So I turned on the Timbers after KC’s fifth, missing the almost-comeback…but aside from the obvious coaching failure…I wonder if the truncated preseason played into this mess? You’d think that a sensible HC would have practiced his Gold-Cup-impacted squad before this AND tried to get more scrimmages, but what I saw today looked like preseason form; people turning over because their teammates weren’t showing, blown marks and appalling defending, goalkeeping errors…this looked like the first week of camp.
We’ll see. All squads drop a changer now and then. But if things look like this in two weeks..?
Pre-season scrimages cost money and my guess is in the transition that money wasn't there and KK didn't push for it. I put that on MP, KK, and the Bathals much more than Norris.
Edit: Also the NWSL for starting the season the end of the CONCACAF tournament. That's just dumb.
I think the league more than the club was also responsible for the lack of preseason games; I asked my ticket rep why no games here this year when we typically had three and his reply was that it was scheduling that was out of the club’s hands.
That said…the schedule was a known thing. Mike knew well in advance who was likely to be unavailable yesterday, and you’d think that would have motivated him to work the XI he fielded…more than they looked, anyway. The lack of communication was pretty brutal; this group played like virtual strangers.
Well, that’s that. We’ve now got Gotham to see off, and hopefully the club can look more competent doing so.
I’m no more on the #Norrisout bus after yesterday than I was last October; all the same issues were exposed (Sinc! Formation! Hero-ball! Tactics!) that we saw so much of in 2023. My hope is that the guy learns. Yesterday was not a good sign…but just that. Let’s see if things improve.
And I get a chuckle out of the immediate shrieks of #LowdonIn.
I have no idea how she’d do; she ran Houston for, what, four games and went 2-2-0. Better with that group than Laity did, but 1) low bar and 2) Houston.
Not a hater…but the idea that there’s a hero hidden behind Norris’ technical box? Not sure why anyone would be certain of that. If Norris shows no learning curve this spring it seems as good an option as any - I have NO idea who else might be available - but I wouldn’t assume automatically that Lowdon would be an immediate upgrade. The c.v. on her is just too brief to be certain.
If (BIG IF) this team is 0-0-3 after March 30 and has looked as sloppy and error-prone as it did yesterday, would you sack Norris and replace him with Lowdon?
What’s to learn? He doesn’t know yet starting a 40 year old winger and playing her a half is like throwing a boat anchor to a drowning swimmer. Leave a national team quality player, Hina, on the bench for 60 minutes. Either he won't change or he can’t change. Either way, why prolong the agony.
Swanson is back, and she makes that team so much better. Mal the anchor up front, Staab the anchor in the back. You hear mostly about Girma, but Staab is solid. Looking like Donaldson is going to mold that group into a team. Kuikka moved to CB, and very good. Doing what she does best, defend. We knew that. She also made a box to box run to launch a shot over the Utah mountains. We knew that too. Early on, it appears they made some good off-season moves.
LOOVULL gonna LOOVULL. Were up 2-0 early, were still up 2-1 when Strom (Orlando) picked up a red in the 62nd, then conceded the equalizer in the 86th minute. 2-2 draw.
One thing I noticed with Payne is that she was actively scanning for passes and the midfield wasn’t showing for the ball whatsoever. Also had to cover two players in the first half because Sinc sure wasn’t tracking back.
Between today’s showing and the matchup being Gotham’s league of super players I’d hope not, but they may also want to give her a big sendoff at home too while it’s still early enough in the season for her to physically up to snuff (relatively speaking). Or they may just not have learned a single thing. You know, whichever.
There is a reason it took you 38 minutes before you started to see some possession benefits. You went 10 X 11 and KC was able to crowd the box because there was no threat of a width run unless it came from your FB
Soph's second goal and both of Beckie's were filthy.
I think we can clean up our mistakes and jitters easier than KC can clean up their problems. AD doesn't look good... again. I don't think she read any of those goals particularly well, though Beckie's first was truly remarkable.
Haha yeah I'm not one to try to make a big statement in a random meeting. Plus, all the negative statements I wanted to make were about soccer, about which she knows little and has no control over haha.
