Valkyratings: Awreck in Rose City Edition

I do not enjoy writing about 4-0 losses, least of all to Kansas City West. I do not enjoy writing, yet again, about a team that plays with excellent structure, wherein players do what's asked of them well, only to find ways to lose. I do not enjoy a game-demolishing VAR call so egregiously terrible that the captain of the team that benefited from it immediately went on the public record to say it was a terrible call that should never be made.

All of which is to say that, my friends, I did not have a good time rewatching or reviewing this match.

It's also a hard one to review: the Reign were the better and more dangerous side for the first 40 minutes, the Thorns took the lead in the 42nd minute on an excellently-placed Olivia Moultrie goal that was largely against the run of play, and the Reign continued being the better and more dangerous side for another 40 minutes after that before completely unraveling after an unjustifiable penalty call, an inordinately long VAR review and stoppage to make that unjustifiable penalty call, and going down 2-0 in a game they had to that point been managing relatively well.

Completely unraveling like that is probably understandable, given the circumstances, the heat of the rivalry, and just how little has gone right for the Reign this year, but it's also not what you want a professional side to do.

The Reign need to goldfish the fuck out of this one. I, unfortunately, and after much despair and procrastination, had to watch it again.

Goalkeeper

Laurel Ivory – 4

Laurel was fine until she wasn't. The penalty wasn't a penalty, and she shouldn't have been put in a position to try to save it, and Sophia Smith's hit was unsavable anyway. There also wasn't much she could do about Moultrie's strike against the run of play. But she just got beat cold on Hina Sugita's well-placed but savable shot in the 90'+3, and again by Payton Linnehan's in the 90'+8, as the exhausted and demoralized Reign defense gave her little support.

After multiple consecutive weeks of showing her propensity for making the game-changing stop, Laurel was challenged several times with good but savable chances and came up short on each of them. She made a couple nice saves on well-hit long distance shots, but as I mentioned last week – they were the sort of saves that look great on a highlight reel, but you ultimately expect just about any professional keeper to make more often than not.

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, and it has not changed my view that Laurel Ivory should be the presumptive starter.

Defense

Phoebe McClernon – 6 (off 83' for Ryanne Brown)

Phoebe McClernon was fine, generally tidy on the ball, generally in the right place to defend. On the Thorns' opening goal, she forced Sophia Smith wide, kept herself goalside, and gave the lethal Smith no easy options to have a run at goal herself, and muted the threat she was responsible for. Unfortunately, three other defenders who could have marked Olivia Moultrie's trailing run all failed to do so, Smith saw the cutback pass, and the play ended in a goal anyway.

With the Reign trailing 2-0 after a spurious penalty call and desperately needing a spark, the defensively sound but offensively limited McClernon left the field for natural outside back Ryanne Brown, but on the whole, Phoebe put in one of the better and more complete performances by a Reign player on the night.

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, but I think McClernon should be the starting LCB in a back three at least once before we throw this whole season into the Sound.

Lauren Barnes – 5

Through 75 minutes, Lauren Barnes was, for the most part, Lauren Barnes – with hard but smart physical play, big interceptions, recovery after recovery, and a refusal to be beaten. She also could have done a lot more on the Thorns opening goal, as she, Shae Holmes, and Sofia Huerta were all in a position to step to Moultrie and at least make that shot hard on her. Barnes saw the danger, and seemed to hand Moultrie off to Holmes, who... did not close. The Thorns scored, and the game changed.

After the 80th minute penalty, Barnes faded severely, looking exhausted and disoriented. The whole team did, but Barnes is the captain, and the frankly lackadaisical defending on the third and fourth goals was not what we expect or should expect from her.

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, but I think Lu Barnes should be a starting CB in a back three at least once before we throw this whole season into the Sound.

Shae Holmes – 4

Shae Holmes was mostly, generally, fine – like the back line in general – through the first 75+ minutes. She had the most touches of any Reign player, and second-most overall, with 83, and was part of a calm and competent Reign defense, right up until she wasn't. She looked to be most responsible on Moultrie's goal, as she perhaps miscommunicated with Barnes, and both wound up marking a back post run that never came while Moultrie took an uncontested shot from the top of the box and curled it to the side netting where Ivory had no chance at it.

