He knows what we all know. I'd be pretty impatient at the very least if I were her family also. This is the third season she's been here now? And a 40 yr old is blocking her development. I really don't like parent interference AT ALL, but I wonder if Liv is being pressured to be in the coach's ear. There were whispers that she was already asking Rhian how to get more minutes last season (and was unhappy), and I can't imagine those issues aren't still there...
A Kling appreciation post. Two or three seasons ago I believed she'd lost too much pace and endurance to keep playing as starter but wow, has she ever rebooted and reengineered herself and her game. The fire and leadership never wavered but I just don't think Thorns are the Thorns without her on the pitch. All respect.
I thought she had some rough moments today, but overall she's kept things from getting much worse for the Thorns.
I don't know what the deal is with our fullbacks, but imo they're getting too far upfield. Not only is our 6 and defensive line exposed because the Sinc/Dunn duo in midfield, but our two CB's are often exposed and having to do way more 1v.1's because the fullbacks just often aren't there. It's so obvious! Kuikka is fast and even she isn't making it back. It seems like a coaching issue...
I’m not a fan of whatever strategy the new coach is using for game management. We have season tickets and it’s just been off since preseason started. Everything is just a step slow, a yard behind, etc.
Not sure what the heck is going on with Louisville. JMac didn't play tonight -- that's two matches in a row. That hurts them. I think they're on the right track, but they're not producing any more results than last year.
If I were Coach Norrissey, I wouldn't give a flying fig about the Challenge Cup. I'd be experimenting with lineups that I might use during and after the WWC.
He should be staging those with the WC squarely in mind. Give Sam and Weaver rest, but rotate them in for maybe 30mins along with everyone else who will be starting for those WC games. Sit Soph, Hina, Sinc, Dunn, ect... maybe start Rocky or bring her in with the thought in mind that likely Costa Rica won't get beyond the group stage and will likely be back sooner than later.
If you replace Sinc with Moultrie, does that take care of the problem? I mean, because Moultrie is faster and more aggressive, and not such a defensive liability as Sinc, who looked tonight like somebody ran down the battery on her Rascal.
One of the reasons the fullbacks are playing so high is because they need someone to play in the spaces Sinc is supposed to be playing in. We saw that once Moultrie came on- Kling and Kuikka were able to hang back a little bit and Sam won 4-5 balls in the midfield by stepping forward, knowing she had support.
That’s what I mean by domino effect: So many of the “other” issues can be traced back to Sinc not having the ability to play her role the way she needs too.
I think it fixes a lot of our build-up play too. Yes, Norris is having Dunn and Sinclair high. But Moultrie has the mobility to drop in. But again, that's why I'd start with Rocky and see if it fixes things a little more.
Fine, yes. Not good. Their defense is pretty poor. They've got some pieces I'd love to have -- Murphy, Fox, O'Sullivan, Kerolin, young Wingate. But as for us? Sumpin ain right....
Bottom line for me: you cannot score 6 goals in two games and only get 2 points. Attack is doing its job. Some individual errors coming to play, but the structure off the ball is broken. There's a very obvious fix; the head coach needs to make it, it's what he's there for.
You concede 6: the goalkeeper made 2 errors; the centre backs got beat; a couple of set pieces; a really nice long shot. The constant, even in the set piece goals because of what they come from, is the structure ahead of it. The centre backs are doing a lot of one v one defending high up because it's too easy to play through the press and get around the #6.
It's the one we all know. But when you're conceding a lot of goals and chances you need to stabilize the team. How do you do that? You can do three things:
1) Have the full backs not commit as much going forward
2) Add a third centre back
3) Take out an attacking central midfielder and make your single pivot more of a double pivot
I think option 1) hurts the Thorns too much going forward. I think option 2) could work but I don't think anyone wants the Thorns to do that. I think option 3 is the easy one.
But Moultrie (or Rocky) for Sinc only gives you half of that, though, right? I love how Dunn is doing this season, but I’m not sure she’s really passing and possessing well enough to be the other half. So wouldn’t you also have to replace Dunn with Rodriguez? And you’d lose a lot of attacking pressure that way…
I think Moultrie is more of a two-way player than Sinc at this point, and I think she's more of an actual midfielder, and so she'll have the athleticism and pressing ability that's needed. But that's not necessarily the move I'd make from the start, I'd think about starting Rocky and Coffey just to give a little more solidity.
a lot of midfield defending involves closing down passing lanes and covering spac and closing down when the ball penetrates. When you have one player not accomplishing these roles due to physical limitations it makes it that much harder for everyone else because of the amount of space not being covered.
