Portland Timbers Training Quotes and Notes: Borchie and the Argentines

The Portland Timbers held an open practice session this morning at the team's Beaverton training facility. Having returned home following the team's latest road trip, a 2-1 win over the Colorado Rapids, the Timbers spent today working the basics and getting back into form after two days off at the start of the week.

Training kicked off with a series of agility drills, before transitioning into a series of passing drills, possession drills, and finally winding things up with groups split off to do fitness testing or play a short field 6v6 match with keepers and extra players acting as bumpers to pass off of around the outside of the area.

Practice Notes

• In the Timbers' passing drills, Diego Chara was the quickest to snap get into form and led the group in the drill. Also excelling in the drill, and in much of practice, was Gaston Fernandez.
• Fernandez and Maximiliano Urruti, who have been lauded for their work as a duo in recent matches, were on fire again in training today, knocking in goals regularly in the 6v6 matches. Urruti was also at the front of his group for much of the fitness testing.
• Nat Borchers is apparently called "Borchie" on the pitch, which makes sense but also sounds like a bodily function or something.
  

Injuries and Absences

Diego Valeri was training apart from the rest of the team today, working on the turf field at the Timbers' practice facility. According to Caleb Porter, Valeri will likely still not be available for this weekend's match against the New England Revolution, but he did not comment on the following Wednesday's U.S. Open Cup match against the Seattle Sounders.

The majority of the Timbers' T2 loanees, Jake Gleeson, Andrew Thoma, Nick Besler, and Schillo Tshuma, were not with the first team today for training. Taylor Peay was the single long-term loanee to T2 who trained with the first team this morning.

Will Johnson trained regularly today.

Trialists and Guest Players

Danny O'Rourke and Daniel Withrow were on hand with the first team from T2 this morning. O'Rourke, despite signing with T2, has been a regular at first team training, while Withrow or Justin Luthy have regularly been the third or fourth keeper at practice.