PORTLAND, OR – Fresh off their Challenge Cup win, the Thorns opened the NWSL regular season against the Chicago Red Stars at Providence Park Sunday afternoon.
It was a dominant performance from Portland who jumped on Chicago early, scoring four goals in the first half alone. A shell-shocked Chicago side never seemed to get their feet under them, and the Thorns finished the day to the tune of a 5-0 score line.
Sophia Smith had a breakout performance for Portland, scoring twice and forcing an own goal. For Thorns fans, it was a good glimpse of the potential Smith and the rest of the Thorns can achieve in their 2021 campaign.
No clearer evidence for this case could be made than in the 16th minute. In an exciting side-to-side sequence, goalkeeper AD Franch drop kicked the ball to a sprinting Morgan Weaver downfield, whose quick pass on the counterattack found the feet of Sophia Smith. Smith took one careful touch, before placing the ball in the back of the net.
“Her toolbox has so much quality. Both feet, movement, timing of runs, finishing, dribbling… I think she has no ceiling and we got to keep pushing and she’s got to keep working and stay focused” Coach Parsons said of Smith’s performance on Sunday.
Weaver’s assist to Smith was the first of two on the day. The second came in the 30th minute after playing a clever through-ball past multiple Red Stars defenders. The Smith-Weaver connection is exactly what the front office and fans dreamed of after the two were drafted first and second, respectively, in last year’s NWSL draft.
“I would say Soph and I haven’t gotten the chance to play with each other too much, and so today it was really awesome” Weaver said.
Perhaps more concerning than the 5-0 score line for Chicago was the injury star midfielder Julie Ertz picked up in the first half. Ertz and Thorns midfielder Rocky Rodriguez collided going for a 50/50 ball, prompting a stretcher to be brought onto the field. Ertz ultimately waved off the stretcher, but was clearly dealing with some kind of leg injury as she hobbled off the field with assistance. Rachel Hill subbed in for Ertz in the 27th minute.
Tyler Lussi scored the match’s final goal, finishing off a Christine Sinclair rebound in the 72nd minute. Sinclair snagged a goal earlier in the match, scoring off a penalty kick in the 13th minute.
Based on their performances in the last two matches of the Challenge Cup, the Thorns knew they had some tidying up to do prior to the regular season if they hoped to conquer the league this season. Most importantly, perhaps, is consistent finishing in front of goal.
“We focus on it every day. We focus on it every week. Throughout preseason we were building as we got everyone back. Building cohesion. The principles have always been reinforced but making it from conscious thinking to subconscious thinking only takes time and training. We got everyone up to speed” Parsons said.
Next up, the Thorns face rivals OL Reign on Sunday, May 23rd. 3:00 PM PST kick off (CBS Sports Network).
