In their first of two matches in the month of May, Sky Blue FC takes on the WNY Flash on Saturday May 7, 2016 at 7pm ET at Yurcak Field in Piscataway, NJ.
A win here would be a big boost for either team as both have struggled in recent weeks. Last week the Flash had a brutal home opener in frigid weather against the Washington Spirit that saw the absence of Jess McDonald, sloppy play and a 3-0 defeat in their first home game of the season. McDonald was sorely missed by the team and in addition to a lower quality of play, luck was against them as well as a Sam Mewis PK went off the post. A few seconds later the post denied the Flash another scoring opportunity. After a promising week one and average week two, this was by far the worst Flash performance on the season.
Sky Blue played Houston Dash to a scoreless draw in Houston. Sky Blue did well to earn a point on the road as they put on a strong defensive performance to deny all of Houston’s 20 shots (7 on goal) throughout the game. After somewhat of a rough performance against Washington in week two, Caroline Casey was replaced by Caroline Stanley who had an incredible game with seven saves, several of which were top quality. Christine Rampone and Kelley O’Hara did an excellent job also of handling Houston’s attack. Sky Blue struggled offensively, only generating six shots during the match.
Heading into Saturday’s contest, both teams have areas that need improvement in order to produce successful results. McDonald should be available for the Flash and would be an incredible asset to the match. The Flash had a number of set pieces against the Spirit and one would think that McDonald, with her height and athleticism, could have taken advantage of those opportunities. Another personnel change that could be beneficial for the Flash would be to bring Adriana Leon back into the starting XI. Head coach Paul Riley opted to start rookie Taylor Smith in place of Leon. While she didn’t necessarily put on a poor performance,she lacked the confidence and quick thinking that Leon provides. Finishing as a whole has been problematic for the Flash all season as they have yet to score from the run of play this season and is a big area that needs to be improved quickly.
The Flash will also be looking for a stronger performance defensively as that has been a weak spot for them thus far. Only having 4-5 rostered defenders, the Flash have struggled with defenders, specifically with the outside backs. The central defending pair of Abby Dahlkemper and Abby Erceg are starting work together nicely, but the lack of solid defenders (not including Jaelene Hinkle) on the outside has been troublesome. The Flash encountered a similar situation due to injury last season and placed the well rounded Elizabeth Eddy at RB when needed. While she was a solid emergency placement, she has struggled since taking the position on a permanent basis. Meredith Speck and Makenzy Doniak have seen time there as well in the absence of Hinkle, but there has to be a better solution than sticking forwards on the back line.
While Sky Blue proved their strength defensively against the Dash, they have done little in terms of offense since their surprise victory over Seattle in the season opener. Maya Hayes has been a strong point for Sky Blue, but there seems to be a challenge in actually building an attack and getting the ball to a place where she can create potentially dangerous situations. This is most likely due to some of the personnel situations that lie within Sky Blue at the moment. Sky Blue not only experienced some changeover from last season, they also have a lot of youth and injuries that may be affecting their cohesiveness between positions on the field.
Two of the most exciting acquisitions in the off season, Tasha Kai and Raquel Rodriguez have yet to really find their footing on a consistent level this season. Both players are incredibly talented and with time, should find their stride and be productive components of the lineup, but overall have been slightly underwhelming to this point. Sky Blue have also had different combinations of players in the starting midfield each game so far due to injury and that could also be putting a slight hinder on the cohesiveness of everyone on the pitch. Sky Blue have been missing two key players this season in Coco Goodson and Sam Kerr. Kerr adds a completely different dynamic to the team and is someone who could not only help transition the ball, but is someone who is dangerous from may areas of the pitch. Unfortunately, Sky Blue will have to wait for her return as she is still recovering from off season foot surgery. Coco Goodson is listed as probable on the injury report for this week and we will have to see whether she sees any time in tomorrow’s match.
One thing to note about Sky Blue this season is their use of Kelley O’Hara. For the past few seasons she has been utilized on defense at times, but often in an attacking role as well. This season she has been a consistent back line feature. That may be impacted by some of the injuries the team has been dealing with this season, but from watching her the first few games of this season so far, it seems she would be better suited in a midfield or straight out attacking role. It is interesting that coach Christy Holly chose to play Hayes up top over O’Hara so far. Hayes did a fair bit of time on the back line last season and did an excellent job. It seems that she and O’Hara would be almost interchangeable; both solid in either position, O’Hara just seems like she would do a better job at linking play and creating chances, but we will see what happens as the season progresses.
It will interesting to see how these teams match up against each other. Both have had their share of turnover from the previous season and both have been dealing with injuries that have been problematic for them to this point. The Flash have been able to create all the opportunities in the world this season but are struggling with finishing, while Sky Blue has often struggled to create an effective attack. Sky Blue is coming off a game where their defense had a particularly strong performance, where the Flash are coming off a game that was their weakest defensive performance. Whichever team has been able to improve the most on their shortcomings in the last week or so has the opportunity to come away with valuable points.
