[ORL-WAS] 76' 1-1 Weatherholt shoots past Bledsoe, but Camila fouled(?) T.Huster. Orlando AC Khano Smith berates 4R (or ref), gets sent off. That's not a card (coaches don't get cards), so it isn't inscribed upon the box score. 80' 1-1 Relentless Orlando attacks in Washington's box. Marta left ck, outswings to 11m 1/3 left, Kennedy heads off crossbar 1/4 left and it bounces away. Kennedy off the crossbar! 😱#ORLvWAS | #NWSL pic.twitter.com/g2sFIFkLu5— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) July 8, 2018
86' 2-1 Church, way up at midfield mid-right, volleys upfield, but directly to Leroux. Leroux instantly dumps a ground pass into the void behind Church, Marta chase gamely from midfield wide left. Marta is gassed, slows down and creeps 1-v-1 on Church, who is content to backpedal to 10m 6-left as E.Johnson supports. Marta cuts centerward at 12m -- no, it's a fake, she zags left to 8m 6-left and spins Church around. Marta shoots left instep rising into left 90 over Bledsoe's right hand, off bottom of crossbar, bounces down hard into 1/3 left back low. Even when you know it's coming Sometimes we have no words. You just need to see this goal from Marta. @ORLPride take the lead late at home.#ORLvWAS | #NWSL pic.twitter.com/FOxP6nGm55— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) July 8, 2018 90+4' (of +4') 2-1 Dydasco left ck, inswings to 10m left post -- to Bledsoe's head! Shot blocked, many recycles -- Bledsoe stays up, but too many legs in the way. Dydasco collects at ~10m mid-left, shoots across mouth high wide right. FT 2-1. Marta gives a post-match interview in English! She answers three questions! The interviewer guy didn't even get a chance to use his Portuguese! Orlando vaults into 2nd on 25+2, ahead of Chicago's 25+3 ... on h2h? July will be fun, other than the heat.
[SEA-HOU] 06' 0-0 Mostly Seattle's non-stop pressure in/around Houston's box. Sparse crowd in the far stands Houston's plan to stay compact in their 1/2 puts them in the setting sunlight. Seattle defends their goal in the shade. I'm certain they trim those trees to exactly the right height so that the visitor's goal gets no shadows
10' 0-0 Oyster longball from ~circle back wide right sails into Houston's box -- from shade into bright sunlight. Camera cannot handle the contrast, we see this huge white glare. Taylor almost hop-touched the bounce, offside, Campbell dives-and-rolls toward 6-right foot as ball bounces over endline right. Camera finally adjusts contrast. 12' 0-0 Huerta dribbles up right touch to arc top, shoots right foot hard toward right 90, L.Williams palms it over bar. 12' 0-1 Huerta right ck, outswings to 7m right post. Brooks fakes a leftward shuffle toward spot, Oyster bites on it and overplays to the left. Brooks reverses and runs a curl to the right, gets outside position on Oyster and rides off her hip-press challenge, stoop-heads perfectly across mouth into back left 1/2 high. Welp, win your 1-v-1 or you will be dunked-upon. Advantage: the @HoustonDash. @abrooks22 scores off the corner kick to earn the lead on the road!#SEAvHOU | #NWSL pic.twitter.com/RPXh2dtI8g— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) July 8, 2018
27' 0-1 Seattle are oddly playing the midfield as-if-timid of any 1-v-1 dribble-duel. So they quick-ping lattice passes across the field, preferring one-touch up-and-down passes between two lines. This does prevent Houston from ever getting a chance to press or steal -- but it ties up so many Seattle players that they're not moving into seams or turning to face up to their defenders. And so most of their passes are backward or sideways. Then Seattle periodically launch longballs forward, and those don't work, either. Is this Vlatko's system? Or an adaptation of it to fit the current team and conditions? Fishlock would surely change the rhythm in the middle, but the Utsugi-Yanez-Long trio doesn't have the footspeed to reliably outrun pressure. Houston are being a bit more direct: content to sit back at or below midfield, and wait to erupt. 30' 0-1 Addo is an exception: she does juggling ball-stops, turns, and is a threat to run, and also looks for quick forward ground passes. Houston are swarming her ...
