All I can say is, thank whatever god exists that the Thorns have rediscovered the ability to be good, and fun to watch, because I'm not expecting much out of the Timbers this weekend, even with the Sounders also being ass.
Sophia Smith made the NWSL Best XI for March/April, as did three Current players, two Spirit players and two Red Stars, and one each from Wave, Racing, and Courage:
Same, have seen them I think once this year. They love then some draws.
What's our strategery tonight? Three draws? Hate-watch root for Reign to knock off Current? (At the very least, run extra hard tonight, gals.) "Lightning incident" in Houston? (The have three wins between them.) Bees, bees, bees?
My guess is because it's both March and April, and Coffey was put in a poor position to succeed for the first few games, whether that was personal performance or formation/tactics or some combination thereof is up to interpretation. I watched Louisville's games but won't pretend to have a good enough eye or memory to have an opinion on Flint.
Speaking of Very Tall, Hogan's performance may be mercurial but man she is a very large and very sturdy woman, watching a replay from this last Saturday of Rodman come charging in at full steam and bounce off her like rubber is quite a thing.
Still don't see why Rodman didn't get a yellow for that. Rodman was very late and goalkeepers usually get protected on plays like that. Star power maybe.
I've had season tickets for the Timbers in one location or another since they joined MLS. However, for some reason I've only gone to one Thorns game. I'm seriously thinking of spending my money on the Thorns next year instead of the Timbers.
On a different topic-I had the pleasure of watching a high school indoor arena soccer game that my partner's granddaughter played in (and who scored two goals, BTW!). I was super impressed with the facility and with the non-stop action. These were coed teams which brings me to this: I think pro soccer or at least the less stodgy MLS should become coed! I know, I know. Most people would probably hate the idea but I like it!
Thorns games have such amazing positive atmosphere in the stands and athletic performance on the pitch... I've been prioritizing them over Timbers and it's been great. Can't recommended it more.
It’s a nice idea. But there’s a world of difference between junior amateurs and professionals. At that level the men are that much physically larger that it would put a pro career out of reach for all but a tiny percentage of female players. I wouldn’t hate the idea but my guess is that it would be very difficult for women players to succeed.
I’d agree that the opportunity should be there, tho.
Agreed that women competing straight-up with men wouldn't work well at the pro level. But coed teams can be set up with a required balance of men and women - in soccer that might be 6 women and 5 men on each team - which might make for good competition. I suspect it's been tried somewhere, but I have no idea where or when.
Not to downplay the rivalry, but I’ve seldom seen the Seattle clubs in a more vulnerable position. This is usually a table-top (for both the NWSL clubs and the Sounders, anyway…) meeting. This year? It’s kind of the other way around; both MLS clubs and the Reign are kind of tire fires. At least the Thorns look better…
But it IS Rivalry Week, and strange things can happen.
After their utterly improbably come-from-behind win playing with ten, they're at least a team that believes. With that same 2-5-0 record, most teams would be intimidated traveling to Providence. Doubt the Fishlocks will be.
Well, it would be an understatement if I said that I have very low expectations for this Timbers team. Maybe the Timbers should follow the Thorns' lead and get a different head coach right now before the season goes any further down the toilet. I'm not confident that a new coach would make a huge difference, but one never knows.
The team has had poor effort under a couple of coaches now. Unlike most, I actually like what Neville is doing. He's pointing out the elephant in the room, which is player complacency and downright laziness and he is holding them accountable. Timbers teams have rarely defended with 11 and Neville is not going to let that slide like coaches in the past. Expectations for effort are pretty low in MLS and that can start changing here at home.
How exactly is Neville "holding them accountable"? By taking passive-aggressive swipes at them in post-game press conferences? Is that helping?
How has he "not let them slide?" They're winless in eight, they only won nine games ago because of a literal last second world class goal after playing like trash for 94 minutes.
He hasn't exactly shaken up the lineup to try to change things during that run, either. What is he actually DOING to make things better?
