland and North Carolina feel the most impacted based on the first few weeks when you take the National Teamers out.
Luis Hernandez: Hurts everyone else but the Courage keep winning
Charles Olney: Chicago seems like the biggest question mark. I actually think they may come out of this far stronger than you’d expect, simply because they have 3-4 bubble players, all of whom are likely to stay.
It’s certainly a question is whether they can restructure the attack to deal with the absence of Sam Kerr (that’s a big absence!), but with DiBernardo, Colaprico, Brian, Nagasato, Johnson, etc. they’ve got a lot of quality.
RJ Allen: Dames is a coach who can tinker pretty well. And shovel. He is a good with a shovel.
Charles Olney: I saw some speculation this weekend that the Reign might actually benefit from losing Taylor. I don’t subscribe to the point of view that Taylor is a liability, by any means, but it will at least force them to think about different ways to set up, which could be helpful.
RJ Allen: I’m worried about the Reign just in general.
Allison Cary: Whatever they’re doing now, it’s not working.
Luis Hernandez: Taylor right now is absolutely not a liability for the Reign. I know teams like Orlando focused on her.
Charles Olney: We haven’t mentioned Utah. Obviously, they’re going to take a hit to the backline, and will lose the only player who has created a goal for them so far. But otherwise, they may be alright?
Allison Cary: I think Utah will be okay.
RJ Allen: I think they end up staying in that 2 or 3 spot. I’ve been thinking a lot lately because of my work with RSL Soapbox and they have some good depth in places. Having Laddish back may be huge.
Charles Olney: I think the last two years took a tiny bit of the shine off the Laura Harvey hype train, but this year will be the real test. As you say, they’ve got a lot of good pieces, and I feel pretty good about her ability to get it all clicking.
RJ Allen: Not having Kim Little on your team makes your team not as good.
Luis Hernandez: I think the time without national team players is going to allow the Dash to climb into the playoff race.
RJ Allen: I do not know if I believe that. I would like to, but Canadians and Daly are a huge part of that team.
Charles Olney: Alright, that’s a nice way to transition into the discussion of this weekend’s games. Because I’m curious what people thought about the Houston-North Carolina match. To me, it was evidence that Clarkson might still have a ways to go before he quite settles in. But I could make an alternative case that he wanted to give his team a shot to really go for it, and they’ll build off the lessons they learned. Thoughts?
RJ Allen: Playing North Carolina is hard.
Charles Olney: It is indeed. And that’s potentially an argument for the second option. If you figure that you’re probably going to lose no matter what, why not give it a shot.
But I also think it’s basically suicidal to leave yourself that open to North Carolina and not to really adjust during the game, as things started to break down.
They had a really good start. But after the opening 15 or 20 minutes, that games was only going one way.
Allison Cary: I admittedly didn’t get to watch it, but based on that and how they looked in their win of Sky Blue, I think they’re on shaky ground.
Luis Hernandez: I get that for sure, but going forward Ohai and Huerta can be a real difference. Nairn is a bit inconsistent for me. Losing to the Courage. There’s no shame in that. (edited)
RJ Allen: The first month of the season is basically preseason in terms of the play. I do think Houston can do well but it’s a long road.
Charles Olney: It felt a lot like many of the other new coaches, who struggle to get just quite how intense the league can be. But Clarkson also has a lot more familiarity with the team, so might be able to get over that hump quicker than some others.
Luis Hernandez: He should be able to get Houston properly adjusted to bounce back against Orlando.
Charles Olney: I don’t have much else to add about North Carolina. They’re ridiculously good. Crystal Dunn has been even better than her high standards. The fullbacks are excellent. The forwards are excellent. Zerboni and Mewis are absurd together. The center backs have been a little shakier than usual, but it doesn’t really matter.
So, moving onto some of the more contentious games, what about Orlando-Utah?
Luis Hernandez: Here we go.
RJ Allen: Orlando is a bad soccer team. They are not a well constructed roster and it shows. I think Skinner has interesting thoughts but that doesn’t always win games.
Allison Cary: I was amazed at the lack of urgency to score. It felt like Ubogagu was the only one who cared, and then they pulled her.