36' 0-1 Utsugi turns through circle back right, chips up centerline into J.Taylor's stride through arc top. Taylor has 1/2 step lead and inside position on Brooks, rides off the challenge and half-stumble-shin-blocks ball into own stride -- but loses momentum reaching back to push at Brooks, and Brooks rounds her on the outside, cuts across her bow, and takes ball off her foot Seattle are trying to recreate Nagasato-to-Kerr, but without Kerr's speed and ruthlessness. 37' 1-1 Rapinoe left throw-in at 27m, quick sharp heave into box mid-left. J.Taylor splits Brooks and Van Wyk through box top mid-left to 11m mid-left, measures the bounce, scoops a left foot half-volley mini-lob off the 2nd bounce -- and perfectly lobs Campbell stranded, dropping into half-back right. She maximizes her chances by minimizing her touches hey, it's progress Up and over! @Jodes_14 with the finish to even it up for @ReignFC.#SEAvHOU | #NWSL pic.twitter.com/FszlVb9YJa— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) July 8, 2018 HT 1-1.
46' 1-1 Catley whips a cross from ~30m wide left, Brooks heads it square right. Addo collects at 23m arc right, scoops a dink pass over box top for J.Taylor timing her run through Houston's back line. Onside, Taylor chests ball to 9m 3-left, shoots left foot directly into Campbell's sternum at 5m. Ball bounces to 6-top center, Van Wyk clears into left touch. Taylor gets the yips when she has that much time ... Campbell denies Taylor her brace. #SEAvHOU | #NWSL pic.twitter.com/dmfTu4STQb— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) July 8, 2018 49' 1-1 Campbell clears under pressure -- ground pass directly to J.Taylor at arc top left. Taylor jukes left, Van Wyk not fooled, stabs ball to a stop and lets Taylor run past it. Sigh. 51' 1-1 Seattle high chip over Rapinoe's shoulder down 6-left lane at 8m. Rapinoe, closely marked, clangs ball to 0.5m, hooks a low shot off Campbell's hand and over endline left. Left ck cleared.
54' 1-1 Back to the script? Seattle are besieging Houston's 1/2, while Houston may be deliberately rope-a-doping at the start of each half. Seattle rely a bit too much on passes to already-open players, except Addo is willing to turn-and-look. 55' 1-1 Yanez pokes a pass to Rapinoe showing up at arc top right. Rapinoe spins ccw to mid-right, J.Taylor makes a cut down mid-right, Rapinoe's first through-ball try blocked by Brooks' chest. Rapinoe's 2nd poke rattles around and leaks to 15m mid-right. Addo darts around Chapman and pokes ball centerward, Chapman flicks late and kicks Addo's right leg just below the knee. Foul, pk. 56' 2-1 Rapinoe pk, right instep pull rising into back left low hard, over Campbell's dive. Wow, that is totally unsaveable, even with a guess. .@mPinoe buries the PK and nabs the lead back for @ReignFC.#SEAvHOU | #NWSL pic.twitter.com/X5mZmpSN9s— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) July 8, 2018
57' 2-1 Polkinghorne longball drops into Daly's stride, she chases to 7m right post and shoots into L.Williams, blocked right. 58' 2-1 Houston cross from the right, nobody in box mid-left. Addo chases leftward to just outside box left, Chapman runs perpendicular to her down box left. Collision, Chapman happens to drive bony knee parts into the inside of Addo's right knee. Addo stays down in serious pain (but no structural damage)? Foul, lecture to and yellow card on Chapman. Stoppage, trainers examine Addo's leg. 60' 2-1 Addo resumes? But ... 61' 2-1 Addo crumples again at circle right: right leg is a no-go. 62' 2-1 Seattle subs in (1 of 3) #9 Nahomi Kawasumi for #11 Elizabeth Addo. Addo walks off on her own. Her knee will surely look like a beautiful sunset tomorrow
65' 2-1 Seattle cross from the right toward 8m center. Rapinoe (today is her birthday ) does a theater-worthy leap-and-back-arch behind Comeau, neither make contact. No call, ref not buying it. Rapinoe is outraged 67' 2-1 Catley chips from midfield left touch to arc top left. Brooks hops but ball skitters through her hair, drops behind her in front of shocked J.Taylor wide-open drifting through 15m 1/3 left. Taylor reflex-lifts right instep, dinks a milquetoast-weak volley wide left, Campbell is way up at 8m and has to step forward to catch it low. We couldn't even make this up there are no emojis 70' 2-1 Rapinoe left throw-in at circle top, again she takes a quick flat heave over Comeau and Brooks, into box in J.Taylor's stride. Taylor follows to 9m 6-left, shoots right foot half-volley rising to left 90, Campbell pushes it over bar.
