North Carolina Courage 2 – 1 Portland Thorns
HERRIMAN, UT—Better late than never.
The North Carolina Courage and Portland Thorns kicked off the long-delayed 2020 NWSL season in front of a national television network audience. Following COVID-19 safety protocols, there were no fans in attendance at Zion’s Bank Stadium, so broadcast producers opted to pipe crowd noise in the background for some atmosphere.
A lot has happened in the eight months since the Courage celebrated their second NWSL Championship, most of it taking place away from the pitch but close to home, nonetheless. Both clubs met the current moment with a powerful statement, taking the field wearing Black Lives Matter t-shirts and kneeling during the national anthem.
Under the scorching late morning Utah sun, Portland and North Carolina picked up their rivalry right where they left off. The Courage got off on the front foot quickly, going straight at the Thorns defense. Lynn Williams immediately put her stamp on the match, after getting sprung by a pass through midfield in the game’s 4th minute. She got past her defenders, but Bella Bixby came through with the first save of the game.
With regular starting goalkeeper Adriana Franch out of the lineup due to a knee injury, Bixby was strong between the pipes for Portland when she needed to be, and her defense, anchored by Becky Sauerbrunn, helped keep Williams and her teammates off the scoresheet for three quarters of the match.
North Carolina carried the run of play through the first half, on strong performances from the fun-to-watch-unless-you’re-trying-to-defend-her Debinha and the team’s two-time MVP Denise O’Sullivan, who was an absolute wrecking ball in midfield. Together with Williams, they created a lot of opportunities in Portland’s final third—particularly on set pieces—but couldn’t close the deal. The match remained scoreless at halftime.
As altitude and turf began to make legs heavy, Portland coach Mark Parsons and North Carolina’s Paul Riley went to their benches. Celeste Boureille came on at halftime for Angela Salem, while Morgan Weaver and Simone Charley replaced Tyler Lussi and Marissa Everett in the 54th minute. All three subs gave the Thorns a boost early in the second half as they started to tilt the field back in their direction.
Riley brought Cari Roccaro on in the 57th minute for rookie Addisyn Merrick, who made a great case for herself at right back, stepping in for the injured Merritt Mathias. “(Merrick) had a bit of the willies early on,” Riley noted in his post-game remarks. He was impressed with her game and said he chose to substitute her while she was having a good moment. “You don’t pull them when they’re having a bad moment,” he said.
Second-year midfielder Lauren Milliet spelled Crystal Dunn in the 65th minute and Ally Watt made her NWSL debut in the 58th minute. Milliet and Watt made an immediate impression on the game with Milliet adding a strong presence through midfield and Watt finding open spaces to generate more scoring chances.
Unfortunately, Watt’s day came to a shocking and sudden end when she suffered an apparent non-contact knee injury and was stretchered off the pitch after playing only 15 minutes. Riley was clearly concerned for his promising rookie forward, “Looks like a knee. It doesn’t look too good. She was a big piece of our team already; let’s hope she’s okay.”
Hailie Mace replaced Watt in the 74th minute and if anyone had any question about North Carolina’s depth, the first-year NWSL player put those doubts to rest within moments of entering the game. Mace sent a perfectly weighted ball right to Debinha who was left with no other option than to score the game’s first goal.
But this is Portland versus North Carolina, which means that neither side is willing to let the other have the last word. The Thorns answered back in the 80th minute. Lindsey Horan’s header took an odd bounce off the crossbar straight down in front of the goal. Courage goalkeeper Stephanie Labbé wasn’t able to corral the ball. Team captain Abby Erceg was caught trying to hold off two Portland players and help her keeper wrangle the loose ball. In the end, Charley got a solid foot on the rebound and put the ball in the net to tie the game.
As cramps began to set in and players were going down with various dings, no one would have blamed either side for playing for a draw, especially with six minutes of stoppage added. But in the 94th minute, Sam Mewis took an outlet pass from Roccaro and brought the ball down the right side before tagging her roommate Williams with a picture-perfect cross. Williams headed the ball past Bixby, who could do nothing to stop it, and with 90 seconds left in stoppage the Courage collected the first three points of the NWSL Challenge Cup.
Speaking after the match, Parsons was disappointed to lose points, but nevertheless pleased with his team’s performance. “I’m incredibly proud of the work rate and the effort, and especially the intelligence…we put in patches of a performance that shows that hard work.”
Riley was especially pleased with the game his midfielders turned in. “Debinha was magic today. I thought the midfield was fantastic. Sully and Sam got a good grip of the game. I’m really happy and excited for them. We built well out of the back, which we’ve been working hard on.”
Final notes:
- Courage forward Jessica McDonald is out of the lineup with a hamstring injury. However, she is expected to return to play during the Challenge Cup tournament.
- Aside from injuries, North Carolina is fielding their full lineup. No players have opted out of the tournament. Portland is missing Tobin Heath, who elected to miss the Challenge Cup.
- Hailie Mace signed a two-year contract with North Carolina after being drafted by Sky Blue FC and opting to play in Sweden instead. The Courage acquired her rights earlier this year in a trade that sent McCall Zerboni to New Jersey along with a fourth-round draft pick in 2021.
- In addition to the national anthem, players wore Black Lives Matter arm bands and there was a moment of silence before kickoff to honor George Floyd, who died while in the custody of Minneapolis police.
- Both the Courage and the Thorns released a joint statement that said, “We took a knee today to protest injustice, police brutality, and systemic racism against black people and people of color in America.”
- Next up for North Carolina is the Washington Spirit on July 1 at 10:30 p.m. EDT. Portland’s next game will also take place July 1, when they take on the Chicago Red Stars in the 12:30 p.m. EDT matchup. Both games will be broadcast live on CBS All Access.
Lineups
North Carolina Courage: S. Labbé; J. Daniels, A. Erceg ©, A. Dahlkemper, A. Merrick (C. Roccaro, 57’); D. O’Sullivan, S. Mewis, Debinha, C. Dunn (L. Milliet, 65’); L. Williams, K. Hamilton (A. Watt, 58’; H. Mace, 74’)
Portland Thorns: B. Bixby; K. Hubly (C. Westphal, 72’), E. Menges, B. Sauerbrunn, M. Klingenberg (M. Pogarch, 84’); A. Salem (C. Boureille, 45’), L. Horan, R. Rodriguez, C. Sinclair ©, T. Lussi (M. Weaver, 54’); M. Everett (S. Charley, 54’)
Score:
North Carolina Courage: 2
Portland Thorns: 1
Goals:
North Carolina Courage: Debinha (75’ Mace); L. Williams (90+4’ S. Mewis)
Portland Thorns: S. Charley (80’unassisted)
Discipline
North Carolina Courage: none
Portland Thorns: none
