Despite a valiant effort late in the match, a slow start proved to be too much for Sky Blue to overcome in their final game of the season. FC Kansas City forward Sarah Hagen scored in the 5th minute off of a beautiful pass by Amy Rodriguez that Sky Blue keeper Brittany Cameron simply could not get to. The play started in the midfield, when Lauren Holiday applied pressure and stripped the ball from Hayley Haagsma and then laid it off to Heather O’Reilly, who slid it forward to Rodriguez. While Cameron moved to cover in case Rodriguez chose to shoot, Hagen was left virtually unattended on the opposite side of the goal, and scored easily when Rodriguez passed the ball through the box.
Sky Blue head coach Jim Gabarra acknowledged that his team was emotionally drained following their near win at the Seattle Reign on Saturday (Jess Fishlock equalized late in stoppage time to salvage a draw for the Reign), and that they were “really, really lethargic in the first twenty minutes, and you concede a goal and you’ve got to try to find that energy level. I think we did [find it] in the last part of the first half and most of the second half.”
Sky Blue drew even in the 39th minute when forward Sam Kerr beat Nicole Barnhart, but FCKC countered almost immediately mere minutes later, when Amy Rodriguez headed home a cross by Heather O’Reilly.
FCKC scored a third goal in the 52nd minute when Rodriguez penetrated the defense and found herself almost all alone in front of Cameron, where she had no trouble putting the ball in the net. Rodriguez was inches away from a hat trick; before halftime, after a scramble in Cameron’s box, the ball fell to her feet while she was alone on the left side of the goal, but her shot attempt hit the woodwork and the defense was able to clear it away.
Sky Blue was unwilling to roll over, however, and started pressing for a second goal.Kerr finally broke through again in the 73rd minute for her second goal of the game and fifth of the season. Immediately Sky Blue restarted play and continued to press, and the next 17 minutes showcased some high pressing frantic action, but they were ultimately unable to score an equalizer despite the announced three minutes of extra time stretching to almost five.
This game marked Lauren Holiday’s final regular season game of her career, as she is set to retire from both club and country at the conclusion of the year. She was given flowers and acknowledged before the game, both for her contributions at the club level and on the world stage. After the game, she said, “I have so much respect for Kansas City, for my teammates. I absolutely adore this team. I think they totally changed my career around, playing in Kansas City, so I want to give it my best and hopefully we can bring home another title.”
When the whistle blew, Sky Blue’s season came to an end, and with the end comes questions. Where does this team, who has missed the playoffs and been near the bottom of the league for two consecutive seasons, go from here? Who will return next season? Will Nadia Nadim come to New Jersey for a third year, or will she choose to stay in Europe to continue her studies (she is halfway through medical school) and to help Denmark qualify for the 2017 Euros? If Australia qualifies for the Olympics later this year, will they hold a long pre-Olympic residency camp like they did for the Women’s World Cup? What will Jim Gabarra and the management do about the potential lack of Caitlin Foord and Sam Kerr?
As it stands now, Sky Blue will end up with the third pick in this year’s college draft. Hopefully some questions will be answered then.