I really don't see how Norris can still be manager if this keeps up. If it was a new coach, I could pass it off as first game on the road in a hostile environment with players lacking familiarity after the Gold Cup, but he's been making the SAME DAMN personnel and tactical errors for the better part of a year with no signs of adjustment.
Was the backline good? Not particularly. Was Hogan directly at fault for two goals? Yes. But the primary issue was fully on the structure and the bizarre Sinc decision, as it has been since he got the job.
Worst part isn't even the loss: Soph ain't gonna stand for this shit for much longer and they need to keep her engaged and listening. If I were her, I'd ask for coaching upgrade guarantees as part of the negotiation lol
We are going to get eaten alive v Gotham lmao. LOWDEN INTERIM ERA COMINGGGG.
Of the attainable coaches out there for this club, who would you like to see the team go for? Honestly if they wanna have any chance of keeping Smith beyond this year they gotta not wait until mid-season. I hope the Bhathals are getting on the phone now to start at least looking….Honestly though, should’ve been starting the research long ago. It’s just been a worrisome trend with Norris for quite a while. This was super duper bad with some Thorns hero ball thrown in.
I really don't have much knowledge of coaching candidates, in part because there simply aren't that many with real experience in the woso, and even fewer that don't have jobs. I'd be perfectly happy with Lowdon for the rest of the season because I think she'd at least help with the structure issues. I know the story is going to be about "why did he start three newbies in defense," but that totally skates over the real issue, which is this team clearly has no tactical identity or shape to it and hasn't since he took over. This roster is simply too talented to ship 3+ goals every match.
That said, Aidan's right. It'd have to get REAL bad --which, is admittedly very possible-- for them to do anything before May imo.
I could see them making a change sooner than that. There's a break between March 30 and April 13. If we're 0-0-3 and look bad doing it, I can well imagine Norris being let go and Lowdon made interim.
That said, I think those 4 goals might have bought him some time. The team dug itself a huge hole, but they also didn't give up.
He CANNOT start Sinc again. I think he'll go with Beckie. Even if she doesn't duplicate today's results, she offers more speed and width. That said, I'd prefer to see him go with Hina, because of her ability to operate in tight spaces.
The lack of protection from the midfield was alarming. I didn’t think Fleming was individually good - she dallied on the ball a lot in the first half and I think the pace surprised her - but she and Coffey are capable international players. That they kept leaving open space behind points to coaching.
Fleming's errors were almost entirely individual- She misplaced a ton of passes and didn't seem on the same page as the rest of the midfield most of the match. Not really worried about her at all individually, she'll be fine.
But yeah, it's the same issue defensively as last year. It's not just the open space in behind, it's that the space is often in the pocket behind the midfield and in front of the defense, and once the opposition gets in that space Hubly and Obaze (who I thought was actually good, despite what the prevailing twitter narrative seems to be) shouldn't have to track six different runs without midfield help.
Fleming should not have been as poor as she was today. Yes, it takes time to adjust. But she's also got a few years of playing at Chelsea and against some of Europe's best under her belt. She also has plenty of international experience. I know she's a student of the game, and she's tough on herself, so she'll improve. But of all the players on the Thorns who are new to the NWSL, the leap shouldn't have been the biggest for her. That said, neither she nor Coffey looked world-class today.
I'm not gonna let y'all talk me into doubting Jessie Fleming lol- I've been watching her since she was 15 and a rough opener ain't gonna make me panic. Most of her errors were literally just misplaced passes, many of which were results of her not being on the same page as her teammates. Those stand out more than other types of mistakes because it's very easy to see "oh, she gave the ball away" in live action.
Like you said, she and Coffey (and Moultrie, who was the most invisible of the three) were all pretty out of sorts, though it got a tad better from Coffey and Fleming in the second half. It's probably 1/3 Norris' shitty tactics, 1/3 the fact that they *quite literally have never played together once,* and 1/3 adapting to a quicker league gold cup hang over.
I'm not on Twitter but I thought Obaze did pretty well. She dealt with a few through balls on her own just fine. She'll grow into the game and will be solid.