Charles Olney: They were better in this game than against North Carolina. Maybe on par with how they played the Reign. Which is to say: they’re nowhere close to a Breakers 2016 or Sky Blue 2018 situation. But they’re also nowhere close to the late-2017 Orlando Pride, which people expect them to be.
RJ Allen: Barnhart has the fountain of youth in her basement.
Charles Olney: She’s been so great. It’s been a real joy to watch her.
Luis Hernandez: She should let Marta have a drink. Because I haven’t seen much from Marta so far this year.
RJ Allen: Marta looks like she is starting to move past her prime. It is a sad fact Father Time is undefeated.
Charles Olney: There have been flashes, but it’s clear she’s declined. Which makes me very sad. It had to happen eventually, but I would have liked another couple years.
Allison Cary: Yeah, she’s hardly done anything this season.
Charles Olney: She’s still only 33, so it’s actually a little surprising that there’s no more in the tank. That said, she’s played a LOT of minutes over the years. And age hits people differently.
RJ Allen: I am interested to see how Kopmeyer plays this year.
Charles Olney: Yeah, she got the chance a week early with that late Harris scratch, and made a mess of the Press goal. But I think she’ll settle in well and have a good year.
Allison Cary: I think she got better throughout that game.
Luis Hernandez: Agreed. She should have handled the goal better though.
Charles Olney: That goal combined a bit of pure technical magic, with Press bringing the ball down as perfectly as a human could do it, with a pretty weak shot that only went in because of some of the worst goalkeeping you’re likely to see.
Allison Cary: That pretty much sums it up.
Luis Hernandez: Kop said postgame that it took a deflection
RJ Allen: It’s going to be a shame when Press plays like 200 minutes in the World Cup.
Charles Olney: Any other thoughts on that game, or can we talk about the snowpocalypse in Chicago?
RJ Allen: Why is their snow in the last weekend in April?
Allison Cary: I don’t understand how people live in cold places.
Luis Hernandez: Did they have an orange ball?
Charles Olney: They did!
Luis Hernandez: I’m actually shocked
Charles Olney: I’m glad they called it. Seems like they probably could have made the decision earlier. But it’s better than some previous late decision-making, so I’ll take it. As for the game, we’ve all already expressed our worries about the Reign. Any specific thoughts on the game?
RJ Allen: The Reign need Pinoe back and they will not have her for months.
Charles Olney: I suppose I should tilt against the windmills for a moment and point out that Nagasato actually had a pretty poor game, by her standards. She scored a goal on an open net, and provided an assist to Casey Short who was (I’ve done the calculations) more open than any other soccer player has ever been in human history. But otherwise, she was pretty off for a lot of the game. So obviously she was voted player of the week.
RJ Allen: To be fair, and I’ll take the blame, she was my number one this week.
Luis Hernandez: I didn’t think she should have won it
RJ Allen: She is a very fun player to watch and some of that masks when she has a bad game. So blame me.
Charles Olney: I prefer to blame the entire world.
Allison Cary: It’s more fun.
Luis Hernandez: As much of a fair system as goal and save of the week
Charles Olney: I guess the one other thing I’ll add about the game is that I actually thought it was a lot closer than the final scoreline, and I’m less worried about the Reign than many folks. The Short goal was a disaster, but Vlatko will fix the defensive positioning. And they need to get more creativity. But they weren’t really that bad.
Luis Hernandez: I’m not sure coaching is going to be enough for the Reign.
Charles Olney: Alright, the last game of the weekend was the 2-2 draw between Sky Blue and Portland. Good result for New Jersey? Bad result for Portland?
RJ Allen: My official professional break down of this game: lol
Allison Cary: Good result for Sky Blue, IMO. It was an important sign of life.
Charles Olney: I tweeted this yesterday, but the main thing I want to say is that we (and I definitely mean ‘we’ because I’m a big offender here) spend too much time complaining about the annoying aspects of the Carli Lloyd experience, and not nearly enough time marveling at what she can do.
Luis Hernandez: I think RJ nailed it by saying Carli Lloyd FC.
RJ Allen: Carli Lloyd in a vacuum is an amazing thing to behold.
