September 25th @ Exploria Stadium
Records:
Orlando Pride 10-6-4 (9th)
San Diego Wave FC 10-6-4 (3rd)
Last Match:
Orlando Pride Lost vs. North Carolina Courage 0-3
San Diego Wave FC Won vs. Angel City FC 1-0
Sunshine States Collide
The San Diego Wave travel to Orlando this time to take on the ninth place Pride. Nick Note from Fantasy NWSL Double Round All-Stars: Wave are one of four teams who do NOT have two games this week (translation: well-rested).
Take Back the Table
On the Wave’s plate (pardon the pun) is an opportunity to take back the table from…well…no one team in particular these last few weeks per se, but currently and specifically the Reign, who beat the Dash yesterday to lead the league with 37 points. If the Wave beat Orlando today, they have the top spot back over Reign because of the goal differential (the first tiebreaker). The top of the table has been a revolving door of Western division teams (Reign, Thorns, etc.) these past few weeks, and surely the expansion side is interested in regaining sole possession of the top spot by weekend’s end. Top table spots = home field advantage for the playoffs, btw and fyi.
Season Struggles
Injuries, head coach under league investigation, and losses. For context and if you recall, the Orlando Pride’s head coach, Amanda Cromwell, has been on administrative leave since June. Still no public word on where that investigation stands as of now, but that kind of uncertainty can weigh on a player. From the start of the season, the Pride also knew they’d be without Marta. She’s an experienced, world-class player, and likely provided the kind of leadership a young team like the Pride could benefit from. The odds have been pretty stacked against them in 2022 and they haven’t been able to turn the struggle bus around. The win vs. the Wave last month was a seeming bright spot.
In that same game (or after, rather), Wave goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan received a red card for what one can only assume was a dissent/verbal incident directed towards the referee post-game. That kind of reaction demonstrates a level of frustration a team near the top of the table feels when they lose to a team at the opposite end of the table. That level of frustration has not been a season theme, fortunately, and in fact the Wave have had much to celebrate in their inaugural season otherwise. Since then, the Wave have won three games and lost one (a thriller in D.C. and broadcast on CBS that came down to a 100th minute PK winner by Ashley Hatch).
Even if Orlando do manage to win this game, they would still mathematically be out of playoff contention with one more game left in the regular season (left to play are perennial shield favorites Thorns). Beating the Wave and the Thorns (a tall order in itself) gets them to 27 points, which will not be enough to get them into the post-season playoff party, unfortunately.
Season Successes
Take, for another example, last weekend’s win against Angel City FC. The game result was merely icing on the cake for the home side that capped off an event that took place in their brand new home, aka Snapdragon Stadium, and managed to draw an NWSL-record breaking crowd of 32K+ fans. This writer attended that game and can attest to the buzz that was in the air that night. Side note: the UK’s WSL (Women’s Super League) drew 47K fans to an Arsenal vs. Tottenham match yesterday. Yay for the growth of women’s soccer worldwide.
Common comments about the club this season by outsiders mention the surprising nature of their on-field and off-field relative success. Although, maybe not surprising to president Jill Ellis and coach Casey Stoney. This club’s culture seems to be about setting a particular standard and delivering. The Wave traded for Alex Morgan, but when looking at their draft history, team officials actually went for midfielders and defenders first (e.g. Kristie Mewis, who was eventually traded to Gotham, Abby Dahlkemper, Christen Westphal, Kristen McNabb, Kayleigh Riehl, Naomi Girma, etc.). That “shoring up the defense” strategy appears to have paid off as the Wave have 19 goals against, which ties them with the Reign in the lowest number of goals allowed category. You don’t have to score a ton of goals to win games (as long as you prevent the other team from scoring, and score at least one goal yourself, that is, obviously). Alex Morgan’s league-leading scoring numbers have been a boon to the team, no doubt, but not the only ingredient to the team’s success, in other words. Also helps having a teenage phenom in forward Jaedyn Shaw, who Colleen included in the last fantasy NWSL “Team of the Round” with her goal vs. Angel City:
Familiar Foes
Like I said in the last iteration of this matchup (here), there are four current Wave players (no league pun intended, KC) who previously played for the Pride. Perhaps that familiarity played a factor in the Wave’s loss (nah, I take that back immediately, that match was competitive and intense). So, not only will the Wave want to avenge that loss against some of the players’ former club, but just beat their former club and win in general. If this weekend’s swirl of possible playoff scenarios demonstrates anything, it is that this league is competitive across the board and very little separates these talented clubs from one another.
Final Thoughts
I don’t normally include predictions in my previews, but I think the Wave have enough motivation for this game to take home a win. I’m not saying professional pride is not available for the Pride by winning this and their next game to finish out the regular season, but I am saying this game will be a tough hill to climb for the purple and black. The NWSL has action and drama in spades, so definitely tune in if you can.
·