I do agree but with that being said, I think you *have* to give at least until the next international break (early April) before you begin thinking about making a change. Ownership has to have performance indicators, but integrating players after a weird pre-season is a real thing, especially when you have players new to the league.
Which is not to say that Norris should be fired, but I want the Thorns to take a holistic approach, and that means not making a decision on week 1. Because if your decision is made on week 1 then why did you give the guy the whole pre-season?
Yeah absolutely, I don't think he should (and he certainly won't) be fired right now, but his continued failures really hammer home the point that there's a good chance he wouldn't have returned if the sale had gone through in October instead of January.
And the Soph thing is a very real element of this- If she's scoring hero-mode braces every week and the team concedes three or more goals, she has no reason to even negotiate to an extent.
New owners, proclaiming they want the Thorns to be the best women's team in the world, likely have Norris on a very short leash. Granted the team has a lot of new players and isn't in synch. But none of last season's glaring problems have been fixed.
Agree on second point. As for Karina, I'd give her another season to work with better resources. Also, she should be the one putting Norris on a short leash and making the case to the Bhathals.
We need a real coach. The starting back line was shit, the right wing was abandoned to nostalgia for an entire half and his subs killed all non-Beckie momentum. Other than that he was great.
He is not a worthy coach in this league and Sinclair starting / the subs at the worst possible time just flat out perplexed me as did going completely young in the back line
I really don't think it's an experience/resume thing- He's just not a good manager. There are plenty of first time coaches that do great work, he's just not one of them.
I'll give them some time to get the chemistry down and adjust to the league. That's a lot of changes at once. I'll call it a win that we didn't field Sauerbrunn and Kling. Sinc was a mistake and I'm still a bit baffled that Beckie subbed on for her instead of Hina, though it worked out pretty well in the end. This was largely an early failure of the midfield and a nervy keeper.
I don’t understand how that was a win unless there were health issues.
I liked what Payne showed. Muller looked bad in the first half, but seemed better in the second half. Obaze looks the part athletically, but part of me wonders if Becky were healthy. How would that look
Kling is slow. Becky maybe fine. Her leadership and composure might have helped calm Hogan. But this is hindsight. Pre-match, I’m glad we went with youth. You could also speculate that not having Sinc on the field wouldn’t have allowed so much pressure on the back line, where Hogan doesn’t get shelled and the new defenders aren’t as much, if any, liability.
The Sauerbrunn decision wasn’t hindsight. I just assumed she had a knock. She should be in the game whenever she is healthy enough to be there, I’m fine with Kling as our 4th FB and defacto leader. Kind of wish Sinclair would be relegated to that as well,
I don’t necessarily question Becky’s form or anything at this point, but regardless, I like the statement of playing a mostly new back line. It doesn’t seem like we’re on the same page about what we mean by hindsight. At least I’m not sure I follow you, but that’s fine.
Hubly and Obaze were often out of position and allowing through passes between them. Not sure if that's more coaching or player, but neither were good- Obazr, however, had the athleticism to overcome some of her mistakes. Once Hubly's beat, she's beat.
I thought Hubly played decent as well. Most of our defensive issues not caused by Hogan were tied to midfielders not tracking back. I thought Coffey and Fleming had mediocre games defensively at best. Not what I expect from them go forward, but both need to take some criticism here. Worse half I’ve ever seen from Coffey in that first half.
NWSL has a way of shooting itself in the foot every time it gets an opportunity like this, doesn't it? First match of the season, ABC, brand-new first-ever womens-sports-specific stadium, and just a hodgepodge of crap.
Melina will be on live Tweets!
I will have a instant reaction and recap available after the match.
Predictions?!
First goal & assist?
Final Score?
at this point, 10-0 KC. Seriously, does NWSL have a mercy rule?
If it weren't for Soph this looks correct.
It's a leap year, so here's comment #366.
So I turned on the Timbers after KC’s fifth, missing the almost-comeback…but aside from the obvious coaching failure…I wonder if the truncated preseason played into this mess? You’d think that a sensible HC would have practiced his Gold-Cup-impacted squad before this AND tried to get more scrimmages, but what I saw today looked like preseason form; people turning over because their teammates weren’t showing, blown marks and appalling defending, goalkeeping errors…this looked like the first week of camp.