Charles Olney: As RJ said, Father Time is undefeated, but Carli sure seems like she’s going to fight him to the very death. And probably give him a swift kick in the junk on the way out the door.
RJ Allen: She has looking in to hiring a hit man.
Charles Olney: From the Portland perspective, should they be worried about the defense leaking so many goals? Or will it get sorted out once Menges comes back?
RJ Allen: I think Menges helps but Sonnett is likely gone.
Luis Hernandez: As for Portland, I think it could be a preview of what’s to come this summer.
RJ Allen: I think the first game they play in the NNT (non national teamers) era is going to be very important mentally.
Allison Cary: Yeah, it’s… not good.
Charles Olney: I’m not too worried for them. But I think they’d be much happier to be going into that NNT era with a couple more points in the bag.
RJ Allen: All in all I think they make the playoffs but they aren’t as strong as the last two years.
Allison Cary: Yeah, I’m not worried about them falling off a cliff or anything.
Luis Hernandez: When is the first home game for the Thorns?
RJ Allen: September. (I’m kidding)
Charles Olney: Okay, taking a step back from the analysis of the action, can we talk about the product a little bit? We’ve seen a bunch of the national team players drop Hulu sponsorship videos, and we’ve seen a whole host of ridiculous gifs released by US soccer. Meanwhile, North Carolina is putting together a Star Wars event (in which they portray themselves as the dark side?). Houston had some puppies on the pitch. They now sell beer at Reign games. Any thoughts about any of those things?
RJ Allen: Did y’all know Hulu has live games? And some players are very bad at making ads they themselves have to write? And Becky is (naturally) very good?
Allison Cary: Selling beer and adding puppies are always good developments.
Charles Olney: Controversial!
Allison Cary: I’m willing to die on this hill.
RJ Allen: North Carolina knows who they are by making themselves the dark side. #Underdogs
Allison Cary: “Yeah, lets do a Star Wars event, only lets be the fascists”
Charles Olney: Yeah, the Courage leaning into being the Empire is pretty on point. But I endorse it. Know yourself.
Allison Cary: The Spirit are doing a Star Wars night too, although what exactly that entails I’m not sure.
RJ Allen: The Spirit are Squibs.
RJ Allen: I know, I know mixing fandoms.
Luis Hernandez: I appreciate how well Orlando is embracing the new supporter group. Huge improvement over last year.
Charles Olney: For the most part, I’m not the audience for this kind of stuff. I don’t care about special theme nights (other than pride nights – more pride nights please!) or goofy announcements. But even grumpy old me can see how much fun some of these things are.
Charles Olney: One other final thought before we finish up: I just wanted to throw out there how much I enjoyed getting Jen Cooper, Poppy Miller, and Dan Lauletta on the broadcasts.
RJ Allen: Yes. It was nice to have some different voices this week. And stats. So many good stats.
I’m excited for the end of the week when we can finally have the USWNT roster and the endless speculation can be done.
Luis Hernandez: I’m glad for a Friday night match and only one Sunday match. Now we need a staggered start on Saturday to be perfect.
RJ Allen: Yeah the league has done a lot of starting games at the same time this year.
Luis Hernandez: And that’s just annoying
Allison Cary: Agreed.
Charles Olney: I know they have to worry mostly about what’s the best time for maximizing attendance and when they can use the stadium, and honestly that should be the priority. But I certainly appreciate when games are staggered.
RJ Allen: Also good work on the league and Chicago to get that game on air and not make it closed door.
Charles Olney: True. In previous years that has often not been the case.
Alright, that’s a wrap for this week. Thanks to everyone for joining us. Now go and enjoy all those preposterous USWNT gifs!
Quick Kicks: Did Chicago Have An Orange Ball?
Back again for week 3 of the NWSL, RJ and Luis go over the matches, predict the future and answer fan questions.
Hot or Not: NWSL Power Rankings Week 3
This power ranking is not reactionary.
This power ranking takes outside factors like weather and injuries into account.
It has bias—yours when you read it and mine when I wrote it.
Enjoy it.
It will soon change.
