Eight-game week this week with our first three midweek games of the season coming up soon! 5/26 POR @ ORL, 7pm (P+) HOU "@" DC, 7:30pm (P+) CHI @ KC, 8pm (CBS-SN) 5/28 LOU @ NC, 7pm (Twitch) 5/29 CHI @ HOU, 7:30pm (CBS-SN) 5/30 POR @ NJY, 3pm (P+) KC @ ORL, 6pm (P+) DC @ RGN, 7pm (P+) No real clue how to call any of these matches right now. As of right now, only 3pts separate 1st from 10th. There will be at least a 4pt gap after Wednesday as NC isn't playing while ORL hosts POR. Will be interesting to see where we stand at this point next week!
Let’s see how the teams do today in those 3 games. Also Sam Mewis is back with the team and training. Considering she just came back from FA WSL I wouldn’t be surprise if she plays the next upcoming NC game.
We are here at @OLReign training and there’s someone new here! pic.twitter.com/bh9OI4Unq4— Ride of the Valkyries (@rovalks) May 26, 2021
I was 0 for 5 in predicting winners last week, so I can only improve. I will go with an ORL-POR draw and wins for WAS, CHI, & NC, a HOU-CHI draw at BBVA, NJNY win at Red Bull, and RGN putting up another W at Cheney. Evidence is accumulating regarding who belongs with the best and who won't be in that group this year.
I had planned to switch to WAS-HOU at 7:30, but it is hard to tear myself away from the WNY Flash Alumni reunion down in Florida. Harris, Riley, Morgan, Marta, Sinclair, Salem, and Franch all played for my home team. PS. Kling for a cup of coffee and Pressley in 2012, but they aren't on the field right now. Leroux came for a few games, but the ones in the first list are Flash starters and champions.
We have to consider former-doormat Orlando as a contender this year after their victories over both NC and Portland. Leroux and Morgan are storming up and down the field like days of yore. Morgan's earlier goal this year against Washington on a no-look, down the field 50 yard pass from McClernon was a carbon copy of the memorable goal she scored in the WC final in 2011 on a 50-yard pass from Rapinoe. (IIRC what is now ancient history.) She's still speedy and strong. So is Leroux who is all over the field. Korniek replaced Marta at the 10 position against Portland. That seems to be where she should play with her monumental size, heading and ball-handling skills. Marta can play anywhere, so she's fine out on the flank or roaming around where she chooses -- cause she's Marta.
It's not at all dissimilar to how the Orlando men suddenly pulled everything together at last year's MLS Is Back tournament and have been great ever since, after never qualifying for the MLS playoffs before then. Things have gotten good down in central Florida.
I didn't make predictions on the Wednesday, but I'll wager guesses for the weekend games now I guess: NC win HOU win NJY/POR draw KC away win RGN/DC draw a.k.a. "Maximum ladder chaos"
Looking at the matches, I would say NCC because they now have Mewis back in, so increase their chances of winning. Houston Portland Orlando OL Reign (if they had the rest of the international players in the team for this match) this would be solid pick. But I'm still picking them.
Not really? It's perfectly normal to have midweek games a few times during the season, and we won't have another round of midweek games until the end of June.
North Carolina just ran Louisville to exhaustion. It's got to be tiring for a defender when they have to track Lynn Williams who makes about ten 50 yard super-speed runs per game. And Debinha is the best player in the league. The sub Ryan Williams put in a good shift at right back for NC. NC must have come close to setting a new record in number of shots. It was bombardment. Emily Fox was about the only Louisville player who looked good. She was a disaster in the couple of games she played with the National Team -- but has looked good in the NWSL. She's fast. Maybe another try with the National Team after the Olympics? MaCaskill also looked good.
No disrespect to MaCaskill and being in NWSL and played in the USWNT but I think she needs to lose some weight. Not sure it’s it’s the kit making her look big like that or just her body. I could be wrong, I hope I am.
That is her body type. Get used to it. She runs hard and fast for 90 minutes and actually has speed as well. No need for her to lose weight. It took me a while watching her to understand that. I am sure it has worked against her over the years, and even now, which is too bad.
She’s just big boned, plenty of players look like her at 2nd division club/college soccer. She’s had to deal with it plenty times before, especially with Aussie team mates; I remember when she played over there’ she got publicly body shamed by Devana & then by Kerr(who blamed her for the poor performance at the one NWSL finals, but she got revenge against both of them when she scored two goals in the Aussie/W-league championship game as her Sydney club beat Kerr’s Perth side.
Looking at how Louisville could beat Washington 2-0 and loose to NC 0-5, there are some surprising similarities. Washington:29 shots, 10 on goal, 0 goals. NC: 28 shots, 11 on goal, 5 goals. Both numbers persuade me that too many shooters are getting too close to Louisville's goal, so it has defensive problems. And it seems to be worse down their right flank. Fox is doing okay on the left flank. Another problem, this with the offense, is the dismal fact that forward Katie McClure played 54 minutes against Carolina and, according to the stats, got only 9 touches of the ball. She might as well have not even been on the field. Louisville was playing in effect with 10 players. (McClure's sub Emina Eric in 36 minutes had 17 touches, which is an average number of touches for that much time.) It's not McClure's fault she was so little used. It's the team's fault. If she's going to be on the field next game you have to get her into the game.