We’ll see. All squads drop a changer now and then. But if things look like this in two weeks..?
Pre-season scrimages cost money and my guess is in the transition that money wasn't there and KK didn't push for it. I put that on MP, KK, and the Bathals much more than Norris.
Edit: Also the NWSL for starting the season the end of the CONCACAF tournament. That's just dumb.
I think the league more than the club was also responsible for the lack of preseason games; I asked my ticket rep why no games here this year when we typically had three and his reply was that it was scheduling that was out of the club’s hands.
That said…the schedule was a known thing. Mike knew well in advance who was likely to be unavailable yesterday, and you’d think that would have motivated him to work the XI he fielded…more than they looked, anyway. The lack of communication was pretty brutal; this group played like virtual strangers.
Well, that’s that. We’ve now got Gotham to see off, and hopefully the club can look more competent doing so.
I’m no more on the #Norrisout bus after yesterday than I was last October; all the same issues were exposed (Sinc! Formation! Hero-ball! Tactics!) that we saw so much of in 2023. My hope is that the guy learns. Yesterday was not a good sign…but just that. Let’s see if things improve.
And I get a chuckle out of the immediate shrieks of #LowdonIn.
I have no idea how she’d do; she ran Houston for, what, four games and went 2-2-0. Better with that group than Laity did, but 1) low bar and 2) Houston.
Not a hater…but the idea that there’s a hero hidden behind Norris’ technical box? Not sure why anyone would be certain of that. If Norris shows no learning curve this spring it seems as good an option as any - I have NO idea who else might be available - but I wouldn’t assume automatically that Lowdon would be an immediate upgrade. The c.v. on her is just too brief to be certain.
Chief, here's a hypothetical for you:
If (BIG IF) this team is 0-0-3 after March 30 and has looked as sloppy and error-prone as it did yesterday, would you sack Norris and replace him with Lowdon?
What’s to learn? He doesn’t know yet starting a 40 year old winger and playing her a half is like throwing a boat anchor to a drowning swimmer. Leave a national team quality player, Hina, on the bench for 60 minutes. Either he won't change or he can’t change. Either way, why prolong the agony.
The day's other matches:
NC hanging 5 on Campbell and Houston will probably help settle who's going to back up Naeher.
Naeher coming home with a clean sheet to start the season helps too.
St Georges picks up a brace in her NC debut -- off the bench, just like fellow Canadian Beckie.
Utah managed 19 shots, including 6 by Betfort, but nary a goal. They also dominated possession and their passing accuracy was great.
Swanson is back, and she makes that team so much better. Mal the anchor up front, Staab the anchor in the back. You hear mostly about Girma, but Staab is solid. Looking like Donaldson is going to mold that group into a team. Kuikka moved to CB, and very good. Doing what she does best, defend. We knew that. She also made a box to box run to launch a shot over the Utah mountains. We knew that too. Early on, it appears they made some good off-season moves.
NC handling Houston, 2-0 65th minute. So THAT's what it looks like to take care of your business.
Meanwhile, the Wooden Spoon Invitational - Utah v Chicago - has the No Stars leading MagicJackMormons 1-0 early in the 2nd.
Take a look at Betfort's head shot. It looks like a mug shot: https://www.nwslsoccer.com/players/hannah-claire-betfort/stats?season=1y6f8h7azok4tqvz2qno41btg
LOOVULL gonna LOOVULL. Were up 2-0 early, were still up 2-1 when Strom (Orlando) picked up a red in the 62nd, then conceded the equalizer in the 86th minute. 2-2 draw.
Is it just me, or is LOOVULL really tall? Lund, Erceg, Flint, Howell...those are tall people!
Lol:
https://x.com/jasmineginting_/status/1769083783368597654?s=46&t=e8Gx9bM3HEyE6UzYl-Lilw
i wouldn't put a lot of stock into fotmob ratings tbh
I didn’t rate Payne that poorly.
Her speed covered up for a lot, I think. She had some good runs and recoveries but she passed to the other team a lot also.
