Portland Timbers at Austin FC - Instant Reaction
A rarity for the Timbers deep in the heart of Texas
The Portland Timbers defeated Austin FC in Austin by a margin of 2-0 on Wednesday night, earning their first clean sheet of the season. An absolute beauty of a free kick from Evander opened the scoring in the first half, and Jonathan Rodriguez converted a penalty kick in the second half to bag three big road points for the Timbers. James Pantemis saved a penalty kick in the first half to preserve the long-awaited shutout.
That match started off with the hosts controlling most of the possession — and then winning a penalty in the opening fifteen minutes. Sebastian Driussi collected the ball at the top of Portland’s box and drove into the box with minimal resistance — a movie we have seen far too many times this season — and was then taken down after a clumsy challenge from Diego Chara.
It looked like Portland was destined for an early deficit, but James Pantemis guessed correctly and dove to his left to smother Driussi’s spot kick. It was a poor attempt from the Argentine number ten, but a good read and save from Portland’s Canadian backup keeper, who was getting the start in the hopes of Pantemis building some rhythm and rapport with the backline with starter Maxime Crepeau set for a spell on international duty with Canada after this upcoming weekend.
The penalty action seemed set to be the highlight of the first half. Considering that both of these teams played just four days ago and will play again in three days, and that this match was played in nearly 90 degree Texas heat, the sluggish pace of the first half was not necessarily unexpected. It looked like the only thing that could generate a spark in the match was a moment of brilliance that came out of nothing.
Enter: Magic Man. Evander stepped up to a free kick in first half stoppage time roughly 30 yards out from goal after winning the foul and curled an absolute belter around the wall and past Brad Stuver into the back of the net. It was as perfect of a hit as you will see in all of MLS this season, and it snagged a goal for Portland just before the break.
Evander’s goal will get the highlights, but it was the play of Pantemis that put Portland in position to grab that lead in the first half. He saved the PK to keep it scoreless, and literally seconds before Evander opened the scoring Pantemis made an excellent reaction save to deny Driussi again right on the doorstep.
After scoring at one of the best possible opportunities, the Timbers carried their one goal lead into the second half and had to survive some early pressure from Austin. Outside of one run and wayward shot from Austin centerback Brenden Hines-Ike however, the hosts somewhat surprisingly didn’t generate much of anything in the opening stages of the second frame.
Instead, it was Portland who put their noses even farther in front in the 66th minute, via a penalty of their own. Hines-Ike made an absolute mess of a ball over the top and Antony picked his pocket just feet from goal. The Austin defender clumsily clattered into Antony trying to win the ball back, and the referee pointed to the same spot he pointed to in the first half — with the Timbers winning the penalty this time.
Jonathan Rodriguez stepped up to the spot and fired towards the right corner, and since Brad Stuver is not James Pantemis he could not make the save, and had to helplessly watch as Rodriguez doubled Portland’s lead.
With Austin pushing numbers higher, space all of a sudden opened up for the Timbers on the counterattack. Portland had multiple chances to snag a third goal and fully put the game to bed, however no Timbers player could convert the opportunities — and that included good chances for Mora and Evander that went begging.
Without a third goal, Timbers fans were left to see their team try to preserve their lead and premier clean sheet of the season into stoppage time. However, as was the story of the entire game, Austin struggled to produce any kind of consistent offense or threat on Portland’s goal.
Stoppage time passed without relative incident, and the final whistle confirmed two important things: the Timbers had clinched their first clean sheet of the season (with their backup ‘keeper!), and had won a massive three points in Texas.
With Portland winning just their second game on the road this year, earning their first clean sheet, and setting a run of winning three of their past four games, you might be feeling something unfamiliar: hope.
This result was perhaps one of Portland’s finest of the season, and it exhibited a team that looked cohesive and connected for the first time in months. Defenders were flying and putting their bodies on the line, Evander produced magic, and were it not for a lack of decisiveness Portland could have run away with this one.
Granted, Austin played pretty badly at home and did themselves no favors with some poor decisions on the offensive end. But credit to the Timbers for finally stopping a sub-par opponent from scoring. All to often this season we have seen opponents who have no business being in matches find goals out of nowhere, and for the first time this season Portland was able to reverse that trend.
Thus, Portland is positioned to potentially snag nine points in one week on Saturday. Playing — and winning — a third game in seven days will be a tall task. But if the Timbers truly want to get their season back on track and cement that feeling of hope, it is a task they will have to meet.
Scoring Summary:
Portland: Evander (45’+3), Rodriguez (66’, PK)
Next Up:
The suddenly simmering Timbers return home for their third game in a week, when they face the Houston Dynamo on June 1. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. PT and will be broadcast on good ol’ MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.
The cherry on top tonight is the Flounders dropping two points at home in the 99th minute to RSL 😁
I have to say, the defense looks better with Jimmy Pants in the sticks. I know Max is great, but man, JP has really shown some class when he has gotten the call.