Stumptown Footy - Coverage Hub: Portland Thorns vs Sky Blue FCYou are my sunshine, my only sunshine.https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/31537/stumptown-fave.jpg2019-08-03T17:00:00-07:00http://www.stumptownfooty.com/rss/stream/205173732019-08-03T17:00:00-07:002019-08-03T17:00:00-07:00Portland Thorns vs. Sky Blue FC: Previews, How to Watch, Match Thread [8:00]
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<figcaption>Matthew Ralph / Brotherly Game</figcaption>
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<p>Thorns at home once again, once again without their national team players.</p> <p id="dEdw6A">The Portland Thorns (7-2-5) return to Providence Park without their USWNT players to take on a Sky Blue FC team (2-10-2) who appear to be hitting another rough patch after looking like they were about to get a handle on their season. Sky Blue have lost three games in a row, most recently dropping 1-0 against a <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/NWSL/teams/houston-dash">Houston Dash</a> team the Thorns recently beat 5-0.</p>
<p id="hcrDxR">Missing <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/2015/7/2/8887283/carli-lloyd-usa-japan-2015-womens-world-cup-final">Carli Lloyd</a> is always big, but arguably more important for Sky Blue is the absence of Raquel Rodriguez. The creative midfielder and former second overall pick in the 2016 NWSL College draft has been having a big season for her team, and had a big impact the first time the Thorns played them this year, completing six dribbles through the middle of the park. </p>
<p id="MpPWHN">The Thorns, meanwhile, will need to find some creativity without <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/NWSL/players/293432/tobin-heath">Tobin Heath</a> and <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/NWSL/players/293434/lindsey-horan">Lindsey Horan</a> in the team. Caitlin Foord has been out of the team recently because of the form of Midge Purce and <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/NWSL/players/293437/hayley-raso">Hayley Raso</a>, and will no doubt be hungry to prove that she can have an impact on this team with her passing and holdup ability.</p>
<h2 id="8xsolc">Previews</h2>
<h3 id="MB6flg">
<a href="https://www.stumptownfooty.com/2019/7/23/20703353/storylines-portland-thorns-vs-houston-dash"><strong>Storylines</strong></a>:</h3>
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<p id="OZi8aj">“Recently named to the July NWSL team of the month, Gabby Seiler has become a staple in the Thorns midfield. “She’s a thinker, a decision-maker, a footballer — a real footballer in the sense of understanding, reading, anticipating the game, and knowing where spaces are,” said Parsons. He praised Seiler’s off the ball work: her ability to smother their opponents’ attack as “the spark is just lighting” and then spring Portland’s offense with her next pass.</p>
<p id="Pz0BiE">After spending the last two games partnered with Horan, Seiler will likely shift back to working alongside Brynjarsdottir against Sky Blue. Seiler explained that her role in the Thorns midfield remains relatively constant, even as the players around her shift from game to game. “Every time I step on the field ... I just want to make it as easy as possible for them [whoever she’s playing with in the midfield] and let them playmake and me just do the dirty work,” she said.”</p>
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<h2 id="6YWgRC">How to Watch</h2>
<p id="JKzS4o"><strong>How to watch:</strong> <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/video/nwsl-dash-thorns-fc-150901530.html"><strong>Yahoo Sports</strong></a><strong>;</strong> <a href="http://nwslsoccer.com/"><strong>NWSLSoccer.com</strong></a> for international viewers</p>
<p id="zkOYCx"><strong>Where: </strong>Providence Park, Portland, Oregon</p>
<p id="2HIz6R"><strong>When:</strong> Saturday, August 3rd, 8:00 p.m. (Pacific)</p>
<p id="hZhPbo"><strong>Portland Thorns:</strong> 7-2-5, 1st place in the NWSL, won 5-0 vs <strong>Houston Dash</strong></p>
<p id="FODoAE"><strong>Sky Blue FC:</strong> 2-10-2, 9th place in the NWSL, lost 1-0 at <strong>Houston Dash</strong></p>
https://www.stumptownfooty.com/2019/8/3/20753168/portland-thorns-vs-sky-blue-fc-previews-how-to-watch-match-thread-8-00Tyler Nguyen2019-08-02T14:24:18-07:002019-08-02T14:24:18-07:00Storylines: Portland Thorns vs Sky Blue FC
