Flying Kiwis – May 3
Ali Riley - Angel City FC / Abby Erceg & Katie Bowen – North Carolina Courage (American National Women’s Soccer League)
The American NWSL got underway on Saturday afternoon NZT with expansion side Angel City hosting North Carolina Courage in front of a 22,000 strong home crowd and walking each of the two teams out for the kickoff were a pair of kiwi internationals. Ali Riley captaining ACFC. Abby Erceg captaining NCC. Iconic Aoteaora footballing scenes right there.
Both teams entered this game feeling good about themselves. After a rocky start to their existence, Angel City had managed their first ever win with a 1-0 triumph over Portland Thorns in their last Challenge Cup match (makes you wonder how much the Wellington Phoenix wahine could have benefited from six competitive preseason games against league rivals – particularly as it was about six games into their inaugural season that they got properly competitive). Meanwhile the Courage drew 2-2 with Washington to ensure an unbeaten group stage and a place in the semis.
The Courage were the strong favourites despite the festive occasion which is why Angel City scoring in just the third minute of the contest was such a shock. A couple quick corners, one of them partially cleared deep to the opposite side where it was whipped back in by Jun Endo for Vanessa Gilles to pump in a wide open header. NCC’s defence skewed too far in the other direction. Good yarns for the big crowd.
North Carolina then settled into more expected areas. Controlling possession. Abby Erceg looped a header towards goal from a corner albeit for no serious threat. However an Ali Riley overlap did lead to a Christen Press shot on target and then on 13’ a quick switch to Jun Endo allowed her to dash into the area and double the lead. Again the Courage defence was too narrow and lopsided. They’re still trying to rebuild that unit around Erceg after several key departures.
That set the tone for a really exciting game of footy. NCC’s new Brazilian striker Kerolin smacked a volley on the turn that struck the crossbar on 19’. Merritt Mathias drilled a shot on target. Meanwhile Riley was able to swing in a few crosses – always nice to see after being stuck in quite a defence-first role with Orlando last year. Riley was also first in to congratulate her keeper DiDi Haračić after a super save to deny Denise O’Sullivan late in the half. At the other end Erceg was doing a great job closing down Christen Press with some aggressive marking. Here she is tackling Ali Riley lol...
Debinha pulled a goal back on 51’. Lovely run around the back to get onto an Emily Gray cross and it was 2-1. Debinha was looking all sorts of dangerous with a few more shots soon after. NCC with their tails up. The Courage had about three quarters of the ball in those stages as Angel City pivoted into a counter attacking strategy to protect their lead. They’d had to hang on late last week against Portland to earn a win so they knew they could do so and weren’t risking anything - only making one sub all evening and it was injury enforced. The Courage had a lot of ball but clear chances were tough to come by. Time ticked away. Erceg headed wide from a late corner, never really got a hold of it. Peep went the final whistle. A fascinating game... and a thrilling upset to begin the NWSL regular season.
It’s only one game so the Courage don’t need to panic. They were unbeaten in the Challenge Cup and have a semi-final to look forward to there. They’ve undertaken a major overhaul of their roster over the last two years and are, to be honest, ahead of where they might be expected to be in that rebuild. Pity seeing Katie Bowen as an unused sub again but so it goes.
Instead we’ve gotta keep the focus on Angel City after a famous win. Forget about the celebrity owners and the Los Angeles buzz. This one’s all about a prodigal journey for Ali Riley who was visibly emotional as that win was secured. Such an awesome moment.
Up Next: NCC vs Portland on Sunday at 11am; AC vs Orlando, Monday at midday (NZT)
Olivia Chance - Celtic FC (Scottish Premier League)
This was the game that Celtic have been preparing for going back weeks and weeks. Their league title challenge has long since slipped away but they can still make this season a success with a cup double. Already won the League Cup. Now for the Scottish Cup. Hearts in the semi-final. Liv Chance in the starting line-up. Off we go.
Celtic went close to scoring in the opening minute with Charlie Wellings setting up Jacynta (who after the game would beat out Wellings and Liv Chance for the club’s Player of the Season award) but the shot was off target. That early chance was representative of the game but the swift ease of it was misleading. This was a Hearts team who knew how to dig in and defend. Chloe Craig hit the crossbar after ten mins, that was the closest Celtic got in the first half.