After the penalty, the Reign fell apart in across the board, but especially in back. Holmes was part of that, as she covered the wrong space twice in stoppage time, on Sugita's and Linnehan's goals, leaving savable and defendable shots barely contested as the Reign took the gut punch and simply could not get back up.

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, but Holmes remains a good defender with solid ball skills, and the mistakes she made felt more indicative of a team taking one too many hits than of her being in over her head.

Sofia Huerta – 5

Firstly, I want to put forward: I am not putting that handling call on Sof. I fucking refuse. I do not in any way hold it against her, and neither do these ratings. It was bullshit then, it's bullshit now, Becky Sauerbrunn agrees, PRO agrees, and it should never have been made. It upended the game, it stole the momentum the Reign were generating, and it censured Sofia Huerta for having the nerve, the raw audacity to possess arms.

It was, other than that absolute travesty, a fair-enough outing for Huerta. She shared the joint-lead for touches with Holmes, and was good on the ball, progressing it well and adding four shot-creating actions to the Reign's sputtering offense: a set piece that Ji So-yun got a good foot to from distance (saved), a service that found Shae Holmes' head (missed the target), and a sweet take-on to create her own shot (which was blocked). After the travesty, she became a ghost, providing little of value while the Reign folded.

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, but I would like to see Sof start as the RWB in a 3-5-2 at least once before we throw this whole season into the Sound.

Midfield

Jess Fishlock – 6

Jess Fishlock always shows up against Portland, and she was one of the better players on the pitch for the Reign, both before and after the VAR decided that a cagey, hard-fought match that was probably going to end with a Moral Victory / 1-0 Defeat for the Reign simply wasn't NWSL After Dark enough.

She did Fishlock things with high energy on both sides of the ball, blocking multiple shots and tackling multiple dribblers on the defensive end of things, and getting in on the attack aggressively. Kelli Hubly made an excellent save on her header in the 45'+3, and the Reign scrambled but failed to capitalize on the ensuing rebound that could've equalized the score. She once again showed creative combination play with Ji So-yun, and she won fouls in dangerous places (and got repeatedly hacked without a whistle, as referee Abdou Ndiaye for some reason felt it exceedingly important to avoid showing cards to players in red.)

She was also, importantly, probably the only player who didn't let her head drop after the penalty, and kept running hard, leaving everything she had on the field, even if it didn't amount to shit in a game that thoroughly out of hand.

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, but I would like to see Fishlock starting in midfield in a 3-5-2 at least once before we throw this whole season into the Sound.

Ji So-yun – 6

This was a frustrating one from Ji So-yun. If I rated in half-steps, she'd have been a 5.5. But despite the frustration, a 5 seemed too harsh when she had several really good stretches of play, to go with her several stretches where she faded into invisibility. Some commenters have noted that the physicality of the league seems to throw her off, and I think there's something to that, as she has often faded after being taken the fuck out by a challenge without a call, and this league certainly has its share of referees who view footie more as a demolition derby than as a beautiful game.

She was also involved in literally every one of best moments for a Reign offense that created much more danger than Portland through 80 minutes. She had eight progressive passes, two key passes, four shot-creating actions, five progressive receptions, five passes into the final third – most of those numbers that led for the Reign; her passing created chances of similar quality to Smith's, but without the finish or the hot-mess defending. None of that really matters when the Reign still cannot find the back of the net to save their lives or their season even on the genuinely good chances they generate, but it's not nothing, and on a team that could get even one thing to go right for them in the attacking penalty area, it... might be different.

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, but I would like to see Ji starting in the central midfield spot of a 3-5-2 at least once before we throw this whole season into the Sound.

Olivia van der Jagt – 6 (off 83' for Nikki Stanton)

Against Portland, van der Jagt showed a lot of good, clean possession, didn't get beaten often, and laid the ball off to Fishlock, Ji, and Huerta to get them into positions to Do Their Thing. It wasn't necessarily what Quinn can add going forward, but it did a lot to minimize Olo's limitations and help progress her more creative teammates to positions they could exercise some creativity from.

More than anything, on a night where basically everybody faded in a key moment or made a bad mistake somewhere, Olo didn't. To borrow a phrase I've used to describe Angharad James-Turner's performances this year, it was the sort of gritty, professional performance as a holding midfielder that good teams need. Unfortunately, the team wasn't actually good enough for that to amount to much.