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<figcaption>Matthew Ralph / Brotherly Game</figcaption>
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<p>The Thorns look to carry the momentum of their commanding 5-0 victory into the matchup with Sky Blue, a team with no head coach and only two wins on the season.</p> <p id="Z8bM17">New week, new game. After a blowout 5-0 victory over the <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/NWSL/teams/houston-dash">Houston Dash</a>, the Portland Thorns (7-2-5) have over a week to reset before they’ll face off against Sky Blue FC (2-10-2). During that time, Portland’s <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/fifa-womens-world-cup">World Cup</a> champion USWNT players left the Thorns yet again — this time for U.S. Soccer’s victory tour. </p>
<p id="nBTMJH">Sky Blue, too, are without a couple of their big names; <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/2015/7/2/8887283/carli-lloyd-usa-japan-2015-womens-world-cup-final">Carli Lloyd</a> has also rejoined the USWNT for their matchup with the Republic of Ireland this Saturday, and Raquel Rodriguez is representing Costa Rica in the Pan American Games. </p>
<h3 id="gYJvCq">Projected XI</h3>
<p id="R5TltO">If the World Cup has taught us anything, it’s that Portland has no shortage of talent on their roster, even without Adrianna Franch, Emily Sonnett, <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/NWSL/players/293434/lindsey-horan">Lindsey Horan</a>, and <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/NWSL/players/293432/tobin-heath">Tobin Heath</a>. Ellie Carpenter will also sit this one out due to an injury she picked up against the <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/NWSL/teams/utah-royals-fc">Utah Royals FC</a>. </p>
<p id="ezOy1h">That leaves Emily Menges and Katherine Reynolds to anchor the Thorns defensive line. Elizabeth Ball has positioned herself as Portland’s first defensive depth piece, and she’ll feature on the right side of the pitch, with <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/NWSL/players/255543/meghan-klingenberg">Meghan Klingenberg</a> taking on her usual wing-back role on the left. The center of the field seems similarly locked down; Celeste Boureille seems to have dropped off the Thorns midfield depth chart, leaving Dagny Brynjarsdottir as the clear choice to step in while Horan is absent.</p>
<p id="ae5YGG">Portland’s front three is the area that’s most up in the air but, even there, <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/NWSL/players/293437/hayley-raso">Hayley Raso</a> and Midge Purce are — at least for the moment — locked into the Thorns starting lineup. It’s likely we’ll see Caitlin Foord play alongside them, with her link-up play making a case for her continued role in Portland’s XI. </p>
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<h3 id="lelLwi">Game Plan</h3>
<p id="0Nboz7">Since the last time the Thorns and Sky Blue have met, New Jersey have traded away two players — including 2018’s No. 2 overall draft pick Savannah McCaskill — and fired coach Denise Reddy. In return, they have Elizabeth Eddy, a couple of picks for the 2020 college draft, and an open head coach position. </p>
<p id="A5DeGY">With all those turnovers come changes to both lineups and style of play. It’s clear that Sky Blue are still finding their identity under the leadership of their assistant coaching staff — what we’ll see from them on Saturday is unclear. “To predict and say, ‘This is where, how they will attack these spaces,’ or, ‘This is how they’ll defend,’ is a bit of a trap because they could change,” said Thorns coach Mark Parsons, pointing to player absences and the possibility of Sky Blue announcing a head coach before the match kicks off. He emphasized his focus on “mak[ing] sure we’re prepared and respectful of [Sky Blue’s] individual qualities rather than what they’re going to collectively do.”</p>
<p id="iWrORD">Parsons explained that he’s directing his attention to the Thorns and — as has been one of his consistent talking points this season — bringing out the individual strengths of the players on Portland’s side of the pitch. </p>