Even into the second the frustrations continued with Celtic held at bay. Liv Chance put one effort wide. Celtic all over them in terms of the attacking stats, most of the game being played in the Hearts half of the field, but we were gonna need extra time to sort this one out. In fact even the first half of extras didn’t lead to a breakthrough. But finally, finally, finally, Celtic found a way to a goal after 108 minutes of trying. Charlie Wellings doing the business and a mere two minutes later she scored a second. London buses, aye?
Celtic were eventually triumphant with a 2-0 victory. Chance played all 120 mins and it was her progressive run that began the move that led to the first goal. Meanwhile in the other game Glasgow City beat Partick Thistle 3-1 so it’ll be Celtic vs Glasgow City in the final. Extremely tough game there against a side that Celtic have lost twice and drawn once against in league play this season... but it was Glasgow City that they beat 1-0 to win the SWPL Cup back in December so the Ghirls do have priors. That match will be after the last game of the regular stuff in about a month’s time. Fire up.
Up Next: Spartans vs Celtic back in the SWPL on Monday at 1am (NZT)
Joe Bell – Brøndby IF (Danish Superliga)
BIF faced Randers from a bit of a desperate place - Joe Bell being one of several of the Flying Kiwis blokes whose teams have had a sudden and shocking drop-off in form lately - but they started the game quite nicely moving the ball around with good purpose. Bellinho was looking great at the base of the midfield, even creating a couple of useful shooting opportunities. Their willingness to cross early did portray their brittle confidence... but the strategy worked on 26’ as Bell moved it wide to Blas Riveros and his deep ball into the area was met by Mathias Kvistgaarden who had been at the heart of most of Brøndby’s good stuff to start this game and who nodded it back across the keeper for 1-0. A rare lead for BIF in recent times.
Soon afterwards came the red card. A couple times during the losing streak that’s been a BIF weakness – the first-half red card that spoils their game plan. This time it went the other way. Joe Bell and Stephen Odey were backing up for a throw in and Odey seemed to drop an elbow at Bell who hit the ground clutching his face. The red card emerged pretty swiftly.
Thus Brøndby were half an hour into the game, up a man on the field and up a goal on the scoreboard. A great position for any team to find themselves in... so naturally they conceded a penalty. Trailing leg just inside the box by a fullback, no genuine complaints. Lasse Berg Johnsen converted down the middle to make it 1-1 on 37 mins. Bell had been dispossessed on halfway leading to the move that won the penalty too. A rare instance when he was caught on the ball but it cost them. Fine margins.
BIF bossed the second half, as you’d expected against ten men, but most of what they did was moving the ball around the Randers penalty area rather than actually getting into the penalty area. Bell was always open to keep it moving. Took a few in-swinging corners as well. They weren’t connecting on crosses though and long shots weren’t doing much. With just under twenty to go, Christian Cappis struck a running effort off the crossbar. Bell was booked straight after for stopping the counter down the wing. Yousef Salech headed a great chance over the top.
Then, would you believe it, Randers scored again. A corner kick from their right side curling back into a crowded six yard box where Nicolai Brock-Madsen rose highest to head it in. After which he ripped his shirt off and sprinted away. 87 minutes on the clock and Brondby, who had been 1-0 up when the red card was awarded, were now losing 2-1. Before much longer they had lost 2-1.
Make that seven defeats in a row and this is looking tragic. They don’t have any fresh ideas in attack, they make silly mistakes at the back... feels like Joe Bell will have quite a few new teammates by the start of next season. Perhaps even a new manager. What he won’t have is European footy unless something crazy happens over the final three rounds.
Up Next: BIF vs Copenhagen on Monday at 2am (NZT)
Callum McCowatt & Elijah Just - FC Helsingør (Danish Division 1)
As Helsingør kicked off against Lyngby, they found themselves in a very unfamiliar situation: second place on the ladder. A win for Horsens the night prior had taken them ahead of FCH whose horrid run of recent form had finally, officially, blown the lead they’d built up for themselves. They were eight points clear when the league split into the championship phase. No longer... though of course they could always go back first with a win in their own fixture.