Well, for one, he is criticizing them in the press - not individuals, which would be bad coaching but as a group for just "cruising" etc, which is refreshing after coaches in the past who never seemed to even notice the laziness. Secondly, I think you're going to see some lineup changes in the Seattle game. I'm guessing he plays the less talented players who actually work hard and brings the other guys off the bench. And lastly, he has benched players already this season after lackadaisical performance. They always say it was 'concussion protocol' or something, but it's pretty clear it was based on performance. If memory serves, he has benched Williamson, Moreno, and McGraw for poor play.
I mean, yay for public criticism, if that's important? I guess? Based on the evidence of the last several games, after each of which that criticism was delivered, and after which another disappointing result followed, that criticism doesn't really seem to accomplish much.
I'd much rather he spend his energy learning how to coach the team he has, not the team he wants. I'd rather he abandon the suicidal high press, and I'd rather he coach his team to do something in attack other than overload the right side all the damn time.
He keeps doing all the same things tactically, sometimes with different players, and hoping it will work. It clearly isn't working, and I can't give him credit for delivering some vague notion of "accountability" just because he's saying angry things about a team he's coaching badly in a press conference.
Well, you ignored my other two points, but give it time. It takes awhile to change the culture of a team. My only concern is that if he is too harsh he may damage his relationship to the players. I think he deserves 1.5 seasons to see if he can turn it around.
I mean, he has changed the lineup here and there, but unless he actually changes his approach to tactics, that won't matter. That's what I meant by "learn how to coach the team he has". As just one example, he does not have a squad - not just a preferred starting 11, an entire squad - that can successfully execute a high press, and yet he keeps doing it, week in and week out. Why?
He can rotate guys in and out all he wants for a perceived lack of effort, but until he comes to the realization that what he wants to do can't actually work with the pieces he has in house right now, all the rotation in the world won't matter. At all.
Setting aside the fact that I don't believe he should have been hired at all, I agree he should be given time. But in that "time", he needs to show that he can adapt to what he has, until he has some windows under his belt to get the guys who can play the way he wants. And so far, he has not done that, at all, despite an overwhelming and growing body of evidence that what he's doing isn't working.
I hope in the summer that the Timbers resist the siren song of getting one big name DP, and instead spend mid-to-high amounts of money building out the overall squad and bringing in a few pieces that actually CAN do what he wants to do. Until then, he's driving this team into the ground, and no amount of calling them out is going to help.
I wish they would, but there's no way they're gonna admit hiring Phil was a mistake this soon. I fear we're stuck with him for at least this whole season, and probably at least this much of next season; they'll probably give him and Ned two more windows to build "their team" and see what happens. Fingers crossed they get it, if not right, at least less wrong than it is now.
With regard to Weaver being placed on the 45-day list, here's some helpful info:
"As a mechanism for adding players, the 45 day Injury/Illness List was added. Basically, if a player is expected to miss at least 45 days due to an injury, they can be added to the list and their team can sign a replacement player.
How does this differ from the season-ending injury (SEI) designation? With the SEI, teams are able to also have salary-cap relief, whereas they don’t with the 45-Day IL, so the added player must fit into the team’s salary cap. Also, if a player does recover before the 45 days is up on the latter, they are not allowed to return to the active roster until the 45 day period is up."
Since we "only" have three Canadians, is this a chance to repeat the Leon experiment, only this time actually play her? She's queen of the energizer bunnies.
Ouch. In the murky world between game-to-game strain/bruise and SEI. Arthroscopic could be anything, from mending a tear to removing a floating body or scar tissue, to....? I only play a doctor on teevee.
Get well Weavs! See you back for playoffs?
Next up signal turns to Linehan, I guess? Would like to see Izzy get some field time under the new regime, plus we have the Dias experiment. And of course, 80 minutes of Sinclair.
I fear Izzy has receded to the back of the line. She just doesn't have the ability to be effective on the wing, and now our 9 has a long line. Soph, Sinc, Ana Dias, and then Izzy. Even Janine can be thrown in as well before Izzy.
As you say, seems more likely that Sinc will be getting more minutes in the 9 because Soph can fill a hole on the wing with Morgan out. Then Janine and Payton for the opposite side starter/sub. Sinc (hopefully) off at half, Soph to the middle, and then Ana Dias as the late sub in the 9 after Soph....seems to be the Dracoball we're gonna get.