<p id="INLKPu">That means Reynolds and Menges holding down the back, Klingenberg pushing up and getting dangerous crosses into Sky Blue’s box, and Ball continuing to grow her play out of the back and showcasing her fantastic one-on-one defending — whether it be building on her earlier season success against Imani Dorsey, taking on Paige Monaghan, or tracking someone else entirely. </p>
<p id="DKLrya">Recently named to the July NWSL team of the month, Gabby Seiler has become a staple in the Thorns midfield. “She’s a thinker, a decision-maker, a footballer — a real footballer in the sense of understanding, reading, anticipating the game, and knowing where spaces are,” said Parsons. He praised Seiler’s off the ball work: her ability to smother their opponents’ attack as “the spark is just lighting” and then spring Portland’s offense with her next pass. </p>
<p id="y0oouw">After spending the last two games partnered with Horan, Seiler will likely shift back to working alongside Brynjarsdottir against Sky Blue. Seiler explained that her role in the Thorns midfield remains relatively constant, even as the players around her shift from game to game. “Every time I step on the field ... I just want to make it as easy as possible for them [whoever she’s playing with in the midfield] and let them playmake and me just do the dirty work,” she said. </p>
<p id="r5Kb8F">Seiler’s talent was in full display against Houston — it was her read to strip the ball off Sofia Huerta and her ball forward that led to Portland’s first goal of the evening — and she’ll look to carry that form into Saturday. </p>
<p id="nllNYX">Also coming off an outstanding performance against the Dash, Raso will be another key factor in the Thorns attack this weekend. “I think she’s got this freshness, and she’s got this Raso-ness about her,” said Parsons of her recent performances. “She’s playing with intelligence and good technique and providing us good tactical work, but she’s [also] playing like Raso, and I don’t think there’s a player in the league that plays with the tenacity and energy that she has.” </p>
<p id="gBjKy1">Raso’s willingness to press high and take the ball at pace, paired with an incredible defensive work rate and stellar finishing, has added a new dimension to Portland’s attack in recent weeks (and she has three goals in as many games to show for it). The Thorns will rely on her sharpness and energy, along with the scoring threats provided by Purce and Foord, to draw in Sky Blue’s backline, play the ball into space, and put themselves in positions to find the back of the net. </p>
<p id="MxN27U">Ahead of this weekend’s game, Raso reflected on the excitement of Portland’s last match, but also pointed to the need “to put that past us a little bit, look forward to the team we’re playing now — their strengths, their weaknesses, what we can do to exploit them ... hopefully we can score a few more goals in [the Sky Blue] game, too.” </p>
https://www.stumptownfooty.com/portland-women/2019/8/2/20749145/storylines-portland-thorns-vs-sky-blue-fc-nwsl-hayley-rasoLeo Baudhuin2019-08-01T20:05:09-07:002019-08-01T20:05:09-07:00The Thorns Prediction Game: Reading the PTFC Leaves
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<figcaption>Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Last time shorthanded ... not that it’s mattered much</p> <p id="Tp2eE6">That was fun! The Thorns stomped the Dash 5-0 on Wednesday night in front of a team-record crowd on a beautiful evening. The World Cup players were honored. (Poor Ellie Carpenter, overlooked by the PA announcer.) Everyone not in orange had a memorable night.</p>
<p id="NqqXbD">Our big winner was Constant Weeder, who called three of the five goals plus got the most-rec’d prediction for announcing the NWSL’s new injury policy. The race at the top of our table is getting tight.</p>
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<p id="L6glEK">Sky Blue comes to town on Saturday at 8:00 p.m. This will be the last game of the season with the US nats missing — they’ll be in Pasadena whooping Ireland. Saturday is the last match against Sky Blue for 2019, but the first in Portland. The initial match was a 2-2 draw, with both teams at full strength; the second was a 1-0 Thorns win, with both teams missing their internationals.</p>
<p id="Rznylm">ROSTER REPORT: Sky Blue will be without <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/2015/7/2/8887283/carli-lloyd-usa-japan-2015-womens-world-cup-final">Carli Lloyd</a>. No Heath, Horan, Sonnett, or Franch for the Thorns. There’s still no injury report, so no telling yet if Carpenter and/or AMC will be available.</p>
