I agree mostly with your list, although I think despite results I'd still put the Spirit further back. I'm not sold on them yet, and I think the goals/wins they've gotten were a lot of luck and random individual talent. I'd put them more in the 6 range for the time being.
Agreed, I’d have the Spirit behind Gotham and Houston. The good ole Parsons diamond is slowing them down attacking-wise big time, though it has helped their defensive stability.
Right....I was like, where have I seen this before and why does it make me feel uneasy watching the Spirit play lol. Eerily familiar, but lacking the talent those Thorns teams had.
Yep. I was talking to a friend who’s a Spirit fan and he was like “why do we looks so slow this year?” ....and then it clicked for me lol. No width at all, especially with McKeown playing CB
The Mark Parsons Project... competent, technically-proficient and successful UK-based act, with some memorable moments here in the States though for the most part strangely yawn-inspiring and less-impressive-than-expected for all that talent.
Oops, those are the career reviews of ALAN Parsons.
Houston or Gotham? Maybe Houston over Gotham? In my mind, all three of those teams should be around 6th place lol....and then a chasm between them and the top 3, or more so, Wave in a solid third and then a chasm between them and the top two. The Spirit win over OLR seemed flukey, and I just haven't really been impressed with much of their play yet through these 4 games. I think Houston has the better squad, so I'm inclined to put them above, even though their results seem similar. Gotham looks better than Spirit for me, so far, with the potential for some major derps to have them fall back pretty easily.
I'd probably have Houston, Gotham, Spirit for 4, 5, 6...though I think Racing could really come in for that 6th spot as well. They haven't been great, but they haven't been super bad either. They look more cohesive than Spirit to me so far, Spirit just has a more potent attack and individual talent there...the next few weeks should allow for more separation.
That is a good approach, with a disclaimer the WC break could scramble things. I think all three of your group four could wind up in a six team group three. but I think all three of your group four teams could improved as this season goes on.
Before becoming KC Current GM, Camille Ashton worked for WWE in Talent Recruitment & Management.
Here is never-before-seen footage of Ashton, having traveled to Houston on a match day, delivering Matt Potter the news that she was terminating his employment:
Hard to say. Vlatko made it clear that Ertz needed to be playing somewhere, and Ertz signed a 1-year deal (in other words, through end of the 2023). Mandy's signing has yet to be announced, but I would assume it's going to be for more than 1 year, and she won't be available until after the WWC.
You know what? I typed up all of this and copied-and-pasted but some of it disappeared. Crap.
Bottom line is this:
Mandy was let know that she wasn't in OL's plans going forward, so she asked (through her agent) to be released early so she continue elsewhere and could train in hopes of playing for France. OL refused, because it would be a bad look for their corporate partners and other clubs. She respects their decision to keep her under contract, but she's away from the club now for personal reasons. She feels the need to speak up because a lot of negative things are being said about her. She didn't want to be a distraction at the end of the season, while the club tried to win the D1F and the Coupe de France, but she's decided to speak up now because the things being said about her are factually incorrect and actually harmful to her teammates and the OL staff. That's the gist of it.
"A decentralized ledger of all transactions across a peer-to-peer network. Using this technology, participants can confirm transactions without a need for a central clearing authority."
Might as well be explaining the offside rule to your Roomba.
The offside rule except for when you’re trying to scam your newly-acquired fanbase by shilling crypto a year after everyone realized it’s BS, while simultaneously branding yourself as a community focused, fan-first, new-wave, progressive soccer club.
Yeah, the Roomba, much like your garden-variety assistant referee, has no idea where the last defender is.
Anybody watching Rabbit Hole? Nice explanation of what NFTs actually are, or do. They're the means by which people launder money and hide illicit transfers of cash. How? Well, since it's a "unique" item, there is no way of establishing its value i.e., independently and objectively; its value is whatever someone will pay for it. Because there's a thing that has exchanged hands, the money is just secondary and of no regulatory concern. It's just an exchange of thing-for-money at arms length, nuthin' to see here!
Uh huh.
Also learned this week, thanks to John Mulaney's new special, that VenMo exists to facilitate paying one's dealer.
I'm so thankful to pop culture for also explaining the world it has imposed upon me!
YES, this is a perfect summation of it....just LA culture in general. The same reason I moved away and will never move back. We almost never see them post anything about their players. It's all corporate sponsorships and collective ego stroking. Who cares if the team is good if you're rich and/or getting rich off of it?