Was just going to echo this. Izzy hasn’t even been traveling with the team. I bet we end up trading her and a keeper for some cash to go after an international
Now hear me out: We get Team X to coax Turnbow out of retirement, then sign Izzy and have the old Broncos College Cup team back together. It'll be great!
Kidding aside, I just loved those two playing together. One of the best attacking college pairings I've seen.
Goes to show how difficult the pro transition remains.
6 weeks was about how long Rocky was out with her MCL sprain pre-WC, but I'm pretty sure she didn't have surgery. Didn't look quite herself for several months after, though, but I'd say that was also due to her jumping into the WC with Costa Rica immediately after returning to play, and then coming back here to not really playing consistently. She also wasn't really playing much before it happened, either....I think the game the MCL sprain happened was her first start for the Thorns after virtually no minutes in the season...it was a lost season for her, unfortunately.
Sounds like a grade 2 sprain of...something. Some sprains don't need surgery (Rocky), some do.
Thought that was funny that Harvey chose not to play her best team against the 1st place team in the league at home and instead save them for us this weekend.
A bit wacky imo…didn't really try to take advantage of another team on short rest with travel woes and a rotated squad (and at HOME) and instead just sat back and had a snowballs chance in hell of scoring. I think I saw that the final xG for Seattle was 0.1 lmao. Laura always just playing to not lose…
Almost seemed like Harvey coached for the point, given KC's gaudy scoring and Seattle's lack of same, and if so mission accomplished. Their best chances were very late after subbing in Balcer and Co, but no coordinated attack even then.
King will be daisy fresh Saturday after two matches riding the pine, Fishlock and Balcer hardly warmed up. Ji OTOH will be in rode hard, put away wet mode and I don't recall Huerta coming off, either.
Predicting they'll bunker again and take their chances holding Thorns offense at bay.
Yeah, it was prob smart but seems to showcase what Harvey really thinks of her team/their chances. Overly cautious, imo. I'm pleased to see two bottom table teams take points away from KC, though...4 this week. Prob could've brought Fishlock and Balcer on sooner, imo. Without them, Ji was just trying to do everything herself (and now will likely be even more gassed for Sat.)
Huerta has been a bit of a mess, but yeah she, Barnes, and McClernon had full games this week and will likely be exhausted on that backline. Cook was a late scratch due to illness, so wonder if she'll be back and healthy. Same with Van Der Jagt...since Quinn is out, VDJ has been getting all of the minutes at the 6. And Turner has also played a ton. Thorns *should* be able to take advantage a little bit.
This year Fishlock doesn't seem to be the force she once was. I shouldn't say that at all since it'll cause her to have a monster game against us.... i think she still has it in her, just not every game.
Yeah, I get the physical size and strength issue. That said, a lot of male soccer players aren't real big people, either (e.g. Chara, Blanco, Bravo, etc., etc.) I agree with you that for those women who could cut it on a coed team they should be able to do it. That would take care of the differential pay issue the exists between men and women's soccer for at least some women. BTW, is there a rule against women playing on men's teams?
All I can say is, thank whatever god exists that the Thorns have rediscovered the ability to be good, and fun to watch, because I'm not expecting much out of the Timbers this weekend, even with the Sounders also being ass.
Sophia Smith made the NWSL Best XI for March/April, as did three Current players, two Spirit players and two Red Stars, and one each from Wave, Racing, and Courage:
https://www.nwslsoccer.com/news/march-april-best-xi-of-the-month-presented-by-amazon-prime
I haven't been watching Racing much. Was Taylor Flint really better than Sam Coffey as a d-mid?
Taylor Flint was way better at d-mid than anyone expected her to be.
She remains Very Tall.
Same, have seen them I think once this year. They love then some draws.
What's our strategery tonight? Three draws? Hate-watch root for Reign to knock off Current? (At the very least, run extra hard tonight, gals.) "Lightning incident" in Houston? (The have three wins between them.) Bees, bees, bees?