FCH began brightly by pressing high and looking to play direct. Eli Just had a number of nice touches. All of which ensured that most of the early stages were spent in the Lyngby half of the field. So of course they conceded first. Similar pattern to a lot of their games recently, they didn’t have to do too much defending but when they did they looked brittle at the back and a sharp low cross on 19’ was turned into his own net at the back post by Nicklas Mouritsen.
It remained the case that FCH played quick and on the front foot. Eli Just had a running volley that he didn’t really get a hang of (and took a slight knock in the process) which went well wide, for example. But now Lyngby were the team creating the more dangerous openings and but for a couple instances of average finishing and a few great defensive blocks it might have been 3-0 at the break. It was also a pretty physical game, as Eli Just’s shins can attest to...
Also ready with a personal reference to that tune was the Lyngby keeper who had to be patched up early second half after FCH’s captain got booked for accidentally kicking him in the head. Several stitches by the looks of it. Caused an extended halt in proceedings after what had been a promising few minutes for Helsingor following the restart. Took about ten minutes for the physios to do their thing.
Right on the hour mark Helsingor equalised, which was more like fifty mins in by match standards considering the treatment for the goalie... who might not have been a hundy percent because it looked like he should have done better in attempting to save the effort from Tonni Adamsen. Some quality stuff from McCowatt in that move managing to maintain the ball in the area and then flip it back to Adamsen... although the last touch came from a defender so no assist.
It’s often the case that a single goal can change the entire feel of a match. So it was here. At 1-0 Helsingor’s attacks felt frantic and a little panicked. At 1-1 they felt menacing and assured. Perception is reality and chances flowed. You never rusted them not to concede a silly one but their defenders were winning their 1v1 challenges and you had Eli Just slicing in from the right and unleashing shots. Until 80 minutes gone when Just and McCowatt were both subbed off together. Bummer. Strong showings from both, especially Just, but they were swapped out before being able to find a clincher.
In the end they lost. About halfway through the thirteen minutes of stoppage time, Emil Nielsen broke the line after an FCB fullback had completely misread the situation and he buried the ball for 2-1. Lyngby had been applying a decent spell of pressure... but there was that soft goal FCH had been flirting with conceding and they couldn’t find a response in time. The 2-1 defeat makes it five losses in a row for a team that previously had only lost one game all season. Not only do they drop out of first place but they’ve in fact sunk to third and out of the promotion spots as things stand. Quite a concern. The lads have got five more games to fix things.
Up Next: FCH vs Fredericia on Saturday at 5am (NZT)
Chris Wood - Newcastle United (English Premier League)
Now that’s what they call Good Content. Ahead of the Newcastle Women’s team getting a rare opportunity to play at St James’ Park (the first ever in fact), which itself was taking place the day after a home game for the fellas, the club media team had the wise and astute idea of putting together the lone New Zealander in each of those squads. The result was a ten minute long yarn that’s well worth your time. Full thing’s available here.
Awkwardly, neither Wood nor Missen was picked to start in those big home games. The Woodsman had been rested for the win over Norwich last week and with Liverpool coming to town Eddie Hearn went in a different direction with Joelinton starting in the front three as a reward for his goals against Norwich and probably a sneaky focus on speedy counter-attacking too. It was hinted before the previous game that Wood might not have been at a 100% so that may have been a factor.
Still, he was on the bench and in the 67th minute he was summoned to replace Joe Willock as the Toon chased an equaliser. They’d been by far the second best team on the day but despite Liverpool’s many chances they’d only been able to put one away – a cheeky goal from Naby Keita on 19’ following a one-two with Diogo Jota after which he rounded the keeper with a slick little dummy turn. There had been a shout for a foul by James Milner earlier in the process but nah bro.