Yeah I agree with Stoney when she said they haven't played well and that their luck is gonna run out soon. They've looked pretty rough and disjointed imo. Nothing like last season, but they've put away the only shots they get on goal. It's definitely ugly soccer....I'd expect more from Stoney, but we did see that a bit fro her last season as well, imo. Very defensive and compact, until the one or two times they'd get a Sheridan to Kornieck to Morgan ball, or, a Morgan to Kornieck ball. Wasn't the most pleasing to watch...but got the job done.
They weren’t all that smooth offensively last year either tbf- They’re exceptionally well-drilled in the midfield and defense but heavily dependent on Morgan for goals.
Totally...these first few games just feels like Stoney is totally leaning into that defend and counter that worked last season...it just doesn't look as good this time because defense and midfield has been a bit off to start the season. And, if they get a goal, she totally parks the bus, but still tries to hit on the counter. I don't enjoy her flavor of soccer to be honest...
I was going to reply below that San Diego is probably the one I’d move down. They’ve looked pretty unimpressive so far. Though they did beat the Thorns....lol
Interesting Equalizer this week. Nice that Portland are in first, but I'm feeling the weight of being only 1 point ahead of Puget Sound WoSo Team and Gotham. Was also struck about the insight that Williams looks relaxed and that she handled the surprise to Gotham with grace. That's exactly the opposite of my sense of what things are like in KC right now. I think the GM is gripping hard, and she's trading long-term for short-term.
That KC GM gives me distinct Peregrine vibes in how she talks to the media- She comes off exceptionally defensive and deflecting whenever she’s asked about the (now steadily accumulating) pile of angry ex-players/employees.
On the soccer side, KC is clearly feeling the pressure to make the big moves to match the money spent on club infrastructure. It may or may not work out, but it certainly seems as though some stuff is falling through the cracks.
I’d imagine the Thorns and Reign will be pretty tight the whole season with SD lurking. It may come down to whether one of them can separate during the WC break when SD is missing Morgan/Girma/Jakobson/Van Egmond/Sheridan. I think both teams are actually reasonably well-equipped to handle the WC break, but we’ll see.
It will be VERY interesting if Lynn Williams keeps up the torrid pace, perhaps contending for Golden Boot and MVP. Also, Gotham could finish well ahead of KC on the table.
San Diego didn't look all that convincing against ACFC, with Morgan's frustration becoming increasingly obvious as the second half went on. They're maybe more dependent on Kornieck (who was sick) than I realized. Angel City looked better with Ertz, and Thompson is going to be big, but they didn't look *that* good, even though they were mostly the better team in the match.
I gotta say my daughter and I are having a lot of fun managing our team. Thanks to organizing it! Couple things I’d like to see from the creators. It seems like the values of the players should rise and fall based on performance. If you get in early on Alyssa Thompson it’s a bargain. But as she plays better and better her value should increase. Otherwise we’re all going to have the same team at the end of the year. It would be fun to see who the other team’ players are once the lineups are set. Lastly, I wish changing players was a little easier between being able to research who you want and then making changes. These would just be “nice-to-haves.” Like I said we’re having a real fun time week to week. So thank you!!
After putting together a dynamite, yet injury-ravaged, squad, I am doing what I wish KC's GM would do: avoid the temptation to micromanage, accept being mid-table for a while, and let things sort out.
Agreed on both, particularly the fluctuating value piece. Almost every fantasy league does both, but I'm guessing the host doesn't have the staff to do it quite yet. Hopefully they change it next season.
Eh, the Thorns are undefeated, have scored more goals, and let in fewer. There’s no real argument for having the Reign over the Thorns other than natural skepticism about the team we watch every week.
(This is why tiers are better, fwiw- There’s no discernible difference between the two at this point!)
I think the points difference and the goal difference are both from strength of schedule. Reign has played Washington, Gotham, SD, and Chicago (tiers 2, 3, 3, 5) while we played Orlando, KC, Houston, and Louisville (tiers 3, 4, 4, and 6). That's one full tier lower for us.
My feeling about Reign is also biased by their seeming to have our number. I can't remember the last time we beat them.
But completely agree that the tiers approach is good, and however you order them, there's very little daylight between the Thorns and Reign.