Quick Kicks: Laura Harvey for USWNT GM
Luis and RJ talk a lot about hypothetical USWNT rosters, NWSL action and answer fan questions on this week’s Quick Kicks.
The Game Changers: Week Two
The Game Changers is a weekly series looking at the three most important results of each week. Each section will look at one team and how its win, loss, or draw impacts the season.
Week Two of the NWSL season has come and gone. The Utah Royals played their first match of 2019 in front of a crowd of 18,000 at Rio Tinto Stadium on Saturday night. The North Carolina Courage reminded everyone why they are the best in the league on Wednesday with a 5-0 win over the Orlando Pride. And the wildest match of the season so far unfolded in Chicago on Saturday, with a combined total of eight goals scored in 90 minutes. Here’s a breakdown of the week’s results:
North Carolina Courage vs. Orlando Pride (5-0)
Chicago Red Stars vs. Portland Thorns (4-4)
Sky Blue vs. Houston Dash (0-1)
Utah Royals vs. Washington Spirit (1-0)
Reign FC vs. Orlando Pride (1-1)
The Chicago Red Stars Raise the Bar In 4-4 Draw
It may have been fair to assume the match between the Portland Thorns and the Chicago Red Stars on Saturday afternoon would be fun. But no one could have predicted the madness that ensued at Chicago’s home opener. The game had everything except defense: a hat trick by Christine Sinclair, two penalty kicks, and Sam Kerr scoring on a crazy play.
This match feels significant for the Chicago Red Stars. The club seemed to be hovering around the No. 4 or No. 5 spot in everyone’s predictions, as though they will either just make the playoffs or just miss them. With this draw, Chicago showed that they can keep up with the top-level teams. They showed a new determination that might not have been there at this time last season. Chicago worked hard for that draw, and they earned it, courtesy of a 90th minute goal from Yuki Nagasato.
Chicago may only have two points right now, but they have a lot to be happy about. They faced the top two teams from last year in their first two games and managed to walk away with a solid result. With this draw, the Chicago Red Stars announced that they’re here to play: and they can hang with the best of them.
Sky Blue looks bad in 0-1 loss to Houston
Sky Blue had a chance to ease into the season, but already, things aren’t looking good. They lost their season opener 2-0 to the Washington Spirit and this week, dropped their home opener to the Houston Dash. Everything in this match seemed to go wrong for Sky Blue, including a missed penalty kick from Carli Lloyd and a last-minute goal from Sofia Huerta that ultimately lost them the match.
While Sky Blue created chances, they were few and far between. They’re still looking for their first goal of the season. Houston had the advantage in almost every stats category except for saves and clearances. The only real positive of the night was goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan, who kept the loss a modest 1-0 when the Dash could have easily scored three or four goals.
Sky Blue started the season off against two teams that were in the bottom half of the table last season. Next week, they’ll host the Portland Thorns, who scored four goals against Alyssa Naeher on Saturday and two more against Ashlyn Harris the week before. After that, they’ll travel to North Carolina to take on the Courage, who also have six goals in their first two games. What Sky Blue’s loss to Houston confirmed was that despite their offseason efforts, they’re still as bad as they were last year. It’s gonna be another long season in New Jersey.
Orlando Pride show signs of life in 1-1 draw against Reign FC
It wasn’t an easy start to the season for the Orlando Pride, and it wasn’t a good one either. After opening their season against the Portland Thorns last Sunday, they traveled to Cary, North Carolina for a midweek match against the Courage before continuing on to Tacoma for a weekend match. After the match against the Courage, things were starting to look bad. The Pride had conceded seven goals in their first two matches and scored none. There were excuses: the Pride were missing some of their starters against Portland, they were playing the top two teams in the league by 2018’s standards, etc. But the Pride looked lifeless in their first two match. It felt like they were standing on the edge of the cliff, looking down at the long season ahead of them.
But on Sunday, the Pride revived. They still didn’t look fantastic against Reign FC, but they looked better and managed to get their first points of the season out of that match. They took an early lead thanks to a bicycle kick from Alanna Kennedy, giving the Pride their first goal of the season in the 6th minute. It took Reign FC about 15 minutes to equalize, and from that point on, both teams searched for the game-winning goal with no success.