I think it’s fair to say that there are some issues with the way the Thorns set up. I also think that the very obvious move is to replace Sinclair with a midfielder that can support the attack and has the mobility to track back.
Does that simple fix change everything? Maybe not, but it NEEDS to be made so we can tell if there are significant structural issues.
So another game where our keeper got us into trouble (with lots of help) that we had to fight our way out. Against a pretty mediocre opponent. That’s…not a good thing. Hope the coaching staff isn’t happy with this.
302 comments? You all are the absolute best! Truly a privilege to write for everyone.
Proud soccer jackals. Thanks for giving us a savannah to frolic in!
We get fired up after a game like that lol…
Olivia's dad (I think) is liking anti-Sinc, pro Liv-starting tweets on twitter in case anyone was wondering.
If they fumble her, I'll be livid.
No, it’s def her dad. I’ve seen him mention her as his daughter in the past.
I think it's an adult male relative but not her father btw
Please tell me the Twitter account isn't called "MoultriesDad."
OTOH, please tell me the Twitter account *is* called "MoultriesDad."
He knows what we all know. I'd be pretty impatient at the very least if I were her family also. This is the third season she's been here now? And a 40 yr old is blocking her development. I really don't like parent interference AT ALL, but I wonder if Liv is being pressured to be in the coach's ear. There were whispers that she was already asking Rhian how to get more minutes last season (and was unhappy), and I can't imagine those issues aren't still there...
I just hope this is Sinc's last season. If her obstinance leads to the Thorns losing Moultrie, I'll lose a good 50% of my respect for her.
Boy, this is the worst "Why isn't my kid starting?" situation I can imagine.
A Kling appreciation post. Two or three seasons ago I believed she'd lost too much pace and endurance to keep playing as starter but wow, has she ever rebooted and reengineered herself and her game. The fire and leadership never wavered but I just don't think Thorns are the Thorns without her on the pitch. All respect.
I thought she had some rough moments today, but overall she's kept things from getting much worse for the Thorns.
I don't know what the deal is with our fullbacks, but imo they're getting too far upfield. Not only is our 6 and defensive line exposed because the Sinc/Dunn duo in midfield, but our two CB's are often exposed and having to do way more 1v.1's because the fullbacks just often aren't there. It's so obvious! Kuikka is fast and even she isn't making it back. It seems like a coaching issue...
I’m not a fan of whatever strategy the new coach is using for game management. We have season tickets and it’s just been off since preseason started. Everything is just a step slow, a yard behind, etc.
Well…that was fun (not really…) and now I gotta watch it again, so I’m gonna call it a night. Thanks all for the discussion!
All the talk about Sam's USWNT snub, when does the book on Liv open?
My God, what an impactful player.
no doubt she is a better option than Sinc. Team more dangerous when she plays, still needs to work on tracking back, but still better.
Where was Rocy today?
On the bench!
Why not just put Sinc back up at forward? It’s her natural position and she’s good at it.
think about what you just said......
A goal and an assist in two games where her team looks pretty poor...I wish coach Norris would reward good form!
She doesn't have Horan's total toolkit yet, but you can see that she will have it.
Orlando with another win, btw
Not sure what the heck is going on with Louisville. JMac didn't play tonight -- that's two matches in a row. That hurts them. I think they're on the right track, but they're not producing any more results than last year.
If I were Coach Norrissey, I wouldn't give a flying fig about the Challenge Cup. I'd be experimenting with lineups that I might use during and after the WWC.
He should be staging those with the WC squarely in mind. Give Sam and Weaver rest, but rotate them in for maybe 30mins along with everyone else who will be starting for those WC games. Sit Soph, Hina, Sinc, Dunn, ect... maybe start Rocky or bring her in with the thought in mind that likely Costa Rica won't get beyond the group stage and will likely be back sooner than later.
It took two world-class goals and one really nice one to overcome our defensive deficiencies against a not-that-good team and hold onto 1 point.
NCC's fine, as is our offense- We score world class goals because our roster is stocked with elite talent.
There are some form issues (Menges and Bella), but the core issue is Sinc and the domino effects her continuous inclusion creates.
I’ll agree on Sinc. There’s still defensive organization problems Norris needs to solve.
I think a lot of those get fixed if the full backs aren't having to constantly run back and the center backs aren't getting exposed in space.
If you replace Sinc with Moultrie, does that take care of the problem? I mean, because Moultrie is faster and more aggressive, and not such a defensive liability as Sinc, who looked tonight like somebody ran down the battery on her Rascal.