My guess is because it's both March and April, and Coffey was put in a poor position to succeed for the first few games, whether that was personal performance or formation/tactics or some combination thereof is up to interpretation. I watched Louisville's games but won't pretend to have a good enough eye or memory to have an opinion on Flint.
Speaking of Very Tall, Hogan's performance may be mercurial but man she is a very large and very sturdy woman, watching a replay from this last Saturday of Rodman come charging in at full steam and bounce off her like rubber is quite a thing.
"watching a replay from this last Saturday of Rodman come charging in at full steam and bounce off her like rubber is quite a thing."
You hate to see it. :-)
Still don't see why Rodman didn't get a yellow for that. Rodman was very late and goalkeepers usually get protected on plays like that. Star power maybe.
I've had season tickets for the Timbers in one location or another since they joined MLS. However, for some reason I've only gone to one Thorns game. I'm seriously thinking of spending my money on the Thorns next year instead of the Timbers.
On a different topic-I had the pleasure of watching a high school indoor arena soccer game that my partner's granddaughter played in (and who scored two goals, BTW!). I was super impressed with the facility and with the non-stop action. These were coed teams which brings me to this: I think pro soccer or at least the less stodgy MLS should become coed! I know, I know. Most people would probably hate the idea but I like it!
Thorns games have such amazing positive atmosphere in the stands and athletic performance on the pitch... I've been prioritizing them over Timbers and it's been great. Can't recommended it more.
It’s a nice idea. But there’s a world of difference between junior amateurs and professionals. At that level the men are that much physically larger that it would put a pro career out of reach for all but a tiny percentage of female players. I wouldn’t hate the idea but my guess is that it would be very difficult for women players to succeed.
I’d agree that the opportunity should be there, tho.
Agreed that women competing straight-up with men wouldn't work well at the pro level. But coed teams can be set up with a required balance of men and women - in soccer that might be 6 women and 5 men on each team - which might make for good competition. I suspect it's been tried somewhere, but I have no idea where or when.
Not to downplay the rivalry, but I’ve seldom seen the Seattle clubs in a more vulnerable position. This is usually a table-top (for both the NWSL clubs and the Sounders, anyway…) meeting. This year? It’s kind of the other way around; both MLS clubs and the Reign are kind of tire fires. At least the Thorns look better…
But it IS Rivalry Week, and strange things can happen.
Strange things, indeed.
After their utterly improbably come-from-behind win playing with ten, they're at least a team that believes. With that same 2-5-0 record, most teams would be intimidated traveling to Providence. Doubt the Fishlocks will be.
Beatable, regardless.
Definitely beatable. Indeed, this is one of the few meetings between these clubs that I’d say was Portland’s to lose. This SHOULD be pretty one-sided.
But this series has a way of producing odd results. So I’m still nervous. Hopeful, but nervous.
Well, it would be an understatement if I said that I have very low expectations for this Timbers team. Maybe the Timbers should follow the Thorns' lead and get a different head coach right now before the season goes any further down the toilet. I'm not confident that a new coach would make a huge difference, but one never knows.
The team has had poor effort under a couple of coaches now. Unlike most, I actually like what Neville is doing. He's pointing out the elephant in the room, which is player complacency and downright laziness and he is holding them accountable. Timbers teams have rarely defended with 11 and Neville is not going to let that slide like coaches in the past. Expectations for effort are pretty low in MLS and that can start changing here at home.
How exactly is Neville "holding them accountable"? By taking passive-aggressive swipes at them in post-game press conferences? Is that helping?
How has he "not let them slide?" They're winless in eight, they only won nine games ago because of a literal last second world class goal after playing like trash for 94 minutes.
He hasn't exactly shaken up the lineup to try to change things during that run, either. What is he actually DOING to make things better?
Well, for one, he is criticizing them in the press - not individuals, which would be bad coaching but as a group for just "cruising" etc, which is refreshing after coaches in the past who never seemed to even notice the laziness. Secondly, I think you're going to see some lineup changes in the Seattle game. I'm guessing he plays the less talented players who actually work hard and brings the other guys off the bench. And lastly, he has benched players already this season after lackadaisical performance. They always say it was 'concussion protocol' or something, but it's pretty clear it was based on performance. If memory serves, he has benched Williamson, Moreno, and McGraw for poor play.