<p id="IEmTrU"><strong>How this works:</strong></p>
<p id="kxQ2fn">Add a comment to this post. In the comment title put your predicted result; for example, <strong>3-1 Thorns.</strong></p>
<p id="dntc2v">In the body of your comment, start with the goals and assists, like so:</p>
<p id="r0M6H6"><strong>Lussi (Klingenberg)</strong></p>
<p id="Fnvvsg"><strong>AMC (Free kick)</strong></p>
<p id="x3WtDg"><strong>Purce (Unassisted)</strong></p>
<p id="CqFjxm"><strong>McCaskill (PK)</strong></p>
<p id="JZdQ8b">Next, name the first yellow card recipient: <strong>First yellow to Dagny.</strong></p>
<p id="AdOGER">Then reds, if any. (NOTE: No points awarded for correctly calling a red-card-free match, so take a guess.) <strong>Savanah McCaskill</strong></p>
<p id="I0g6Nx">Make your fun prediction: <strong>Sky Blue makes a “big announcement” just before the game. Everyone was expecting it to be a stadium agreement for 2020. Instead, they announced that they finally fixed the leaking water faucet in the second shower stall. The media is surprised – “They have two showers?”</strong></p>
<p id="Ugx8hU">Lastly, please <strong>recommend</strong> one of the other players’ fun prediction.</p>
<p id="znN4PX"><strong>Scoring:</strong></p>
<p id="qVvfuW">· Correct score: 5 points</p>
<p id="PUQ4TC">· Correct result (draw/win/loss): 3 points</p>
<p id="axhH8L">· Each clean sheet: 2 points</p>
<p id="egalUu">· Each goal-scorer: 1 point</p>
<p id="GmS2W2">· Each FK/PK/assist/lack of assist: 1 point</p>
<p id="28GsBB">· Goal/assist bonus: 1 point</p>
<p id="gOiVR7">· Player with the first yellow card of the match: 1 point</p>
<p id="9WO7a2">· Each player with a red card: 1 point (Cannot earn points for predicting 0 red cards)</p>
<p id="aZjxFj">· Most recommended/most outrageously accurate prediction: 2 points</p>
<p id="WK9vb8"><strong>Some ground rules and explanations/clarifications (the fine print):</strong></p>
<p id="sFETGu"><em>Comments must be posted before kickoff</em>, but you can edit or amend an earlier prediction right up to the starting whistle.</p>
<p id="Pk9o87"><em>Keep your scoreline predictions realistic.</em> No crazy scores just to pad out your odds of getting goals and assists.</p>
<p id="bVgz2k"><em>The goal/assist bonus</em> is an additional point if you predict the correct scorer and assistant on the same goal, for example, you say Reynolds scores from a Boureille assist and that is exactly what happens. P.S. if you say exactly that, and it happens, I will hunt you down and buy you a beer!</p>
<p id="IeT9EZ"><em>Be clear whether you think a goal will be unassisted, assisted, or from a PK/FK.</em> Unassisted = no assist, run of play; Assisted = player who got the assist; PK/FK = not in run of play. For the purposes of this thread, Penalty Kick and Free Kick are the same thing. No entry means unassisted.</p>
<p id="497Hru">Have fun, tell your friends, let me know if you have any questions or if I screw up your score.</p>
https://www.stumptownfooty.com/2019/8/1/20749202/the-thorns-prediction-game-reading-the-ptfc-leaves-baonpdx-nwslRichard Hamje2019-07-31T11:58:04-07:002019-07-31T11:58:04-07:00Soccer Made in Portland: Big wins edition
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<figcaption>Kris Lattimore</figcaption>
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<div id="MHg1ve"><iframe src="//html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/10720202/height/90/theme/custom/thumbnail/yes/direction/forward/render-playlist/no/custom-color/88AA3C/" style="border: 0; width: 100%; height: 90px;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media"></iframe></div>
<p id="cTm8NP">Jamie Goldberg and Caitlin Murray discuss the Timbers’ big 4-0 win over the <a href="https://www.lagconfidential.com/">LA Galaxy</a>, talk about how Portland will approach back-to-back games at Minnesota, compare this year’s Timbers team to previous squads, look back at the Thorns’ 5-0 rout of the Houston Dash and preview the Thorns’ upcoming game against <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/mls/teams/sky-blue-fc">Sky Blue FC</a>.</p>
https://www.stumptownfooty.com/soccer-made-in-portland/2019/7/31/20748298/soccer-made-in-portland-big-wins-editionZach Kay