Yes, I welcomed the "good news" about her suspension, but I can't really say that I got what exactly happened... Meanwhile, this week-end results lined-up in a way that Seattle Reign is now 2nd-placed in the league on goal difference. It completely disrupted my predictions in the predictions thread, but I am happy with how we are positioned at this point of the season: and we didn't even disclosed our full potential, in my opinion. The league looks so well-balanced, this season, that getting a play-off spot seems entirely possible: I actually don't see many teams that are "unbeatable" by us.
I went back and re-watched the end of the game, paying specific attention to Mathias, but I didn't see anything. So if something did happen, it must've been off-camera.
But wasn't there any statement about the specific reason of the suspension, when the announcement was realeased?
On the official preview article for SEA-ORL, on NWSL website, I find this: I thought hair pulling was something mostly done by little girls in playgrounds, but apperently also happens with grown-up ones on "bigger" playgrounds. Now, the only question is: when exactly did it happen and who did witness that, since apparently it wasn't caught on camera. I guess one of the refereeing officials had it in his/her report?
There are gifs out there around social media of the hair pulling, it is quite bad. Not as bad as the college student from a few years ago but still bad. Couple that with her Diego Costa like league reputation this was an easy decision.
Can you link to one of these gifs? I remember about the college hair pulling from some years ago that you are talking about (it was probably @WWC_Movement who had posted it around) and I would be curious to see how much vicious Mathias was compared to that.
There are several videos of this incident on youtube -- including comments by comedians, news shows, etc. The hair pulling was only one of several incidents in the match perpetrated by this woman -- who, IIRC, was thrown off the team when this video surfaced. The other woman in this incident was not totally innocent either. Mathias's sins on the pitch are as nothing compared to this....It's so horrendous, it's funny.
I actually remembered very well about this college video (I now read that the girl was called Elizabeth Gilbert, and I hope such a disgraceful person never put her foot on a soccer pitch again), but what I was asking for was a gif of Mathias' foul instead, to gauge the gravity of her offense (and to compare it with Lambert's one, if needed). I thought Blaze20 had said that there was evidence around in the net. Or maybe I didn't explain clearly what i was asking for?
Here's an article with some clips of her infractions: http://www.sounderatheart.com/2017/5/11/15628074/merritt-mathias-seattle-reign-suspended-three-games I guess the hair pull did happen on camera, but it's really hard to tell that's what's happening.
Having looked at the article and clips, Matthias has a very big personal psychological problem. Laura Harvey apparently condones the behavior it generates. That's almost more of a concern than Matthias herself.
I quite agree with cpthomas. The incident with Sonnett that determined the suspension is not much visible at that distance on camera, but the one vs Boston Breakers of the week before was egregious and could have deserved suspension alone. Since, unlike Harvey, we on this thread don't seem to think that Mathias adds much to our game-play, let's hope that, in these three games, Stott will persuade Harvey that she deserves a star over Mathias, so we'll be also spared these disgraceful behaviours (that could cost us matches as well as bad defending, should Mathias be sent off for one of her tantrums)
[QUOTE="Smallchief, post: 35455897, member: 214809"....... The other woman in this incident was not totally innocent either. ... .[/QUOTE] Lambert overall went beyond egregious. In the first confrontation, #7 of BYU gives her a left elbow to the solar plexus first. That is a very sensitive area and hurts even if there is not a lot of force. In the hair pull, #21 of BYU instigated by reaching back with her left hand and grabbing a whole fist full of Lambert's shorts, front wedgie style. I am not trying to justify Lambert's actions in any way.
I only watched 1st half (yes, at 3:30 am here in Italy, since I was anyway up until very late for work reasons) and I was crossing-fingers and hoping, then I went to bed and I woke up to the bad taste of this 1-1, with blunder-goal from Orlando to boot. What went wrong in 2nd half, guys? We weren't brilliant in 1st half, but we weren't so bad either, in my opinion... Eagerly waiting for Blaze20 deep analysis.
This game reminded me of the first match against SBFC and not only because the scoreline was the same. In terms of tactics, I thought our midfield got outplayed and once that happened so went the match. Like I have echoed in the past, we are soft in the middle and that problem was compounded by the team over compensating on the right side to contain Marta. That created giant space in the middle for Edmonds and Monica to waltz through and pretty much control the game. I'm not sure how much different I would have set up the team in this game as I think you don't want to put too many bodies in the middle and leave Marta open. So it was up to the players to step up and perform and many of them did not do that. Someone like Nairn had a particular forgettable game. As for the goal, I actually didn't see the bad pass that led up to it but anyone watching the first half or even previous games could see that it was only a matter of time before the back line screwed up. Kopmeyer for all her shot stopping abilities and command of her box is still not yet comfortable playing the ball with her feet or even distributing from the back. And in this game from the get go there were at least 2 Orlando players in the Seattle final 3rd each time Kopmeyer had a goal kick. I know the game plan is to build from the back but sometimes you need to call an audible if you are getting pressured. Speaking of getting pressured, I did not like Fishlock's reaction to the goal at all. I understand she gets passionate on the field but that's no excuse to take it out on your team mates in such a manner. There were at least two instances where it looked like she was seriously chastising Corsie for something. Random thoughts Rapinoe needs to curb her ability to take shots. She had some really bad ones in this game. I continue to be impressed by Stott who I thought did a good job of keeping Marta in check. If Mathias was playing RB there would have been at least 2 PKs called. I'm trying not to get ahead of myself but I really really like what I'm seeing from Johnson and what she brings from the bench. For the first time in 5 years we legitimately have a game changer that can come on late in a game and potentially make a difference. I think her pace was something I was aware of but what has impressed me so far is her hold up play. Also that one play where she not only outrun Kreiger (who is very fast) but also out-muscle her to the ball was maybe my favorite in the game .