One thing I noticed with Payne is that she was actively scanning for passes and the midfield wasn’t showing for the ball whatsoever. Also had to cover two players in the first half because Sinc sure wasn’t tracking back.
I was so distracted with *mess* that I didn’t notice lol.
You think Sinc starts the home opener because it’s the home opener? Ain’t no way, right?
Please no and if they do we should all agree to vacate the stands
Between today’s showing and the matchup being Gotham’s league of super players I’d hope not, but they may also want to give her a big sendoff at home too while it’s still early enough in the season for her to physically up to snuff (relatively speaking). Or they may just not have learned a single thing. You know, whichever.
I would guess a majority of fans at the game are fine with Sinc starting
https://x.com/tayvincent6/status/1769097347223441609?s=20
Coulda fooled me with the "Mike has a very clear way of playing and he's communicated that to us very, very, clearly" there Janine!
I'm intrigued by Janine saying we're playing a new system. We are????
Is it score as much as possible and don't really worry about defending?
LOOVULL up on the Moldy Oranges 2-0 early. Flint (Kornieck) picked up a yellow in the 3rd minute. Solid!
God, there's nobody at this match. LOTS of really good, really empty seats.
Nice to see that Orlando are keeping up their tradition of having kits with invisible numbers.
2-0 now- My Orlando optimism ain't looking great!
Own Goal has returned to give you a chance!
Vindicated!
Flint might be gone on accumulated yellows. We'll see.
Man, these are just unacceptable platitude-based answers. "We outshot them" is not a sentence that should be coming out of his mouth after that game.
https://x.com/tayvincent6/status/1769094277529767947?s=20
https://x.com/tayvincent6/status/1769094930557812745?s=20
If he was disappointed that Sinc slowed things down ... I really don't know what to say.
Big "Other than that Mrs. Lincoln, what did you think of the play?" vibes.
There is a reason it took you 38 minutes before you started to see some possession benefits. You went 10 X 11 and KC was able to crowd the box because there was no threat of a width run unless it came from your FB
Nothing to say other than to thank the football gods that my crappy antenna couldn't pick up ABC.
Try using NWSL+. It's a free sign-up service, with live-streamed matches.
ESPN + and Sling. Only negative is no Blazers games unless I go.
Just watched the highlights package from ESPN Deportes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pilrHgUdMJs
Soph's second goal and both of Beckie's were filthy.
I think we can clean up our mistakes and jitters easier than KC can clean up their problems. AD doesn't look good... again. I don't think she read any of those goals particularly well, though Beckie's first was truly remarkable.
AD kept us off the board plenty of times. Definitely wouldn't hang our comeback on her.
I wasn't paying super close attention, but she didn't look terrible.
Coach has not learned
So, what color ARE the kits, anyway?
Yuck
Overcast.
So I accidentally sat next to community outreach person Robin Beavers at the Sport Bra. A few tidbits:
1. There will be another Timbers+Thorns game in June.
2. Some staff will continue to be shared, but she doesn’t know if she will be on the Timbers side, the Thorns side, or both.
3. Sophia smith is “so sweet” and Kelli Hubly “a character.”
Not much actual soccer talk except for how the game was slightly less of an embarrassment than it looked like it was going to be.
Glad you showed judgment and just talked to her. Been in that situation before and just wondered how others had less tact in terms of discussions.
Haha yeah I'm not one to try to make a big statement in a random meeting. Plus, all the negative statements I wanted to make were about soccer, about which she knows little and has no control over haha.
KC has quite a quiver of weapons. As bad as their 2nd half lapse was, they loom as a scary team this season.
LOL
https://twitter.com/FlatcapGK/status/1769079235384144262
Lowden NOW.
"I'm just asking questions."
I really don't see how Norris can still be manager if this keeps up. If it was a new coach, I could pass it off as first game on the road in a hostile environment with players lacking familiarity after the Gold Cup, but he's been making the SAME DAMN personnel and tactical errors for the better part of a year with no signs of adjustment.
Was the backline good? Not particularly. Was Hogan directly at fault for two goals? Yes. But the primary issue was fully on the structure and the bizarre Sinc decision, as it has been since he got the job.