The Pride have a lot of problems on the pitch. They aren’t aggressive enough in the final third, their defense has been non-existent, and their midfield is all over the place. But on Sunday, they showed that they can get a result against a quality side. They might be long shots for the playoffs, but they haven’t quite jumped off the cliff yet.
Welcome to American Soccer: Disability
This is the fourth article in the series “Welcome to American Soccer,” which focuses on equal treatment and access to soccer in the United States. The articles focus on where U.S. Soccer stands on a variety of issues and where they need to improve.
Defining Disability
Before I dive into the details of how U.S. Soccer approaches disabled athletes, I feel it is important to acknowledge the vagueness of disability in sport. We often talk about disabled athletes, as if all disabilities are the same. But there are many disabled players in the NWSL or on the U.S. Women’s National Team. Carson Pickett was born without a left forearm or hand. Kealia Ohai is legally blind in her right eye. Many professional players have learning disabilities, such as dyslexia.
So, what does being disabled mean when it comes to soccer? It’s not really clear. In this article, I will talk about the deaf national team and the Paralympic national team. The Paralympic team lists their qualifications here, but they do not cover the full spectrum of disability. Nor does the deaf national team.
In this article, I explore the narratives surrounding disability. It is interesting to think about why we consider disabled athletes in a category separate from the senior men’s and women’s national teams when there are notable players on both sides who are disabled. An important conversation is needed, beyond this article, to think about the segregation of disabled athletes and the perception of disabled athletes as a uniform group.
I understand the diversity within the category of disability, and I hope that in this article I have not come off as though I am sweeping everyone into one category. It’s a complex conversation, which should be led by the disabled community. Able-bodied people, such as myself, need to listen more than we speak. I just hope that through this article I can shed light on how the existing avenues for disabled athletes fall short and spark a conversation about how we improve the situation.
What do I know?
When I began research for this article, I admittedly knew very little about disabled athletes in U.S. Soccer. I assumed that the U.S. probably had a Paralympic team, although I couldn’t tell you whether there was one team or two or five. I couldn’t tell you what kinds of disabilities those athletes had, nor could I tell you how well they had done in recent competition. I couldn’t even tell you what their most recent competition was; the only time I ever hear about disabled athletes is in the lead-up to the Olympics and the Paralympics. And even then, coverage of the Paralympics is usually minimal, enough for media outlets to give themselves a pat on the back and say they did it.
When I started doing my research, I was surprised at how far I had to go for answers. When you go on the U.S. Soccer Federation’s website, and look at all the teams, you can go the Paralympic National Team page. This is not specified on the team site as being a men’s team, but as far as I could tell, all the players were men. If a women’s Paralympic team exists, I couldn’t find any information about them on U.S. Soccer’s website.
The information I was able to find on disabled athletes in U.S. Soccer remained choppy and unclear. There is a Disability Soccer Committee, presumably to advise U.S. Soccer on the best policies for inclusion of disabled athletes. When I did a general search on disabled athletes and U.S. Soccer, the most common result was the U.S. Soccer annual awards and their choice each year for “Player of the Year with a Disability.” In 2018, the award went to Gracie Fitzgerald, who plays for the U.S. Deaf Women’s National Team. I was able to find information about them on social media and their own website but couldn’t find any info on the U.S. Soccer website. I’m not even sure they are part of the federation.
We know that programs are there for disabled athletes. But we don’t really know anything about them.
Equal Pay, Equal Treatment
When I did my research, I found out that the Paralympic National Team is preparing for their own World Cup this summer in Sevilla, Spain. The team plays 7-a-side, and in their group stage, they will face Iran, Finland, and Ireland. They also have the ParaPan American Games in Lima, Peru two months later. It seems like this would be important information for U.S. Soccer to publicize, yet I hadn’t heard anything about it until now.
When I expanded my search beyond U.S. Soccer, I learned that the Paralympians had their own fight for equal pay with the U.S. Olympic Committee that has been going on for at least a decade. In 2018, Olympians earned $37,500 for winning gold, $22,500 for silver, and $15,000 for bronze. By comparison, Paralympians earned $7,500 for gold, $5,250 for silver, and $3,750 for bronze.