One of the reasons the fullbacks are playing so high is because they need someone to play in the spaces Sinc is supposed to be playing in. We saw that once Moultrie came on- Kling and Kuikka were able to hang back a little bit and Sam won 4-5 balls in the midfield by stepping forward, knowing she had support.
That’s what I mean by domino effect: So many of the “other” issues can be traced back to Sinc not having the ability to play her role the way she needs too.
I think it fixes a lot of our build-up play too. Yes, Norris is having Dunn and Sinclair high. But Moultrie has the mobility to drop in. But again, that's why I'd start with Rocky and see if it fixes things a little more.
Fine, yes. Not good. Their defense is pretty poor. They've got some pieces I'd love to have -- Murphy, Fox, O'Sullivan, Kerolin, young Wingate. But as for us? Sumpin ain right....
Bottom line for me: you cannot score 6 goals in two games and only get 2 points. Attack is doing its job. Some individual errors coming to play, but the structure off the ball is broken. There's a very obvious fix; the head coach needs to make it, it's what he's there for.
If you concede 6? Well…
It’s a whole slew of things. Sinc. Bixby. Menges. The organization in back. The lack of both a reliable 8 and a table-setting 10.
Agree that this is - now - a match-management issue. But the roster needs to be addressed, too.
You concede 6: the goalkeeper made 2 errors; the centre backs got beat; a couple of set pieces; a really nice long shot. The constant, even in the set piece goals because of what they come from, is the structure ahead of it. The centre backs are doing a lot of one v one defending high up because it's too easy to play through the press and get around the #6.
Okay. The fix is “obvious”, that being..? (I don’t see “an” obvious fix, is what I’m saying. You do. So help this soccer moron out. That fix is..?)
It's the one we all know. But when you're conceding a lot of goals and chances you need to stabilize the team. How do you do that? You can do three things:
1) Have the full backs not commit as much going forward
2) Add a third centre back
3) Take out an attacking central midfielder and make your single pivot more of a double pivot
I think option 1) hurts the Thorns too much going forward. I think option 2) could work but I don't think anyone wants the Thorns to do that. I think option 3 is the easy one.
But Moultrie (or Rocky) for Sinc only gives you half of that, though, right? I love how Dunn is doing this season, but I’m not sure she’s really passing and possessing well enough to be the other half. So wouldn’t you also have to replace Dunn with Rodriguez? And you’d lose a lot of attacking pressure that way…
are you joking? Sit Sinc and play Rocky or Liv and you are immediately better
So, how does fix #3 work if you replace Sinc with Moultrie?
I think Moultrie is more of a two-way player than Sinc at this point, and I think she's more of an actual midfielder, and so she'll have the athleticism and pressing ability that's needed. But that's not necessarily the move I'd make from the start, I'd think about starting Rocky and Coffey just to give a little more solidity.
Well, the 6 is having to mark for somebody else too.... and the 6 isn't a true 6 and she's having a down sophomore year so far.
I guess I’m seeing a bunch of related issues rather than a “very obvious fix”. So I’m genuinely asking; what?
a lot of midfield defending involves closing down passing lanes and covering spac and closing down when the ball penetrates. When you have one player not accomplishing these roles due to physical limitations it makes it that much harder for everyone else because of the amount of space not being covered.
I think it’s fair to say that there are some issues with the way the Thorns set up. I also think that the very obvious move is to replace Sinclair with a midfielder that can support the attack and has the mobility to track back.
Does that simple fix change everything? Maybe not, but it NEEDS to be made so we can tell if there are significant structural issues.
Thank you Liv for saving the point and unbeaten streak.
That was bad, but the primary fix remains the same: Play the mega-talented 17 year old over the 40 year old legacy dinosaur
So another game where our keeper got us into trouble (with lots of help) that we had to fight our way out. Against a pretty mediocre opponent. That’s…not a good thing. Hope the coaching staff isn’t happy with this.
Yep. And an unlikely goal to nick a point.
When you’re relying on a late-game sub’s golazo to snatch a point? Yeah. You’re doing it wrong.
Dropping a lot of points in the point of the season where we had to be much better...we only have 6 weeks left with half our team
In a very crowded table, no less.
It's a bummer Mark didn't get Kerolin to come to Portland. She and Smith in the same front line, lmao
Lol I wish I never heard it 😭
No, but he did get Andressinha here! =)
She's terrifying lol
Nally that's gotta be a take yellow there
Nally fixed her mess but good lord