True, though I’m not sure that Gotham and Washington are substantially better than Houston and Louisville- they just have better records through four games.
Totally agree that the fear of the Reign is more because the Thorns consistently struggle against them.
Now do it again :-)
https://twitter.com/ThornsFC/status/1651069599469948928/photo/1
Imagine being Liv, and winning that ring. Happy for the whole squad, it was an interesting season.
What's better here? Olivia's impossibly adorable off-field Clark Kentishness or Sugita's utterly sincere I-am-disrespectful-to-defenders self?
Just to stir the pot a bit...
1) Portland
2) Puget Sound WoSo Team
3) San Diego
4) Washington
5) Gotham
6) Houston
7) Racing Louisville
8) KC
9) ACFC
10) Chicago
11) NC
12) Orlando
I agree mostly with your list, although I think despite results I'd still put the Spirit further back. I'm not sold on them yet, and I think the goals/wins they've gotten were a lot of luck and random individual talent. I'd put them more in the 6 range for the time being.
Agreed, I’d have the Spirit behind Gotham and Houston. The good ole Parsons diamond is slowing them down attacking-wise big time, though it has helped their defensive stability.
Right....I was like, where have I seen this before and why does it make me feel uneasy watching the Spirit play lol. Eerily familiar, but lacking the talent those Thorns teams had.
Yep. I was talking to a friend who’s a Spirit fan and he was like “why do we looks so slow this year?” ....and then it clicked for me lol. No width at all, especially with McKeown playing CB
Yeah, it's a strange look with the personnel they have, but, very Parsons. Haven't lost yet...but still doesn't look good.
The Mark Parsons Project... competent, technically-proficient and successful UK-based act, with some memorable moments here in the States though for the most part strangely yawn-inspiring and less-impressive-than-expected for all that talent.
Oops, those are the career reviews of ALAN Parsons.
My bad.
Who goes up to 4 for you?
Houston or Gotham? Maybe Houston over Gotham? In my mind, all three of those teams should be around 6th place lol....and then a chasm between them and the top 3, or more so, Wave in a solid third and then a chasm between them and the top two. The Spirit win over OLR seemed flukey, and I just haven't really been impressed with much of their play yet through these 4 games. I think Houston has the better squad, so I'm inclined to put them above, even though their results seem similar. Gotham looks better than Spirit for me, so far, with the potential for some major derps to have them fall back pretty easily.
I'd probably have Houston, Gotham, Spirit for 4, 5, 6...though I think Racing could really come in for that 6th spot as well. They haven't been great, but they haven't been super bad either. They look more cohesive than Spirit to me so far, Spirit just has a more potent attack and individual talent there...the next few weeks should allow for more separation.
That was the problem for me too. There are more clusters (or cluster-fs, in some cases) than a linear 1-12.
Yeah tiers are usually the easier approach:
1. Portland, Seattle
2. SD
3. Houston, Gotham, Washington
4. ACFC, Louisville, KC
5. NCC, Chicago
6. Orlando
That is a good approach, with a disclaimer the WC break could scramble things. I think all three of your group four could wind up in a six team group three. but I think all three of your group four teams could improved as this season goes on.
Yeah, I'd say I agree with you 100% here! Although, the 3rd/4th tiers could become interchangeable.
Before becoming KC Current GM, Camille Ashton worked for WWE in Talent Recruitment & Management.
Here is never-before-seen footage of Ashton, having traveled to Houston on a match day, delivering Matt Potter the news that she was terminating his employment:
https://youtu.be/Aj1ScIBpUq0?t=17
....and Minniss goes in on the GM and takes her down!
https://twitter.com/mykminn/status/1649528454961061888
https://twitter.com/weareangelcity/status/1651257117872107521?s=20
Good lord Angel City, have a sense of the moment!
NFTFC
Reminds me of JFKFC.
NFT- Non Functioning Team
Not Finding Talent
Not Fun Television
Never First (On) Table
Idk if we’ve even talked about this but are they really about to play Julie Ertz and Amendine Henry in a double pivot?
Hard to say. Vlatko made it clear that Ertz needed to be playing somewhere, and Ertz signed a 1-year deal (in other words, through end of the 2023). Mandy's signing has yet to be announced, but I would assume it's going to be for more than 1 year, and she won't be available until after the WWC.
https://twitter.com/amandinehenry6/status/1651251136039378944?s=20
Woof. Big yikes, Lyon
You know what? I typed up all of this and copied-and-pasted but some of it disappeared. Crap.