Unfortunately about a minute after Wood was subbed on, the Reds introduced Mohamed Salah and rather than Wood being able to swing this game in favour of the home team it was Liverpool who ramped things up. Only goalie Martin Dúbravka was keeping them in it. Save after save from that bloke. However there was one big moment for Wood on 76’ peeling off the defence to get 1v1 after an Allan Saint-Maximin through ball. But he stabbed it straight at an on-rushing Allison as the offside flag went up. Wouldn’t have counted anyway. Yet another example of Wood’s combo with ASM lacking timing.
Wood also absolutely clattered Thiago going for a header which cost him a foul. Other than that... didn’t get a lot done as Newcastle lost 1-0. They did well to keep it that close but they also only had four registered shots so it’s not like Liverpool were under much pressure. First loss at home for Newcastle since getting smoked by Man City in December – before Chris Wood was signed. Ends a six-game home winning streak and an eight-game home unbeaten streak.
Rosie Missen was also on the bench for the Newcastle women and was also subbed on around a similar time, roughly twenty mins to go in her case. However here the result was much sunnier. A 4-0 win over Alnwick Town in front of a genuinely outstanding 22,134-strong crowd. That right there was the largest crowd seen for any women’s club match in England all season... including the Super League. We’re talking about a fourth tier club here. Incredible numbers. They even had to delay kickoff by fifteen minutes to ensure that everybody could get through the gates. Not bad for the team’s St James’ Park debut.
Missen was introduced after all the scoring had been completed. Katie Barker with a first half double then Georgia Gibson and Beth Guy with additional strikes. Did have a chance to make it five with a header but couldn’t get it on target. Still, an incredible occasion to be a part of and thus the ladies were able to keep up the club tradition of victorious team photos in the home changing rooms this week after the fellas missed out.
That leaves one game left for NUFC Ladies before their season comes to a close. Been a pretty impressive one overall locking down second place in their comp though unfortunately there’s only one promotion spot so they shan’t be rising up to the National League Northern Premier Division. But with this level of fan support and the club’s unlimited financial weight coming with promises of investment in the women’s team there’s every chance they’re fighting for promotion next term.
Up Next: The Newcastle men face Manchester City away - yikes - on Monday at 3.30am; while the Newcastle women take on Barnsley at 1am on Monday (NZT)
Katie Rood - Southampton (English National League Southern Premier)
Last week they clinched the title and were presented not only with that trophy but also the League Cup as they won that final as well. Two trophies in the space of a few days... but they still had a couple more games to get through and a midweeker against Oxford United was an ideal opportunity to get a fit-again Katie Rood into the starting team. They did, she played ninety minutes, and she scored the opening goal in a thrilling 3-3 draw.
The goal came from header from a corner which she herself had won after 16 mins. Roodie’s fifth of the season in all competitions. Oxford equalised immediately and then went into the break with a 2-1 lead. The Saints fought back late to take the lead. Then Oxford levelled in the fifth minute of stoppage time. So... that was a wild one. Would have been a stunning disappointment had they not already, you know, won the title with a couple games to spare. Catch the goal at the very start of this highlights package...
Next the Saints played Cardiff City in their final match of the league season and again Roodie was given the start and again she scored the opening goal in the 16th minute of the match. Some great work from Alisha Ware setting up the easy finish for Rood – those two combined well all afternoon...
Ware then set up Ciara Watling on 29’ for a second goal and after surviving a big scare before the break as Cardiff missed a penalty, the Saints were able to add a couple more via an own goal and a Megan Collett effort. Rood was subbed off early in the second half. A late consolation meant the match ended 4-1.
Another quality win which means that Southampton have just one more match remaining this term and it’s a doozy. The National League Premier Division playoff against the winners of the Northern bracket: Wolverhampton Wanderers. The victor is promoted to the second-tier Championship. The loser remains where they are.
Up Next: FA Womens National League Promotion Play-off, Southampton vs Wolverhampton, 2am on Sunday 22 May (NZT)
Grace Neville - London City Lionesses (England Championship)
Grace Neville popped up as a training player for the Footy Ferns in South Korea late last year but since then has hardly been seen at club level or again on either Ferns tour that’s come since (Neville was an age-grade England international but has expressed an interest in switching to Aotearoa hence the unofficial call-up). A few injuries have plagued her since... but she returned to the pitch a couple weeks back and played the full slog of all three Lionesses games in April – all three of them wins with a pair of home clean sheets involved.