Worst part isn't even the loss: Soph ain't gonna stand for this shit for much longer and they need to keep her engaged and listening. If I were her, I'd ask for coaching upgrade guarantees as part of the negotiation lol
We are going to get eaten alive v Gotham lmao. LOWDEN INTERIM ERA COMINGGGG.
Of the attainable coaches out there for this club, who would you like to see the team go for? Honestly if they wanna have any chance of keeping Smith beyond this year they gotta not wait until mid-season. I hope the Bhathals are getting on the phone now to start at least looking….Honestly though, should’ve been starting the research long ago. It’s just been a worrisome trend with Norris for quite a while. This was super duper bad with some Thorns hero ball thrown in.
I really don't have much knowledge of coaching candidates, in part because there simply aren't that many with real experience in the woso, and even fewer that don't have jobs. I'd be perfectly happy with Lowdon for the rest of the season because I think she'd at least help with the structure issues. I know the story is going to be about "why did he start three newbies in defense," but that totally skates over the real issue, which is this team clearly has no tactical identity or shape to it and hasn't since he took over. This roster is simply too talented to ship 3+ goals every match.
That said, Aidan's right. It'd have to get REAL bad --which, is admittedly very possible-- for them to do anything before May imo.
I could see them making a change sooner than that. There's a break between March 30 and April 13. If we're 0-0-3 and look bad doing it, I can well imagine Norris being let go and Lowdon made interim.
That said, I think those 4 goals might have bought him some time. The team dug itself a huge hole, but they also didn't give up.
He CANNOT start Sinc again. I think he'll go with Beckie. Even if she doesn't duplicate today's results, she offers more speed and width. That said, I'd prefer to see him go with Hina, because of her ability to operate in tight spaces.
The lack of protection from the midfield was alarming. I didn’t think Fleming was individually good - she dallied on the ball a lot in the first half and I think the pace surprised her - but she and Coffey are capable international players. That they kept leaving open space behind points to coaching.
Fleming's errors were almost entirely individual- She misplaced a ton of passes and didn't seem on the same page as the rest of the midfield most of the match. Not really worried about her at all individually, she'll be fine.
But yeah, it's the same issue defensively as last year. It's not just the open space in behind, it's that the space is often in the pocket behind the midfield and in front of the defense, and once the opposition gets in that space Hubly and Obaze (who I thought was actually good, despite what the prevailing twitter narrative seems to be) shouldn't have to track six different runs without midfield help.
Fleming should not have been as poor as she was today. Yes, it takes time to adjust. But she's also got a few years of playing at Chelsea and against some of Europe's best under her belt. She also has plenty of international experience. I know she's a student of the game, and she's tough on herself, so she'll improve. But of all the players on the Thorns who are new to the NWSL, the leap shouldn't have been the biggest for her. That said, neither she nor Coffey looked world-class today.
I'm not gonna let y'all talk me into doubting Jessie Fleming lol- I've been watching her since she was 15 and a rough opener ain't gonna make me panic. Most of her errors were literally just misplaced passes, many of which were results of her not being on the same page as her teammates. Those stand out more than other types of mistakes because it's very easy to see "oh, she gave the ball away" in live action.
Like you said, she and Coffey (and Moultrie, who was the most invisible of the three) were all pretty out of sorts, though it got a tad better from Coffey and Fleming in the second half. It's probably 1/3 Norris' shitty tactics, 1/3 the fact that they *quite literally have never played together once,* and 1/3 adapting to a quicker league gold cup hang over.
yes not only was fleming underwhelming I. offense she offered zero defensive chops, how can this be someone who has at times played the six.
I'm not on Twitter but I thought Obaze did pretty well. She dealt with a few through balls on her own just fine. She'll grow into the game and will be solid.
I do agree but with that being said, I think you *have* to give at least until the next international break (early April) before you begin thinking about making a change. Ownership has to have performance indicators, but integrating players after a weird pre-season is a real thing, especially when you have players new to the league.
Which is not to say that Norris should be fired, but I want the Thorns to take a holistic approach, and that means not making a decision on week 1. Because if your decision is made on week 1 then why did you give the guy the whole pre-season?
there where how many weeks last year that can also be considered?