72' 2-1 Ohai chases to 6-top left, Oyster shields her off and -- juggles a high bounce, clears right roundhouse. Oops, some miscommunication with L.Williams there. 73' 2-1 Ohai spins cw to 3m mid-left, quick shot to left post, L.Williams catches. 75' 2-1 Barnes jumps over Daly's back at circle top left, knocks her head from behind. Brief stoppage, Daly walks into near touch with trainer. 77' 2-1 Daly returns.
78' 2-1 Now Houston connect many passes around Seattle's box, pinning Seattle deep with high pressure. 79' 2-1 Seattle probe in Houston's 1/2. Wide-open play in midfield. 83' 2-1 Prince crosses from wide right, too far for Ohai. Chapman crosses from box left, too far. 84' 2-1 Seattle subs in (2 of 3) #22 Jasmyne Spencer for #14 Jodie Taylor.
85' 3-1 Long rips ball away from Huerta at circle top left, passes upfield to Rapinoe facing away at 32m arc left -- and starts her own hard cut up mid-left lane. Rapinoe turns ccw to 30m right post, chips over Brooks to 13m left post. Long follows to 10m as Campbell comes out to 7m, one-touch left foot shot across mouth between Campbell's left foot and Brooks, rolls into 1/8 right back low. Long doesn't often make vertical runs, and two defenders went with Rapinoe. And @ALLIE_LONG scores the dagger for @ReignFC. 3–1 with the clock winding down.#SEAvHOU | #NWSL pic.twitter.com/M1Y7P2BpSy— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) July 8, 2018
90+4' (of +6') 3-1 Seattle chip high over the top, Rapinoe is alone from 27m center through box top. Flag is up, offside, Rapinoe shoots anyways -- high wide left. Textbook yellow card on Rapinoe, for timewasting 90+5' (of +6') 3-1 Ohai drives 1-v-1 on Spencer down wide right to endline, cross blocked into right touch. FT 3-1. Seattle leaps into 2nd place on 26+5.
I've got the feeling that Kerr could have avoided celebrating too much her hat-trick out of respect for her former team Sky Blue. Am I way off base, in your opinion?
How is it that Marta is able to make a 50 yard uncontested run, almost a stroll because she was so tired, meet up with a single defender, fake her out of her socks, and make a goal? I guess Washington was just more tired than Marta. So, three of the four best players in the world had good nights: Kerr, Rapinoe, and Marta. (A little hyperbole there -- but those three did put on a clinic in how to play football, didn't they?)
In fact it looks like she did avoid celebrating too much. There are some comments she made I read on Twitter after the game where she said pretty much in so many words that it wasn't fun for her and she was saddened playing against her former teammates..
DisCo gives a one-game suspension to Matheson for her studs-up, high challenge on Purce: NWSL issues one-game suspension to Diana Matheson for this challenge on Midge Purce. https://t.co/MqnouaCA0X— John D. Halloran (@JohnDHalloran) July 10, 2018
With Thorn Klingenberg having received a (deserved) one game suspension for a stupid kick that did not injure Long just the week before, it would have been very hard not to give Matheson at least a one game suspension for a terrible foul that may have put Thorn Purce out for the season. Interesting to consider: Who benefits from the suspension? Seattle.
We now have Kerr's own words about the lack of celebrations vs Sky Blue: "Sam Kerr, who was traded from the team this winter, scored a hat trick in her first game back in New Jersey and then explained that she was nearly in tears for much of the night. She told reporters that she wanted to take "every single one of (the Sky Blue players) with me" because "the girls deserve better." Sky Blue, winless in 15 games, has scored just 11 goals this season". This was part of an appalling report about the situation of the players in Sky Blue FC, that was just posted on the "General NWSL news and info" thread; for those who haven't read the articles yet, here are the links: - it started with this; reactions: - article 1 - article 2
Considering the suspension the week before to Klingenberg, to do otherwise was unsupportable. But perhaps a suspension for the next match against the Thorns would be more fair.