I mean, yay for public criticism, if that's important? I guess? Based on the evidence of the last several games, after each of which that criticism was delivered, and after which another disappointing result followed, that criticism doesn't really seem to accomplish much.
I'd much rather he spend his energy learning how to coach the team he has, not the team he wants. I'd rather he abandon the suicidal high press, and I'd rather he coach his team to do something in attack other than overload the right side all the damn time.
He keeps doing all the same things tactically, sometimes with different players, and hoping it will work. It clearly isn't working, and I can't give him credit for delivering some vague notion of "accountability" just because he's saying angry things about a team he's coaching badly in a press conference.
Well, you ignored my other two points, but give it time. It takes awhile to change the culture of a team. My only concern is that if he is too harsh he may damage his relationship to the players. I think he deserves 1.5 seasons to see if he can turn it around.
I mean, he has changed the lineup here and there, but unless he actually changes his approach to tactics, that won't matter. That's what I meant by "learn how to coach the team he has". As just one example, he does not have a squad - not just a preferred starting 11, an entire squad - that can successfully execute a high press, and yet he keeps doing it, week in and week out. Why?
He can rotate guys in and out all he wants for a perceived lack of effort, but until he comes to the realization that what he wants to do can't actually work with the pieces he has in house right now, all the rotation in the world won't matter. At all.
Setting aside the fact that I don't believe he should have been hired at all, I agree he should be given time. But in that "time", he needs to show that he can adapt to what he has, until he has some windows under his belt to get the guys who can play the way he wants. And so far, he has not done that, at all, despite an overwhelming and growing body of evidence that what he's doing isn't working.
I hope in the summer that the Timbers resist the siren song of getting one big name DP, and instead spend mid-to-high amounts of money building out the overall squad and bringing in a few pieces that actually CAN do what he wants to do. Until then, he's driving this team into the ground, and no amount of calling them out is going to help.
I wish they would, but there's no way they're gonna admit hiring Phil was a mistake this soon. I fear we're stuck with him for at least this whole season, and probably at least this much of next season; they'll probably give him and Ned two more windows to build "their team" and see what happens. Fingers crossed they get it, if not right, at least less wrong than it is now.
For an injury fill-in, Ivory has been good-to-spectacular in goal for Seattle. Here's hoping our players solve her particular puzzle.
What a change from the pre-match dread of a month ago. Saturday will be lit.
LFG!
Any updates on Morgan Weaver?
"Rotowire" fantasy football site estimates she'll return 5/11/24 but that's probably to be taken with a grain of salt
https://www.rotowire.com/soccer/player/morgan-weaver-36798
Did they mean “beat anyone week.?”
With regard to Weaver being placed on the 45-day list, here's some helpful info:
"As a mechanism for adding players, the 45 day Injury/Illness List was added. Basically, if a player is expected to miss at least 45 days due to an injury, they can be added to the list and their team can sign a replacement player.
How does this differ from the season-ending injury (SEI) designation? With the SEI, teams are able to also have salary-cap relief, whereas they don’t with the 45-Day IL, so the added player must fit into the team’s salary cap. Also, if a player does recover before the 45 days is up on the latter, they are not allowed to return to the active roster until the 45 day period is up."
Since we "only" have three Canadians, is this a chance to repeat the Leon experiment, only this time actually play her? She's queen of the energizer bunnies.
Not sure the advantage over calling it an SEI then? Because can’t those end early too?
Weaver placed on 45 day injury list after knee surgery:
https://x.com/thornsfc/status/1788678174169354709?s=46&t=Xqcn-ILJiYl3NWCnoazg7A
I’m no expert, but 45 days seems pretty optimistic after any surgery. But yay that it’s lot an SEI (or likely to be a full ACL tear!)
Ouch. In the murky world between game-to-game strain/bruise and SEI. Arthroscopic could be anything, from mending a tear to removing a floating body or scar tissue, to....? I only play a doctor on teevee.
Get well Weavs! See you back for playoffs?