Sunday v. Gotham, home opener, he has eight days to fix whatever this was. What could possibly go wrong?
Pssst -- mark Stengel in the box.
Yeah absolutely, I don't think he should (and he certainly won't) be fired right now, but his continued failures really hammer home the point that there's a good chance he wouldn't have returned if the sale had gone through in October instead of January.
And the Soph thing is a very real element of this- If she's scoring hero-mode braces every week and the team concedes three or more goals, she has no reason to even negotiate to an extent.
New owners, proclaiming they want the Thorns to be the best women's team in the world, likely have Norris on a very short leash. Granted the team has a lot of new players and isn't in synch. But none of last season's glaring problems have been fixed.
They should also have Karina on a short leash.
BTW, the new hire at Prez of Biz Ops is a good one!
Agree on second point. As for Karina, I'd give her another season to work with better resources. Also, she should be the one putting Norris on a short leash and making the case to the Bhathals.
The Bhathals were there in KC also lol…
I really hope Lisa Bhathal has absolutely no patience for incompetents...
Soooo, flight home won't be a wake, but much to fix.
Runner girl in town for a meet and there's still time to clear this morning's stench from the sportsballverse.
We need a real coach. The starting back line was shit, the right wing was abandoned to nostalgia for an entire half and his subs killed all non-Beckie momentum. Other than that he was great.
He is not a worthy coach in this league and Sinclair starting / the subs at the worst possible time just flat out perplexed me as did going completely young in the back line
He couldn’t be the HC of a college team with his CV. He should go back to being a GK coach.
After today I'm not sanguine on the keeper coach thing.
Lol look, I didn’t say at which level…
I really don't think it's an experience/resume thing- He's just not a good manager. There are plenty of first time coaches that do great work, he's just not one of them.
Mike Norris has won only 3 in the last 11 with the Thorns.
they've not won an away game since June 18. 2 draws, 5 losses.
Wild stat, that. Woof!
Yep. They've only won 2 of their last 8 matches (7 regular season, 1 playoff).
When you put it that way....
So much for fixing the defense.
I'll give them some time to get the chemistry down and adjust to the league. That's a lot of changes at once. I'll call it a win that we didn't field Sauerbrunn and Kling. Sinc was a mistake and I'm still a bit baffled that Beckie subbed on for her instead of Hina, though it worked out pretty well in the end. This was largely an early failure of the midfield and a nervy keeper.
Starting Sinclair wasn't a mistake. It was a statement.
A mistaken statement?
It was both
I don’t understand how that was a win unless there were health issues.
I liked what Payne showed. Muller looked bad in the first half, but seemed better in the second half. Obaze looks the part athletically, but part of me wonders if Becky were healthy. How would that look
Kling is slow. Becky maybe fine. Her leadership and composure might have helped calm Hogan. But this is hindsight. Pre-match, I’m glad we went with youth. You could also speculate that not having Sinc on the field wouldn’t have allowed so much pressure on the back line, where Hogan doesn’t get shelled and the new defenders aren’t as much, if any, liability.
The Sauerbrunn decision wasn’t hindsight. I just assumed she had a knock. She should be in the game whenever she is healthy enough to be there, I’m fine with Kling as our 4th FB and defacto leader. Kind of wish Sinclair would be relegated to that as well,
I don’t necessarily question Becky’s form or anything at this point, but regardless, I like the statement of playing a mostly new back line. It doesn’t seem like we’re on the same page about what we mean by hindsight. At least I’m not sure I follow you, but that’s fine.
They've got 8 days til next match. Time to get to work.
Any international goal keepers available?
I hear Bouhaddi can be had for half of a sandwich.
I’d like that except for fear that it would happen
But you could keep the other half of the sandwich which would be an upgrade to having our keeper pool and no sandwich
No added time at all for the goal, I see.
(Not that they deserve a point, but still)
Fuck Shelby, NOW you choose to come out?
Would you trust Hubly at this point?
Why would Hubly trust Hogan? She'd done just about everything a keeper can do wrong, wrong.
