Despite a sometimes fierce attack, Washington Spirit couldn’t overcome a poor first half or the Portland Thorns FC defense and lost 2-1 late Saturday night.
In a first half sadly reminiscent of the season opening game against OL Reign, the Spirit couldn’t find a rhythm and were frequently dispossessed. Especially after the second goal was scored, they looked intimidated by the high pressure from Portland and could not find a path out of their own half.
The trouble started early. In the fourth minute, Sophia Smith got the ball near Washington’s goal area. As the Spirit’s defense focused on the danger from her, multiple Thorns were able to approach unmarked, allowing a quick pass from Smith to Hina Sugita, who then passed to Sam Coffey at the top the box. Aubrey Kingsbury dove for it but couldn’t reach Coffey’s direct shot to the goal in time, and the Spirit were once again behind early.
In the 22nd minute, Portland scored again. This time on a free kick, which Portland was able to head down in front of the goal for a tap-in by Christine Sinclair.
By the end of the half, Portland’s intensity was flagging, and the Spirit were starting to look more dangerous in the attacking third. Despite some good attacking coordination, Washington’s shots were just off target, and a goal eluded them.
At halftime, Ashley Hatch and Hal Hershfelt were subbed on, continuing Washington’s improvement. For about 20 minutes, they remained in possession and made all but one of the shots. The Thorns’ defense held strong, though, especially after bringing on some fresh legs.
Washington finally broke down Portland’s defensive block late in the match, when Trinity Rodman outplayed Sugita and made a cross directly in front of goal. Lena Silano snuck under it and put a header high into the corner of the goal.
Desperate for an equalizer, the Spirit scrambled to string to put together another attack for the remainder of the match time. Portland’s defense and slowdown tactics prevailed, protecting their lead and closing out the game as a 2-1 victory for the Thorns.
Three takeaways
- Over reliance on preferred Starting XI. Until last night, Washington have started the same 11 players in almost every match. In Portland, they introduced three new starters, and a lack of chemistry and knowledge of one another seemed to be a cause of the team’s first half woes. Travel and short rest time were likely the determining factors, but this match may not have been the best time to give players their first starts or longest match time.
- Stopping Sophia Smith. One highlight of the match was the team’s ability to largely neutralize Sophia Smith. Tara McKeown, Annaïg Butel, and Hershfelt all took turns covering the dangerous attacker, with McKeown especially pulling out some impressive moves to keep Smith away from a 1-v-1 in the box.
- Continuing themes. Two consistent themes from the first half of this season continue to hurt the Spirit: poor early defense and not finishing their chances. Washington outshot their opponents 19 to 10 last night but only scored once. Meanwhile, they allowed goals in the first 25 minutes for the 5th and 6th times this season, making early goals more than half of their goals allowed.
Box Score
NWSL Regular Season – Game 8
Portland Thorns FC 2 (Coffey 4′, Sinclair 22′)
Washington Spirit 1 (Silano 87′)
Lineups
Portland Thorns FC (4231): Shelby Hogan; Marie Müller (Reyna Reyes 90′), Becky Sauerbrunn (C), Isabella Obaze, Nicole Payne; Hina Sugita (Marisa Sheva 90′), Jessie Fleming(Olivia Moultrie 61′), Sam Coffey; Sophia Smith, Janine Beckie (Ana Dias 60′), Christine Sinclair (Payton Linnehan 60′)
Washington Spirit (4231): Aubrey Kingsbury (C); Annaïg Butel, Kate Wiesner (Courtney Brown 64′), Tara McKeown, Gabby Carle; Croix Bethune (Chloe Ricketts 79′), Andi Sullivan, Paige Metayer (Hal Hershfelt 46′); Trinity Rodman, Ouleye Sarr (Lena Silano 71′), Brittany Ratcliffe (Ashley Hatch 46′)
Misconduct Summary
Portland Thorns FC: None
Washington Spirit: Rodman 90+8′
Lead photo by Breanna Biorato/Washington Spirit
Sam Coffey is a beast against the Spirit.
Hogan’s bang-bang double save against Bethune was the key moment of the match. Great recovery!
I thought the 2nd goal by Portland was offsides (unless you think that only a Spirit player touched that initial service in to the box). A long cross-country flight and a condensed schedule meant the Spirit had heavy legs and it showed. They were consistently beaten to second balls and were doing a lot of standing around, not moving off the ball.