The Portland Thorns extended their unbeaten streak to four games as they handed the Washington Spirit their second defeat of the season last Saturday at the sold-out Maryland SoccerPlex. Portland maintained its hold on the top spot in the National Women’s Soccer League standings, improving to 3-0-1. The team remains the early favorite to finish the year in first place.
The Portland Timbers took to the pitch with plenty of confidence last Thursday for their meeting with the New England Revolution, especially considering the team was coming into the game fresh off a loss. Though the Timbers extended their unbeaten streak in the MLS last weekend on the road against Sporting Kansas City, they were taken down on Wednesday by an unlikely opponent—a youth soccer league team called The Green Machine.
The Portland Thorns kept their unbeaten streak going on Saturday, taking down the Chicago Red Stars on the road on the strength of two goals within an 11-minute stretch late in the game. The first-place Thorns have yet to lose in their first season as a franchise.
Continuing a theme for the club this year, on Saturday the Portland Timbers managed to claw their way back into a game yet again, tallying a big road win over Sporting Kansas City on Saturday. The win stretches Portland’s unbeaten streak to six, with the Timbers earning victories in three of their last four matches and jumping back up to the No. 3 spot in the MLS Western Conference.
The Portland Timbers embarked on a trip to California to face off against the San Jose Earthquakes for the second week in a row on Sunday. Fresh off a loss at Jeld-Wen Field on April 14, the Earthquakes were looking to notch their first win in four matches.
The Portland Thorns hosted their first-ever home game in the inaugural season of the National Women’s Soccer League on Sunday, bringing an astounding 16,479 spectators to Jeld-Wen Field for a matchup with the Seattle Reign FC. Assessing the incredible support the team is already enjoying this year, Thorns head coach Cindy Parlow Cone said, “As soon as I landed here in Portland in mid-January, the reception I have received and this team has received from Portland has just been unbelievable. They really came out tonight and they were the 12th person on the field—it’s hard for a team to play against 12 people.”
Unlike other visitors to Portland this season, the San Jose Earthquakes did not have to face the usual roar and chants of the Timbers Army at Jeld-Wen Field alone. A charter bus pulled up before the game and disgorged a stream of blue-painted fans shouting “Earthquakes! Earthquakes!” with a vigor to rival the hometown crowd.
The inaugural season of the newly formed National Women’s Soccer League is finally underway, as the Portland Thorns FC played its first regular-season game in a road matchup with FC Kansas City at Shawnee Mission District Stadium on April 13.
The Houston Dynamo marched onto Jeld-Wen Field under rainy conditions on Saturday, amid the roar of the Timbers’ 37th consecutive sellout crowd. The packed house was eager to see the Portland squad notch its first win in 2013 after three ties and a loss to start the year.
The Memphis Grizzlies came to the Rose Garden on April 3 for a Western Conference meeting with the reeling Portland Trail Blazers. With both Nicolas Batum and LaMarcus Aldridge out of the lineup for Portland, the Blazers—a team not known for its depth off the bench—started three rookies against a Memphis squad that is headed for the playoffs at the end of the month.
It has been an interesting start to the 2013 MLS campaign for the Timbers and first-year coach Caleb Porter, with the Portland club fighting their way to three comeback draws to go along with a loss. Although the Timbers have yet to produce a win, they have proven themselves to be a resilient and tenacious group, one that is more than up to the task of improving on last year’s disappointing season.