That’s fair
Hubly's done nothing wrong today
Hubly and Obaze were often out of position and allowing through passes between them. Not sure if that's more coaching or player, but neither were good- Obazr, however, had the athleticism to overcome some of her mistakes. Once Hubly's beat, she's beat.
Just because she didn't get called for the DOGSO doesn't mean she didn't screw up.
I viewed that as a smart play to be blunt. Hubly wasn’t even in the top 5 problems of the match
Plus she’d already been burned once before, I’d be far, far madder if she’d again failed to notice Chawinga burning in from behind
It was the right move, DOGSO or not at that point in the game- Chawinga was in on goal and she prevented a 1v1.
Fair. No win situation. Played the odds and won.
Well, as shitty as we've been, it's not like KC have it all figured out either. They're still pretty dreadful defensively.
With the midfield adjustments the offense is better, but the defense is a big yikes
Hopefully just a matter of fitness and chemistry. Hubly is always good for a brain fart though.
Holy shit have a game Janine!
Beckie power!
Man I wish she had made that easier chance.
Muller played poorly in the first half, but looked much better in the second half.
Payne looked very good as did Beckie. Sophia was Sophia
I thought Hubly played decent as well. Most of our defensive issues not caused by Hogan were tied to midfielders not tracking back. I thought Coffey and Fleming had mediocre games defensively at best. Not what I expect from them go forward, but both need to take some criticism here. Worse half I’ve ever seen from Coffey in that first half.
Beckie looks sharp!
Who would have thought the Big Canadian Injection into Thorns Opening Day 2024 would come from Beckie, not Fleming?
If she starts....
Sinc can't start again. Or take minutes from anyone. Norris has got to coach as if his job is on the line.
It should be after this mess
And after we lost 5-1 last season. Straight embarrassing for this club.
Quite a relief. I haven't felt confident in her...and she just scored! LOL
Geez, she could have had the hat-trick today and this would be level at 5s. Wow.
It would be pretty sweet to have a Chawinga off the bench, gotta say!
All these fast African players are going to change the game in the NWSL from fast to super fast.
Scary player. She will make a lot of noise this season.
I guess I’m relieved Hogan isn’t injured?
Whee, chaos!
Don't we have a Muppet for that?
Man I was sure Hubly was toast on VAR, would’ve really been the icing for this game
Yeahhhh that might be DOGSO
I think the ball hooking wide might have saved Hubly there.
Hubly gonna be sent off.
Just like last year! So many wonderful memories! Yet somehow survives with just the yellow.
Nah. The other CB was tracking back. I mean, no way she was going to get there, but I like the yellow there.
I mean, I like the yellow there too, but it was arguably generous.
Full agree it was generous. But also in line how this game was called.
We'll know after next weekend whether Norris has lost the team. Too early to say where things are, but it won't take much longer to know.
Man, if Beckie had buried that chance.....
Holy mackerel Beckie. You needed to put that away.
Completely beautiful play followed up with a derp. Beckie has played very well today.
Oh Janineeeeee
Well, it turned into NWSL After Dark, didn't it???
Glad to see Beckie opened her account. And Soph with the brace. Take positives where you find them.
Yay Soph and Janine, but this is embarrassing
I mean this game isn't over, why are we taking Soph off?
She looked absolutely pissed too
she might not be 90 minutes fit.
I'm sure they don't want her to play 90, but.....
(they had Izzy warming up at 5-1, so I think he just had the sub planned)
Worn out from Gold Cup I assume
She barely played there, though. I think 90 minutes fit is the explanation.
Don't like that Sophia sub but maybe she needs rest?
Wtf are these subs. Soph out?!
He sent Izzy out when it was 5-1, but you'd think he would have kept Soph out there after the 3rd.
Rigid substitutions?
What's the total goal record?
LFG?
This is the stupidest game I’ve seen
NWSL has a way of shooting itself in the foot every time it gets an opportunity like this, doesn't it? First match of the season, ABC, brand-new first-ever womens-sports-specific stadium, and just a hodgepodge of crap.
I think ESPN will HAPPILY take a 5-3 lol
Yeah, true. Must be entertaining, I mean JUST LOOK AT ALL THE GOALS!
Barry Bonds Day.