Next up signal turns to Linehan, I guess? Would like to see Izzy get some field time under the new regime, plus we have the Dias experiment. And of course, 80 minutes of Sinclair.
I fear Izzy has receded to the back of the line. She just doesn't have the ability to be effective on the wing, and now our 9 has a long line. Soph, Sinc, Ana Dias, and then Izzy. Even Janine can be thrown in as well before Izzy.
As you say, seems more likely that Sinc will be getting more minutes in the 9 because Soph can fill a hole on the wing with Morgan out. Then Janine and Payton for the opposite side starter/sub. Sinc (hopefully) off at half, Soph to the middle, and then Ana Dias as the late sub in the 9 after Soph....seems to be the Dracoball we're gonna get.
Was just going to echo this. Izzy hasn’t even been traveling with the team. I bet we end up trading her and a keeper for some cash to go after an international
Now hear me out: We get Team X to coax Turnbow out of retirement, then sign Izzy and have the old Broncos College Cup team back together. It'll be great!
Kidding aside, I just loved those two playing together. One of the best attacking college pairings I've seen.
Goes to show how difficult the pro transition remains.
6 weeks was about how long Rocky was out with her MCL sprain pre-WC, but I'm pretty sure she didn't have surgery. Didn't look quite herself for several months after, though, but I'd say that was also due to her jumping into the WC with Costa Rica immediately after returning to play, and then coming back here to not really playing consistently. She also wasn't really playing much before it happened, either....I think the game the MCL sprain happened was her first start for the Thorns after virtually no minutes in the season...it was a lost season for her, unfortunately.
Sounds like a grade 2 sprain of...something. Some sprains don't need surgery (Rocky), some do.
KC and Reign tied 0-0. So KC top the table again, but only on goal difference over Orlando. We're five points behind.
And Fishlock and Balcer hardly played. Keeping themselves fresh for Portland.
Thought that was funny that Harvey chose not to play her best team against the 1st place team in the league at home and instead save them for us this weekend.
A bit wacky imo…didn't really try to take advantage of another team on short rest with travel woes and a rotated squad (and at HOME) and instead just sat back and had a snowballs chance in hell of scoring. I think I saw that the final xG for Seattle was 0.1 lmao. Laura always just playing to not lose…
Almost seemed like Harvey coached for the point, given KC's gaudy scoring and Seattle's lack of same, and if so mission accomplished. Their best chances were very late after subbing in Balcer and Co, but no coordinated attack even then.
King will be daisy fresh Saturday after two matches riding the pine, Fishlock and Balcer hardly warmed up. Ji OTOH will be in rode hard, put away wet mode and I don't recall Huerta coming off, either.
Predicting they'll bunker again and take their chances holding Thorns offense at bay.
Yeah, it was prob smart but seems to showcase what Harvey really thinks of her team/their chances. Overly cautious, imo. I'm pleased to see two bottom table teams take points away from KC, though...4 this week. Prob could've brought Fishlock and Balcer on sooner, imo. Without them, Ji was just trying to do everything herself (and now will likely be even more gassed for Sat.)
Huerta has been a bit of a mess, but yeah she, Barnes, and McClernon had full games this week and will likely be exhausted on that backline. Cook was a late scratch due to illness, so wonder if she'll be back and healthy. Same with Van Der Jagt...since Quinn is out, VDJ has been getting all of the minutes at the 6. And Turner has also played a ton. Thorns *should* be able to take advantage a little bit.
This year Fishlock doesn't seem to be the force she once was. I shouldn't say that at all since it'll cause her to have a monster game against us.... i think she still has it in her, just not every game.
Looking like Regression to the Mean Night in Hooston. Tens in attendance to witness.
Sea-KC the Ivory show so far.
Yeah, I get the physical size and strength issue. That said, a lot of male soccer players aren't real big people, either (e.g. Chara, Blanco, Bravo, etc., etc.) I agree with you that for those women who could cut it on a coed team they should be able to do it. That would take care of the differential pay issue the exists between men and women's soccer for at least some women. BTW, is there a rule against women playing on men's teams?
I believe that single refrain is "f*** Seattle"