In September, the U.S. Olympic Committee announced that it would give equal medal bonuses for both sets of athletes. This action applied retroactively to the 2018 games, giving Paralympian athletes the money that they deserve and that they need to be successful athletes.
True Equality: One Tournament
Many Paralympic athletes are calling for a merging of the Olympic and Paralympic tournaments. In 2018, NBC aired 250 hours of Paralympic coverage compared to 2,400 hours of Olympic coverage. By the time the Paralympic athletes are ready to take the stage, the international press has largely gone home.
“Other people say they are household names, but they are not,” Ryan Raghoo told VICE Sports. Raghoo is a long-pole jumper from Great Britain. “People can win multiple Paralympic gold medals and not even be known in their own country, let alone be international superstars. I don’t see why there should be any difference because you’ve got a disability; that’s segregation. I get a lot of stick for this, but when I present myself, I present myself as an Olympian. I don’t describe myself as a Paralympian.”
The separation of the Olympic and Paralympic games also causes Paralympians to be framed through familiar caricatures. The stories of their disability often overshadow their performance in the game. Frances Ryan talked about this in a 2012 article prior to the kickoff of the London Olympics.
Athletes can be inspirational. The Olympics has shown this. Yet the inspiration that greeted successful Olympians is not the same as that being attributed to their disabled counterparts. An Olympian is deemed inspirational because of what they have achieved. A Paralympian is an inspiration because, despite it all, they’ve made it this far. It is, in part, a reflection of the unspoken thought that lurks in perceptions of disability: a disabled life is a dire existence that only the most courageous could “overcome”.
A narrative springs from this. The Paralympics gets depicted less as a sporting event and more a feast of courage. Back stories are given pre-eminence. It would be naive to think that broadcasters, striving for an angle that garners interest, would ever resist dissecting how a Paralympian came to be disabled or framing it as a battle against adversity.
Respect
In the previous article of this series, I suggested that transgender and nonbinary athletes may require us to rethink how we design sports. Disabled athletes require us to do the same. As Chef Jose Andres says, “People don’t want your pity. They want your respect.”
It seems outrageous to me that we aren’t talking more about teams like the Paralympic national team and the deaf national team. U.S. Soccer remains entrenched in an ableist mentality that can be seen across all areas of American soccer. But it’s up to them to do better, and it’s up to us to demand they do so.
In a Huffington Post article, professors Eli Wolff and Mary Hums argue that the future of sport brings disabled and non-disabled athletes together.
Embracing this opportunity for athletes with and without disabilities to compete together is the wave of the future. This inclusive mindset will be open to creative thinking and not limited by tradition. It is important to maintain and value the arena and domain of disability-specific competition, yet there is also an untapped platform where athletes with and without disabilities can excel and reach their potential together in integrated sports like wheelchair basketball, sitting volleyball, blind soccer, and sled hockey. These can be sports for all to play whether one has a disability or not. These are sports everyone can play.
Disabled athletes have a lot to offer the U.S. Soccer community. And U.S. Soccer has a lot left to do when it comes to inclusion and respect. U.S. Soccer needs to prove that disabled athletes are not just an opportunity to exploit an “inspiring” story. Disabled athletes are a community that U.S. Soccer has an obligation to treat equally, at the same levels as their able-bodied senior national teams. Anything short of that is a failure.
Hot or Not: NWSL Power Rankings Week 2
Warning:
This power ranking is not reactionary.
This power ranking takes outside factors like weather and injuries into account.
It has bias—yours when you read it and mine when I wrote it.
Enjoy it.
It will soon change.
The NWSL Commentary Is A Paternalistic Mess, But It Doesn’t Have To Be
Commentary on the league is relentlessly positive, and it’s a disservice to players and to the audience at home.
I want to talk about a small moment from one of this weekend’s NWSL games. It happened at 67:30 in the Chicago-Portland game, when Christine Sinclair sent a ball over the top for Portland. It bounced freely toward the Chicago box, while Chicago defender Casey Short tried to send it away. But she whiffed her attempted clearance, putting Portland’s Tobin Heath clear in on goal. The shot was saved, but it was a clear error by Short (who otherwise had an excellent game).