Then this week she logged another ninety as London City polished off their season with a 3-1 against Blackburn Rovers to hold onto second place on the ladder. Only one team gets promoted out of the Championship so Meikayla Moore and Liverpool get that experience all to themselves but still it was a fine way to end the campaign. Four wins on the trot coinciding with Neville’s return to the team.
As for the champs, Liverpool did rotate their team a little in a 2-1 loss to Lewes – ending their 20-game unbeaten league streak - yet Meikayla Moore wasn’t in the squad at all. Had been hoping she might finally get another start with the league all wrapped up but nope. Guessing she’s suffered a minor injury or illness. She was pictured training during the week. If she is injured then we might have to start blaming the English weather because all three of the kiwi girls in the WSL are currently out hurt right too: Ria Percival, Anna Leat, and CJ Bott.
Moore finishes the season having made nine Championship appearances, seven of them as a sub. That only totalled 239 minutes as she found herself the fourth option in a back three... though she did also get five full games across the various cup competitions including a goal in an FA Cup win over Lincoln. Grace Neville’s Champo efforts were just as rare, these four games comprising her entire on-field efforts although she was on the bench seven other times across the campaign and made a pair of subs apps in the FA Cup. The majority of contracts in women’s footy are single-season things so we’ll have to wait and see where each of them stand going into 2022-23.
Up Next: Plenty of time for Grace Neville to get her NZ paperwork done?
Liberato Cacace – Empoli (Italian Serie A)
Got a real stitch-up here as ever since Libby’s first start for Empoli, manager Aurelio Andreazzoli has alternated his left-backs from one week to the next. Cacace starts then Fabio Parisi starts and so on, so forth. That’s how it’s been for the last nine matches... until this one. Despite it being Cacace’s turn to start (and despite Cacace having a nice impact off the bench last week in the comeback win over Napoli) it was Parisi who was given his first consecutive starts since February.
To make matters worse, Cacace didn’t even play. A couple weeks ago this match against Torino was shaping as something potentially special. It was going to be Libby’s turn to start plus Matt Garbett had snuck onto the bench for a couple of Torino games and there was a slight chance that we could have seen two kiwis on the pitch at once in a Serie A game – there’d never even been one prior to Cacace’s debut. Instead Cacace was an unused sub and Garbett, same as last week, wasn’t required on the team sheet. Ah well.
Maybe Cacace had a minor knock. Or maybe he’s being targeted for next week instead – when Empoli face second-placed Inter Milan in what could be a huge match in the title race. Cacace has been favoured in games against stronger opposition having already started against Juventus and AC Milan.
For what it’s worth he missed a fascinating game as Empoli led 1-0 with about half an hour to go and proceeded to get two red cards, concede two penalties, and have old mate Andrea Belotti come off the bench to score a hatty against them (including both spot kicks) for a 3-1 Torino win.
Up Next: The aforementioned Empoli versus Inter Milan on Saturday at 4.45am (NZT)
Alex Greive - St Mirren (Scottish Premiership)
The last time that St Mirren played St Johnstone this happened...
Greivesy wasn’t able to repeat the dose this time around... but he was rewarded for some fine energetic cameos off the bench with a return to the starting team. A sixth SPFL start for Greive in his debut half-season in Scotland but his first since the first week of March almost two months prior.
This was an important game against one of the two relegation zoned teams, the Buddies hitting it up on the back of four straight defeats and needing a positive result or two across their last three matches to secure their top flight status for another campaign. And that’s exactly what they got.
In a mostly ugly game between struggling teams there were a few moments of footballing clarity. Alex Greive supplied one as he angled a run through the defensive line to get a shot away but was denied by a great one-handed save in the first half. Greive’s work-rate and movement were a feature of this match same with most matches he plays. Case and point, the run and cut-back he supplied in the 53rd minute for Greg Kiltie to score...
