Portland Thorns 0, NC Courage 2 - Instant Reaction

The Thorns remain winless after falling 0-2 away in North Carolina.

The game felt disappointingly familiar as the Portland Thorns fell 0-2 in North Carolina. Both goals came in the first half and though the Thorns fought to score they were unable to find anything on the evening.

Mike Norris made two changes to the lineup ahead of the match against NC Courage. First, was Jessie Fleming making way for Hina Sugita and Obaze replacing Hubly.

The opening of the match was all too similar to the previous game: the opposition scores first and early. After a corner kick in the fourth minute, Tyler Lussi found herself in place for a one-touch and it’s buried in side netting. After three minutes of VAR (checking on a possible offside), the goal stood.

The Thorns’ first look on goal was an unimpressive one, as Weaver finds the ball at her feet but her shot is sent into the waiting arms of Casey Murphy.

Quick counterattacks have been tough for the Thorns this season and it was showing again during this match. A ball cleared away in the NC box made its way all the way back to the Thorns box where none other than Smith stopped their run of play.

The most promising look of the game for Portland until that point came in the 18th minute when Smith found herself one-on-one against Murphy and her shot was sent just wide of the post.

Tyler Lussi quickly became the player that the Thorns struggled to contend with as she kept finding herself with chances around the Thorns box.

Morgan Weaver almost scored the equalizer in the 34th minute when she intercepted a pass in the Courage box. Her shot however was blocked by a Courage defender.

Lussi proved to be the problem player as she assisted the second NC goal of the night. A deft cross (perhaps a shot?) found the head of Hopkins who buried it.

The Courage defense appeared to have found a way to stop Smith, they were pretty adept in clearing away all passes into her. However, when there’s Smith there’s a way- she took on a few players on the Courage side before firing a shot over the crossbar.

Five minutes are added to the first half, though for the Thorns I’m sure they would rather have just ended the half… I know I did. The first half ended much the same way the Louisville one did, with the Thorns down 0-2.

The second half started with the Thorns on the ball and no new subs. Sanchez found the first chance of the half, it’s their first string of possession too, but the shot is fired off target.

The second Thorns corner of the game is delivered into the box by Coffey where it is sent out by the Courage earning the Thorns (and Coffey) their third. This leads to a scramble on top of the box before the ball is eventually cleared away.

Beckie and Obaze are the first to leave this match as Fleming and Hubly sub on, thus reverting to the original lineup from the last game. I was hoping for something a little more exciting, but hey, I’m not the coach.

There were a few instances this match with what seemed like miscommunication or simply poor passes where the Thorns ended up kind of jumbled on top of the box and were unable to get a good shot off.

Portland is really lacking something crucial this season, whether it’s a connection on the pitch, identity off the pitch, or a better jersey, it’s something they are going to need to find quickly if we are to turn this season around.

Every time the thorns were able to collect the ball they very quickly turned it over again, making it hard to create solid chances.

Hina Sugita picks up the first yellow of the game after a mistimed slide tackle, it again seems to be just a bit sloppy for the Thorns.

When I say exciting sub I do indeed mean Sinclair who replaced Moultrie in the 73rd minute. Say what you want, but she created chances in the game against Louisville.

Hubly collected the second yellow of the night, kind of a representation of how the game felt at that point to be fair. I said it on the Stumptown Radio Podcast, but I’ll say it again- I’m a positive person, I find it hard to say mean/critical things about teams I support but this game just hasn’t been fun to watch.

NWSL debut for Ana Dias, the Portuguese international replaced Sugita.

Four minutes are added to the half but nothing comes of the extra time and the Thorns remain winless this season.

Scoring Summary:

NC Courage- Tyler Lussi (4’) and Haley Hopkins (36’)

Next Up:

The Thorns return home to take on the Houston Dash on April 20th at 7 pm PST.