There were some mitigating factors. It was a windy day, which had been wreaking havoc with everyone’s timing all day. And it’s not the easiest thing in the world to time a kick on a ball that’s moving away from you, particularly when you know you have one of the world’s best players on your shoulder. Still, this was a mistake from Short, and potentially a very dangerous one.
But when the replay was shown a few seconds later, Lori Lindsey provided the following commentary: “A fantastic ball over the top. So difficult for Casey Short to clear. Can’t get a foot on it, and mistimes it.”
It was a nice ball. But it certainly wasn’t difficult for Short. Even with the mitigating factors, this was a fairly standard clearance, and one that Short would expect herself to execute every time. So why did Lindsey call it “so difficult”?
Now, I don’t want to harp too much on one quick comment made in the spur of the moment. And if this were an isolated case, I’d think nothing of it. But it’s not an isolated case. Listen to discussions of Sky Blue, which constantly discuss their terrible luck, but not their mismanagement and tactical naïveté. Or discussions of Orlando, which emphasize their great mentality and spirit, but casually omit the long periods when they seem unmotivated or uninterested. Or look to discussions of specific players, whose strengths are constantly emphasized but whose weaknesses are omitted. In short, watch any game, and the ratio of positive comments to negative comments will be astronomical. Failures are excused, while successes are hyped. And the result is a discussion that feels relentlessly, oppressively optimistic.
Now, in a young league, in a sport that doesn’t get mainstream coverage, which is still trying to build an audience, it’s certainly tempting to talk this way. Why discuss the negatives? Why not spin everything as positively as it can be spun? But it’s a mistake, for two big reasons.
First, it’s disrespectful to the players. These are professional athletes, of the highest quality. They demand extraordinary things of themselves. To wave away their mistakes, to minimize their flaws, is paternalistic. It suggests that they need boosters, rather than honest commentary. Obviously, that shouldn’t descend into cruelty or attacks. But it’s absolutely possible to provide generous commentary which is also fair and accurate. It does no one any favors to pretend they are flawless.
Second, it’s an evasion of responsibility to the viewers. People tune in expecting the commentators to provide analysis and context. If what they get instead is relentless boosterism, they will not be informed, nor will they gain any new understanding. The point of providing expert commentary is that it can add depth and nuance. That means being willing to accurately describe failures as well as successes.
I certainly don’t want conversations to be entirely negative. Part of what makes sports great is the way they allow us to tap into a sense of unbridled excitement and even a little unreasonable optimism. People enjoy that sense of hope and possibility that unfolds with each new game. We appreciate that, on any given day, the worst team might beat the best or an unheralded player might overcome a superstar.
If broadcasts and commentary want to hype up that potential, that’s all for the better. The NWSL is an exciting league where everything feels possible. Discussing it shouldn’t feel like a grim march of cataloguing errors, tallying up failures, and calculating probabilities. But if everything is positive all the time, there will be no sense of shade or proportion. And that ultimately will only dull the edge of the excitement. In order for the magic to feel truly exceptional, it needs to be balanced by the mundane.
So tell the full story. Don’t shy away from describing failure. Do provide context, but don’t make excuses. Respect the players enough to hold them up to the standards they set for themselves. Respect the audience enough to tell them the truth.
Which USWNT Players Are Going to France?
In some ways the 2019 USWNT roster is the easiest USWNT in years to predict.
The forwards are pretty much set, the midfielders are too, defenders are all here and accounted for and unless Adrianna Franch somehow hurts herself again the goalkeeper corps have assembled.
On the other hand trying to figure out how Jill Ellis rates two players that are both unlikely to see the pitch much (if at all) is an exercise in frustration.
But the show must go on and rosters don’t form themselves on a blank page.
The Goalkeepers
I hate to give spoilers this early but Alyssa Naeher, Ashlyn Harris and Adrianna Franch are the goalkeepers for the 2019 Women’s World Cup for the USWNT.
The three net minders have been one of the more constant positions under Jill Ellis in the last year. So unless one of them takes a knock, Jane Campbell will be left behind.