It was the only goal of the game. St Johnstone had some slippery moments but didn’t actually manage a shot on target in this match, only registering five attempts in total. By no means pretty but a huge result that puts them right on the brink of safety for another year. If St Johnstone drop any more points then St Mirren are in the clear – or they could just win next week against the bottom team.
Greive was subbed off near the end of the game. Another appearance in which he nudged his stock price just a little higher. Might wanna have a yarn with the referee after this lil incident though. That looked nasty, man. Fella didn’t even get booked for it...
Up Next: St Mirren vs Dundee, Sunday at 2am (NZT)
Nik Tzanev – AFC Wimbledon (English League One)
There’s time for one more edition of the old fave: Did AFC Wimbledon win a game of football this week? And the answer is... no. They did not. Even if they had they’d have needed Fleetwood Town to also lose (which they did) and to overturn a seven goal difference swing, which as it turned out meant winning by five goals. Instead they were three goals down inside the first half. A shambolic way to end a shambolic season as the Dons were officially relegated.
Accrington Stanley were the opponents. Nothing that Nik Tzanev could have done about a thumping opening goal in the 18th minute and his defence made a mess of the second before he was unsighted for the eventual shot. 35 mins gone. And in the last minute of the half a lovely header for a corner beat him as well. To their credit, the Dons did fight back with goals for Ayoub Assal (56’) and Jack Rudoni (58’) making it 3-2. Then they conceded again on 63’ (strong header from an open-play cross) and while Rudoni did pull another one back straight away (66’)... they were never gonna score enough to avoid the drop.
It ended 4-3. Make that 27 games in a row without a League One victory... the longest single-season win drought across the top four divisions of English football since Derby County went 32 in a row without a win in the 2007-08 Premier League season. That’s quite an astounding stat.
This is the first time that AFC Wimbledon have ever been relegated since the club was formed in 2002. They narrowly avoided the drop in both the last two campaigns – Tzanev’s performances late last season were a huge factor in that – but when you go almost six months without a win you ultimately deserve the drop, let’s be honest about that. Tzanev played every minutes of all 46 league matches though. For someone who has been stuck on the bench for so much of his career we shouldn’t overlook the significance of that. One of five ever-present players in the division, all of them goalkeepers: Ben Amos, Michael Cooper, Marko Marosi, Dean Stockdale & Nik Tzanev.
Tzanev has copped it a bit from the fans recently, your standard lashing out in a poor season, and he did have a howler that cost them badly last week (taking a free kick to himself thinking it was a drop ball). But the bigger issues in this team were a lack of goals (particularly during the winless streak) and a complete lack of clutch. This team scored first on 19 occasions across the season and went on to win only three of them (winning six games from 46 all up).
Early on in the season they were involved in thriller after thriller but that levelled out during the campaign to where they were on the wrong end of far too many late result-altering goals. No League One team conceded more equalisers. Plus their recruitment sucked. They sold striker Ollie Palmer in the summer and didn’t adequately replace the goals he’d scored to keep them in League One last time. Several of their loan signings were duds. And as a fan-owned club there were no deep pockets to dip into for a fresh transfer splash when things began to go awry. Football is a cruel beast sometimes.
Up Next: Relegation Blues
Erin Nayler - Umeå IK (Swedish Damallsvenskan)
Good solid win for Umeå in their latest. They blew AIK out early and then held on the rest of the way. Scored in the second minute of the match via Emma Åberg-Zingmark pouncing on a failed defensive clearance after a free kick sent into the area. Only 98 seconds had elapsed when the ball hit the net. Then in the 17th min they doubled it thanks to a near post header from a corner, Henna-Riika Honkanen with the honours.
Two goals up nice and quick and the task only remained to see out the remaining 70-odd mins without conceding and they’d win the match. As it happens, AIK are last having lost all but one of their games so far and scoring goals has not been a strength of theirs. Mission accomplished for UIK. Clean sheet for Erin Nayler. 2-0 win as Umeå move into the mid-table realm after six matches.