Bottom line is this:
Mandy was let know that she wasn't in OL's plans going forward, so she asked (through her agent) to be released early so she continue elsewhere and could train in hopes of playing for France. OL refused, because it would be a bad look for their corporate partners and other clubs. She respects their decision to keep her under contract, but she's away from the club now for personal reasons. She feels the need to speak up because a lot of negative things are being said about her. She didn't want to be a distraction at the end of the season, while the club tried to win the D1F and the Coupe de France, but she's decided to speak up now because the things being said about her are factually incorrect and actually harmful to her teammates and the OL staff. That's the gist of it.
That looks like a long "It's not you, it's me" breakup letter.
C'mon, Google. Let's get to translatin'!
I have no idea what the heck this even means.
Get off my lawn!!
Uhhhhhh, wut?
If you gotta 'splain it, you've already lost.
"A decentralized ledger of all transactions across a peer-to-peer network. Using this technology, participants can confirm transactions without a need for a central clearing authority."
Might as well be explaining the offside rule to your Roomba.
The offside rule except for when you’re trying to scam your newly-acquired fanbase by shilling crypto a year after everyone realized it’s BS, while simultaneously branding yourself as a community focused, fan-first, new-wave, progressive soccer club.
Fuckin embarrassing as hell.
Yeah, the Roomba, much like your garden-variety assistant referee, has no idea where the last defender is.
Anybody watching Rabbit Hole? Nice explanation of what NFTs actually are, or do. They're the means by which people launder money and hide illicit transfers of cash. How? Well, since it's a "unique" item, there is no way of establishing its value i.e., independently and objectively; its value is whatever someone will pay for it. Because there's a thing that has exchanged hands, the money is just secondary and of no regulatory concern. It's just an exchange of thing-for-money at arms length, nuthin' to see here!
Uh huh.
Also learned this week, thanks to John Mulaney's new special, that VenMo exists to facilitate paying one's dealer.
I'm so thankful to pop culture for also explaining the world it has imposed upon me!
Reminded of Dennis Miller's bit from The Off-White Album, which applies just as well to NFTs as it does to fungible items...
"Hey folks, two of shit is SHIT! If they really want to fuck you they'll give your three of these things."
JRR Token? ("The Non Fungible! My precious!")
https://twitter.com/godsewa/status/1651285649646063616?s=20
A perfect summary of Angel City’s approach: Disingenuous fan service covering up the Big Corporate Energy their owners actually care about.
Big Corporate Energy, or Big Corporate SYNERGY???
(Clearly you're not maximizing the brandification!)
LET'S GO BRANDING!
Upon hearing "ACFC NFT," what do you want to bet Katelyn Best exclaimed "FML! Why did I stop covering PTFC?"
EIEIOooh crap.
I'd call this "LA Story," except I like Steve Martin.
Probably more like "Blade Runner 2023."
YES, this is a perfect summation of it....just LA culture in general. The same reason I moved away and will never move back. We almost never see them post anything about their players. It's all corporate sponsorships and collective ego stroking. Who cares if the team is good if you're rich and/or getting rich off of it?
It's as if you're saying that something in LA lacks substance and is all about appearance...
Yeah I agree with Stoney when she said they haven't played well and that their luck is gonna run out soon. They've looked pretty rough and disjointed imo. Nothing like last season, but they've put away the only shots they get on goal. It's definitely ugly soccer....I'd expect more from Stoney, but we did see that a bit fro her last season as well, imo. Very defensive and compact, until the one or two times they'd get a Sheridan to Kornieck to Morgan ball, or, a Morgan to Kornieck ball. Wasn't the most pleasing to watch...but got the job done.
They weren’t all that smooth offensively last year either tbf- They’re exceptionally well-drilled in the midfield and defense but heavily dependent on Morgan for goals.
Totally...these first few games just feels like Stoney is totally leaning into that defend and counter that worked last season...it just doesn't look as good this time because defense and midfield has been a bit off to start the season. And, if they get a goal, she totally parks the bus, but still tries to hit on the counter. I don't enjoy her flavor of soccer to be honest...