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, but I think Olo remains an exceptionally good option to add bite into the side when defending a result or to spot the starters when they can't go for whatever reason. And there's a lot of "whatever reason" so far this season.

Forward

Veronica Latsko – 4 (off 72' for Emeri Adames)

This was certainly one of the performances of all time for Veronica Latsko, who had an absolutely banging first 20 minutes, with her usual brand of pressure and running getting her into the mixer early and often. She combined with Huerta off a set piece to find Ji in space for the Reign's first shot, and she got her head to a McClernon pass in the 19th minute on a chance from 10 yards out that changes the game if she does more with it.

And then she was mostly invisible, occasionally putting Tziarra King or Bethany Balcer into space, but finding little of the ball, finding little bite on the press, and not providing much of an option for her teammates. It wasn't a disastrous performance, but it was a reminder of some of Latsko's limitations. As with Ji, this might have been a 4.5 if I rated in half-steps. That first 20 minutes was so close to being a perfect start, but the 52 minutes that followed weren't enough, and left too many promising attacks to die.

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, but I hold to my established view that Latsko is an absolute monster to have as a 30-minute sub, but is pretty inconsistent as a starting option.

Bethany Balcer – 6

Balcer, as ever, put in the tireless work without getting much of a reward for it. Aerially dominant, she was seldom put in a position to even challenge for the ball, but when she was, she just casually won four of five duels. Savvy in her runs, she received the ball with space and made things hard on the Portland defense repeatedly, but rarely found an opportunity waiting for her. A bit messy in her passing, she often failed to find the open player that could've kept an attack alive.

In the 45'+3, after a Ji So-yun service led to a Fishlock shot and an unfortunately excellent Hubly save, Balcer put her golden forehead through the rebound and on another night would've banged home a goal, but for the goal-line block that denied her. Balcer had only two shots, and yet she was consistently in the right positions and making the right movements to be involved. Ji found her occasionally, King found her occasionally, but the team continues to fail to give her the opportunities she thrives on.

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, but I would like to see Balcer starting as the target forward in a 3-5-2, with Jordyn Huitema as a withdrawn forward behind her.

Tziarra King – 5 (off 87' for Olivia Athens)

Tziarra King put in hard work and was fine, but hard work and fine wasn't really enough, and her influence on the game wasn't enough in a game that demanded somebody up front just do stuff. There was good play, and the sort of play that King can build on. She repeatedly found space and made herself an open option for the Reign, and she showed flashes of vision early and late, seeing an opportunity to catch the Thorns on a free kick (but ultimately not executing on it) in the 16th minute and finding Huerta for a dangerous chance (that was ultimately blocked) in the 70th, but in the intervening space, her contributions were limited.

She didn't disappear quite like Latsko did, and she continued to help the Reign progress the ball, win and keep possession deep in the Portland half of the field, and frequently did well to hold up play and find the pass, but for a player of Zee's traits, the lack of incisiveness from wide areas and lack of willingness to press the issue when she had a defender isolated was a recurring problem.

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match. Zee keeps showing tantalizing flashes of what she could be, but she remains extremely inconsistent, and she's running out of games to show she actually can be what her ball skills and physical abilities promise.

Substitutes

Emeri Adames – 4 (on 72' for Veronica Latsko)

It's not particularly fair, but Emeri Adames was subbed on for a mostly-invisible Veronica Latsko to be a difference maker, and then the VAR dropped one of the worst decisions of the season on the Reign like a hammer just a few minutes later. She only managed 8 touches in 30ish minutes of play, and while she completed her four passes, she didn't add much with them, and certainly didn't make a difference with them. Hard to fault a young player for how that all played out, but...

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, but I would like to see Adames get minutes that don't have the game state immediately upended and torpedoed by incomprehensible PRO-ass refereeing decisions.

Ryanne Brown – 4 (on 83' for Pheobe McClernon)

With the Reign suddenly trailing 2-0 and McClernon's excellent defense but very limited offensive contributions no longer enough to fight for a result, Ryanne Brown came on and after a brief push immediately after the goal, didn't contribute a lot offensively (zero notable actions) or defensively (zero notable actions), as the Reign's momentum and pressure faded and their defense folded, and Portland ran rampant.

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, but I actually like Ryanne Brown a lot, and think she deserves more minutes in game states that aren't a dumpster fire inside a larger dumpster that is also on fire.