Up Next: Tricky one at home to Rosengård on Sunday at 11pm (NZT)
Jacqui Hand - Åland United (Finnish Kansallinen Liiga)
Good solid win for Åland United too. 4-0 over ONS with Jacqui Hand not involved in any of the goals (you can see her in the 25 jersey in that clip above – first hovering in the middle for a tap-in had a cross been sent in before a foul was committed and then standing on the edge of the area for the penalty) but she did log ninety minutes for the first time for her new club. Looked like she was playing a little deeper, either on the left wing or in midfield. Decent minutes either way. Kit Loferski scored a hat-trick. Righto.
Up Next: PK-35 at home on Sunday at 2am (NZT)
Betsy Hassett - Stjarnan (Icelandic Úrvalsdeild Kvenna)
After a run all the way to the final of the preseason League Cup, Stjarnan finally got their Úrvalsdeild campaign underway this week with a cheeky 1-1 draw against ÍBV. They went behind on 21’ as Þóra Björg Stefánsdóttir popped up at the far post to slam one in (having started the game on the bench but been subbed on early due to an injury to a teammate). A very slow start for Stjarnan but they did begin to get it going after going behind and were much better in the second half. Eventually that led to Betsy Hassett getting free down the left, sliding a ball across to Ingibjörg Lúcia Ragnarsdóttir, who tied the game up with a smart finish with fifteen mins to go. Hassett was subbed off soon after. Game ended 1-1.
Up Next: Got a Thursday/Tuesday double-banger with KR first up on Thurs at 7.15am and then Breidablik on Tues at 8.15am (NZT)
Bill Tuiloma – Portland Timbers (American Major League Soccer)
The Timbers sucked this week. Lost 2-0 to Colorado Rapids despite a Rapids red card midway through the second half. Former teammate Diego Rubio scored the first on 30’ before being the bloke to be sent off. Mark-Anthony Kaye then scored a second deep into stoppage time. Portland simply not looking like a cohesive unit in this one and it cost them badly. Tuiloma ended up playing in the midfield by the end thanks to some attacking substitutions (not his most unusual positional switch of the week though, stay tuned). Would say that was comfortably the worst Timbers performance of the year to date.
So forget about that and focus instead on this charity game that the Timbers club organised in the midweek which raised half a million dollars for UNICEF. It was a joint effort between the men’s (Timbers) and women’s (Thorns) teams with players split across a blue team and a yellow team – Ukrainian colours of course. Coaches got involved out there as for the last few minutes they literally just let everybody out on the field and it was like 20v20 out there. Just like the playground days. All good fun and the only result that matters was the money that they were able to raise.
Tuiloma played for a yellow team captained by Christine Sinclair. Didn’t really do much outside of a few minutes late in the first half when he delighted the crowd by swapping out with his goalie and donning the gloves himself for a few minutes (they were 30 min halves btw). Christian Paredes immediately shot from halfway before Tui had even gotten those gloves on but helpfully it was off target. It was only about a forty-five second cameo in goal before the HT whistle blew but all the same it was good for a laugh.
Funny story… turns out he called the goalkeeping stint ahead of time. Fella was truly committed to the bit. Respect that.
Up Next: Away to NY Red Bulls on Sunday at 11am (NZT)
Michael Boxall – Minnesota United (American Major League Soccer)
It was goalless with ten minutes to go away to LAFC. Minnesota United ended up losing 2-0. Probably a fair result as the home team had created the majority of the decent shots although it could have been a different game had Robin Lod converted a great one early in the second half. Full game for Boxy. Ah well, moving on.
Up Next: Home to Cincinnati at midday on Sunday (NZT)
Elliot Collier - San Antonio (American USL Championship)
He’s at it again! This was the first in what ended up being a procession of San Antonio goals as the team gave their already hot form a few stokes with the iron to beat Monterey Bay 6-0. Remarkably Collier has scored five goals in eight games this year and four of those have come in his last five. This a bloke who scored 1 goal in 54 MLS apps but dropping down a tier it seems he’s found a comfortable home. Collier had scored 7 goals in 37 previous USL matches with Indy Eleven and Memphis 901 so this is shaping as a real breakthrough season for the 27 year old.
Up Next: Away to Phoenix Rising on Sunday at 2.30am – though probably not against James Musa who has been out injured lately (NZT)
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