I was going to reply below that San Diego is probably the one I’d move down. They’ve looked pretty unimpressive so far. Though they did beat the Thorns....lol
Interesting Equalizer this week. Nice that Portland are in first, but I'm feeling the weight of being only 1 point ahead of Puget Sound WoSo Team and Gotham. Was also struck about the insight that Williams looks relaxed and that she handled the surprise to Gotham with grace. That's exactly the opposite of my sense of what things are like in KC right now. I think the GM is gripping hard, and she's trading long-term for short-term.
That KC GM gives me distinct Peregrine vibes in how she talks to the media- She comes off exceptionally defensive and deflecting whenever she’s asked about the (now steadily accumulating) pile of angry ex-players/employees.
On the soccer side, KC is clearly feeling the pressure to make the big moves to match the money spent on club infrastructure. It may or may not work out, but it certainly seems as though some stuff is falling through the cracks.
I’d imagine the Thorns and Reign will be pretty tight the whole season with SD lurking. It may come down to whether one of them can separate during the WC break when SD is missing Morgan/Girma/Jakobson/Van Egmond/Sheridan. I think both teams are actually reasonably well-equipped to handle the WC break, but we’ll see.
"falling through the cracks"... we agree. Last week I commented that KC felt like a flipped house.
Did a group of very small people in colorful clothing emerge to sing, at the site?
It will be VERY interesting if Lynn Williams keeps up the torrid pace, perhaps contending for Golden Boot and MVP. Also, Gotham could finish well ahead of KC on the table.
KC Current... We're not in Kansas anymore.
What a world, what a world...
San Diego didn't look all that convincing against ACFC, with Morgan's frustration becoming increasingly obvious as the second half went on. They're maybe more dependent on Kornieck (who was sick) than I realized. Angel City looked better with Ertz, and Thompson is going to be big, but they didn't look *that* good, even though they were mostly the better team in the match.
STF Fantasy Week 4: Skull Smashers put up an insane 148 to move into 3rd
1. Pitch Perfect United- 500
2. PDX Fantastics- 476
3. Skull Smashers -468
4. Dream Weaver - 464
5. Thornando FC- 456
6. Searchers- 446
7. Danxp2- 435
8. Tuscan Oilers- 435
9. Smith is the Face, Fishlock the heel- 402
10. The Slab Serifs- 396
11. Sharpe's Bay United- 384
12. Artemis FC- 345
13. VARforall- 281
I gotta say my daughter and I are having a lot of fun managing our team. Thanks to organizing it! Couple things I’d like to see from the creators. It seems like the values of the players should rise and fall based on performance. If you get in early on Alyssa Thompson it’s a bargain. But as she plays better and better her value should increase. Otherwise we’re all going to have the same team at the end of the year. It would be fun to see who the other team’ players are once the lineups are set. Lastly, I wish changing players was a little easier between being able to research who you want and then making changes. These would just be “nice-to-haves.” Like I said we’re having a real fun time week to week. So thank you!!
After putting together a dynamite, yet injury-ravaged, squad, I am doing what I wish KC's GM would do: avoid the temptation to micromanage, accept being mid-table for a while, and let things sort out.
Agreed on both, particularly the fluctuating value piece. Almost every fantasy league does both, but I'm guessing the host doesn't have the staff to do it quite yet. Hopefully they change it next season.
Here's a weird ride for web-surfers....
View the LinkedIn pages for all the folks who currently or previously worked for an NWSL club.
High turnover industry.
I'd actually put Reign first at this point. Yeah they dropped their first game, but since then they've looked better and better.
Eh, the Thorns are undefeated, have scored more goals, and let in fewer. There’s no real argument for having the Reign over the Thorns other than natural skepticism about the team we watch every week.
(This is why tiers are better, fwiw- There’s no discernible difference between the two at this point!)
I think the points difference and the goal difference are both from strength of schedule. Reign has played Washington, Gotham, SD, and Chicago (tiers 2, 3, 3, 5) while we played Orlando, KC, Houston, and Louisville (tiers 3, 4, 4, and 6). That's one full tier lower for us.
My feeling about Reign is also biased by their seeming to have our number. I can't remember the last time we beat them.
But completely agree that the tiers approach is good, and however you order them, there's very little daylight between the Thorns and Reign.
True, though I’m not sure that Gotham and Washington are substantially better than Houston and Louisville- they just have better records through four games.
Totally agree that the fear of the Reign is more because the Thorns consistently struggle against them.
I agree. Washington did us a huge solid.