Awful news for Kim Little. Just when you thought this was her moment to shine on the world stage ... BREAKING: @ArsenalLadies' Kim Little will be out for a while after rupturing her ACL in training. https://t.co/R0kR3m6eaM— Beyond 90 (@Beyond90AU) May 25, 2017
She was fine last season. But she's missed the last 4 or 5 Arsenal matches and there were quiet mentions of injury, but no information about what. Now this. This is a really, bad, complex ACL tear. (one report says "multiple tears".) I wonder, and this is just me wondering, if she strained it or had some similar minor injury that's kept her out the past few weeks, and then this week back at practice it just blew. This is just horrible news for Kimmie and her fans (like me). Right before Euro'17 makes it so much worse.
Ok so I'll be on vacation for the next two weeks so won't be around much so I'm just gonna share my thoughts about the match. First, as someone who was sitting in the comfort of her house with 70 degree weather, I can't phathom what it was like for the players out there but happy to see that Daly is fine. Sadly I do not this anything will change scheduling wise with Lifetime. As for the actual match, if there was any that contrasted both teams and coaching this was it. Houston's entire game plan revolved around long balls to Ohai or Prince with the hope that they will get behind the defense. And they did but bad luck and finishing doomed them. Also that game plan was effective for the first 10 minutes in each half after which the players got tired in the extreme heat. Seattle on the other hand let the ball do most of the work which any coach worth their license would have done in this situation. As each game goes by, Stott is proofing to be one of our better defenders. She has been a great replacement for Fletcher. Pickett also held her own against Ohai. There's no way she could have won that battle but she kept up. Congrats to Lu Barnes on being the first NWSL players to play 8000 minutes for the same club. She's one of those classic defenders that reads the game amazingly, great 1-on-1, can pick out a pass, etc. Sometimes I find myself musing what her future (USWNT perhaps) would be like if she had a bit more speed though that sliding tackle in the box against Beckie was a thing of beauty. In the midfield, Nairn continues to exemplify was she's not a consistent call up for the national team. I do not she played better in this match than against Orlando but she still tend to disappear for large stretches. Utsugi on the other hand brings a quiet sophistication to the midfield that most NWSL teams are missing. As for the attack, I held my breathe when Rapinoe went down but they showed the replay and she clearly dive in that place and was milking it. She's having a great start to the season and it will be a shame if she picked up another injury. Speaking of injuries, hopefully Yanez is fine and just needed the stitches and it's not anything that will keep her out for the next game. Though I must say Johnson was a worthy replacement. She stepped in yesterday and the team did not miss a beat and may have even stepped up their play. That second goal was a thing of beauty from the build up to the actual finish. This kid is special and will go places in this league for the simple fact that shes good and Harvey really really likes her which means she will get playing time and the opportunity to learn from some great players. I keep harping on it every game but to me the most amazing part of her game is her hold up play up front and how she fends of defenders until she can find a team mate. I think this plus her speed and toughness are aspects of her game that she is clear better at than Yanez. Ok I'm gonna stop gushing about Johnson now . P.S: I don't talk about other teams in this thread but this game really made me mad at the Dash organization. They have really good players that should be competiting for the league but they have been held back by a coach that is clear out of his depth. Ohai is a player that most expected to break into the national team after a season or so but it never happened because her game have not evolved. Same thing for Daly and Beckie who have both stagnated after a year or two under Waldrum. Morgan Brian thankfully spend a good enough time with the national team such that this rot does not affect her too much. At some point the owners have to fire this guy or he'll run the team into the ground.
I like to look back and see how the experts rated draft choices-- when they were right and when they were wrong. . Here's the All White Kit's comment about Seattle drafting Katie Johnson. "16 – SEA – Katie Johnson – F – USC The Reign paid an inexcusable price for this pick, giving up a top ten pick next year for a player who probably wasn’t a top ten forward in this class. Johnson had an amazing College Cup, but she wasn’t consistent during her collegiate career and has a history of a serious knee injury. She probably would’ve been around at #26, making this one a puzzler". Well, so far, in a young season, Johnson has certainly proven the experts wrong -- and Harvey right.