Nikki Stanton – 4 (on 83' for Olivia van der Jagt)

With the Reign suddenly trailing 2-0, Nikki Stanton came on and after a brief push immediately after the goal, didn't contribute a lot offensively (zero notable actions) or defensively (one block to prevent a developing attack), as the Reign's momentum and pressure faded and their defense folded, and Portland ran rampant. Wait, I feel like I just typed almost that exact summary word for word somewhere...

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, but Stanton is probably the best fourth-choice holding midfielder in the history of professional women's soccer teams, and it's hard to be too mad that she couldn't change the game when nobody else could either.

Olivia Athens – N/A (on 87' for Tziarra King)

Olivia Athens came on late for a hardworking but ineffective King, and was one of the few players who was still ready to throw down and deal as Portland came in waves and demolished the Reign in body and spirit in stoppage time. Big tackle, big blocks, good passing to relieve pressure, but it didn't amount to anything useful, and, honestly, an 87th minute substitution to add Athens when trailing 2-0 is not a substitution that's going to win a lot of games.

Going Forward: Given (waving vaguely) everything, I don't think there's much in the way of useful lessons to take from this match, but Olivia Athens never fails to bring the right attitude, and should have plenty of opportunities to continue her Attitude Era going forward.

Referee

Abdou Ndiaye – 3

Look, even before we get to That Call, Ndiaye was not good. He whistled often but largely refused to card, even as both teams crept into double-digit foul totals (with 15 for the Thorns and 10 for the Reign), and showed a nigh-reckless resistance to the mere concept of having control of the match. Players were allowed to grab, hold, check, and roughhouse with little fear of actual censure. McClernon, Fishlock, and Balcer were all repeatedly fouled, with Ndiaye apparently deciding that because Portland mixed up who was fouling, it didn't amount to persistent infringement, and was all hunky dory. Hina Sugita, who would go on to score Portland's third goal, stomped on Huerta's hand (and while it probably wasn't malicious, it came after taking several steps and changing direction, and players have absolutely been sent off for less this season) with scarcely a second look. This all would have amounted to an incredibly frustrating but only somewhat below average officiating performance, except, well, there was also that call.

In the 79th minute, after a nearly-four-minute VAR review, Ndiaye decided that actually, Sofia Huerta should've simply chosen to not have arms when the ball was drilled off her leg at inches-close range and glanced off her hand after deflecting, pointed to the spot, and added that also, her choice to have arms was so egregious it warranted a yellow card. Sophia Smith scored the ensuing penalty, and the game radically altered. The long stoppage, the long runup to Smith's penalty, and the choppiness that followed led to yet another interminably long amount of stoppage time, which has become an exhausting and unacceptable norm in Reign matches.

I want to specifically call out VAR Adorae Monroy for the wall of shame, here, though. Ndiaye, to his credit, took some convincing to make that call, asking the big questions like, "wait, didn't that deflect off her leg?" To which Monroy insisted that no it did not, while showing multiple angles of the ball clearly deflecting off her leg, and making a bizarrely hard sell to the referee that it be a penalty. Ndiaye relented, and Monroy got what was apparently her fondest wish, to gift the Thorns a penalty. PRO has since noted that they "would have preferred" the play not be called as a penalty (and may or may not have added that teehee, oopsie, they did another fucky-wucky, no changes will be forthcoming.)

A Stray Thought

The Thorns got off to a brutal start, taking only one point from their first three games and absolutely bleeding goals. They made adjustments, made sure to get their best players into positions to make a difference, and have gone on an absolute tear since. Imagine making adjustments and getting your best players into positions to make a difference consistently, right?!

The Reign have also been a bit unlucky, scoring ~2 fewer and conceding ~3 more than their xG/xGA over nine matches, but even if we were getting "the bounces" a little more consistently and losing fewer player-matches to the injury bug, our quality of play is lower-mid-table, not challenging for the top like we expect to.

Anyway, Laura Harvey is a legend in Seattle for a reason, but right now, her team is far less than the sum of its parts, and if she can't figure out a way to shake that up, we may be witnessing the end of the Harvey Era.

The Reign's next match is home against Orlando Pride, on Sunday May 19th at 3:00 PM PT. The match will be broadcast locally on KONG TV and is available streaming on NWSL+, or at Lumen Field, where we desperately need some good crowd mojo to help the Reign out of this nightmare stretch.