Portland Timbers 2 (1-2-0, 3 pts) play Tulsa Roughnecks FC (0-3-0, 0 pts) on Wednesday with both sides hoping to rebound from disappointing previous performances.
T2 are coming off a 4-2 loss against Real Monarchs SLC which saw them done in by poor set piece defending. Two of Real Monarchs’ four goals came off corner kicks in the first seven minutes.
Tulsa are winless on the season and without a point from their first three matches. The Roughnecks were on the wrong side of a 5-0 drubbing against Western Conference leaders Orange County SC. Discipline was as responsible for the result as poor play. Tulsa finished the match with nine men after receiving two red cards, as well as five yellow cards. They have received three red cards in as many matches. Roughnecks Head Coach David Vaudreuil will have holes to fill in his lineup with red card recipient midfielders Michael Binns and Riggs Lennon suspended for Wednesday’s contest.
With T2 playing their second of three matches in eight days, Head Coach Cameron Knowles will have selection issues of his own. Knowles has been consistent in his line-up choices early in the season, but with so little rest between matches rotation seems likely. Foster Langsdorf started the previous match at striker over the inform Augustine Williams. Williams has two goals in three games and should return to the starting lineup. Harold Hanson started the previous match at right back over Jimmy Mulligan, who started at right back for the first two matches. Mulligan’s return to the starting 11 would be unsurprising.
Whether Knowles will make further changes to the backline remains a question. T2’s defense fared well in the first two matches of the season, but disorganization and poor man marking led to three goals conceded on Saturday, and it must be wondered how culpable the veteran center back pairing of Josh Phillips and Moudou Jadama are. Youngster Lamar Batista, at 6’ 5” tall, is capable of winning aerial battles and could get his first start of the season.
There’s no question about the Portland attack. As already mentioned 20-year-old forward Augustine Williams has scored two goals in his last three matches. In their previous match, striker Jeremy Ebobisse and winger Victor Arboleda, both on loan from the first team, found their first goals of the season. Ebobisse’s goal is a nice reward for the young forward whose workmanlike game provides so much for T2 beyond scoring.
Midfielder Eryk Williamson’s availability for T2 is uncertain. The 21-year-old travelled with Portland Timbers for their match against the Chicago Fire but was not in the 18. Manager Gio Savarese’s shift to a 4-3-2-1 has made center midfield a position of need for the first team. With attackers Andy Polo and Dairon Asprillia resigned to the bench and midfielder David Guzman still recovering from injury, Williamson may provide a better substitute option than the attack minded Jack Barmby.
Stream online at Timbers2.com, 5 p.m. PST.
T2
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