What’s more, we probably know who is going to play every minute, barring emergency. If history follows the same pattern we usually see from the US in major events, Harris and Franch will be called upon only if Naeher somehow loses the ability to use both of her legs. Just one might not be enough to cause a goalkeeper switch for the US.
All in all this is maybe the most stable and easy to call group on the roster.
The Defenders
Most of the defenders are pretty easy to pick out. Keyword there is most.
Unless they somehow take a knock that sends them into the middle of next week Abby Dahlkemper, Becky Sauerbrunn, Crystal Dunn, Kelley O’Hara, and Tierna Davidson are locks.
But five defenders does not a defensive core make.
Likely two out of the trio of Casey Short, Emily Sonnett, and Ali Krieger make the final roster. Krieger is the surprise here, having been put back on the radar in the last round of USWNT friendlies.
My money is on Sonnett and Short. But Krieger’s mix of experience and Short’s apparent lack of favor from Ellis might shift that scale enough for her to slip just out of the final 23.
The Midfielders
Allie Long and McCall Zerboni are going to France. If you had suggested that to me in 2017, I would have belly laughed over it. But Ellis has seemly chosen them as the back up players for when she needs to put out something other than her best XI, or if she needs to make a late sub.
The easy picks here–Julie Ertz, Lindsey Horan, Sam Mewis, Rose Lavelle–make the roster in a walk. The four of them have been playing at varying levels of great for a while now.
There was a time when Andi Sullivan and Morgan Brian were easy picks here too but it seems that time has passed. Danielle Colaprico too seems to be on the outside looking in this round.
The Forwards
Alex Morgan, Christen Press, Megan Rapinoe, Tobin Heath and Mallory Pugh are France-bound in all circumstances less the catastrophic. Regardless of your feelings on her, Carli Lloyd looks to be included there as well.
My wild card here is Jessica McDonald.
McDonald is a throw back to the style of forward that is just bigger, stronger and able to be where you don’t want her to be when she needs to be. She doesn’t have the raw speed of a Press or a Morgan or the flair of a Heath or a Rapinoe but in a tough game she could be a difference maker.
Who goes to France and who doesn’t is more or less set. Ellis has shown us in the last year who she puts out against the top teams in the world and who sits in the stands.
The 23 below are a solid team. Time will tell if they are Jill Ellis’ idea of one.
| Name | POS | Caps | Goals | Club Team |
| Adrianna Franch | GK | 1 | 0 | Portland Thorns |
| Alyssa Naeher | GK | 43 | 0 | Chicago Red Stars |
| Ashlyn Harris | GK | 21 | 0 | Orlando Pride |
| Abby Dahlkemper | DF | 37 | 0 | North Carolina Courage |
| Becky Sauerbrunn | DF | 155 | 0 | Utah Royals |
| Casey Short | DF | 27 | 0 | Chicago Red Stars |
| Crystal Dunn | DF | 83 | 24 | North Carolina Courage |
| Emily Sonnett | DF | 31 | 0 | Portland Thorns |
| Kelley O’Hara | DF | 115 | 2 | Utah Royals |
| Tierna Davidson | DF | 19 | 1 | Chicago Red Stars |
| Allie Long | MF | 42 | 6 | Reign FC |
| Julie Ertz | MF | 79 | 18 | Chicago Red Stars |
| Lindsey Horan | MF | 66 | 8 | Portland Thorns |
| McCall Zerboni | MF | 9 | 0 | North Carolina Courage |
| Rose Lavelle | MF | 24 | 6 | Washington Spirit |
| Sam Mewis | MF | 47 | 9 | North Carolina Courage |
| Alex Morgan | FW | 160 | 101 | Orlando Pride |
| Carli Lloyd | FW | 271 | 107 | Sky Blue FC |
| Christen Press | FW | 113 | 47 | Utah Royals |
| Jessica McDonald | FW | 7 | 2 | North Carolina Courage |
| Mallory Pugh | FW | 50 | 15 | Washington Spirit |
| Megan Rapinoe | FW | 150 | 44 | Reign FC |
| Tobin Heath | FW | 147 | 28 | Portland Thorns |
Backline Soccer Archive 