On Saturday, August 22, Sky Blue FC defeated the Portland Thorns 1-0 in front of a packed house at Yurcak Field. The crowd was the largest ever at Yurcak, 5,547 to be exact, and Sky Blue’s supporters group, Cloud 9, did their part to create a fun and exciting atmosphere and get the crowd into the game.
On the field, Sky Blue came out hard and were almost rewarded in the 16th minute when a Kelley O’Hara corner kick created havoc in the box, but the offside flag was up. Minutes later, Nadia Nadim sent in a ball that seemed to be controlled by defender Alyssa Kleiner, who has been with the Thorns all season and signed a pro contract on Friday, but Kelley O’Hara pressured her from behind, gained control, and passed the ball to Nadim, who easily put it past Angerer for the lone goal of the match.
The Thorns had their chances to equalize, but hit the goal posts several times. Their best chance to score late in the game came in the 87th minute when Brittany Cameron came out hard and fouled Christine Sinclair in the box. Cameron was given a yellow card and the Thorns were awarded a penalty kick. Alex Morgan stepped up to take the PK and Brittany Cameron made not one but two spectacular saves, one on the initial shot and the second scrambling across the goal mouth to stop the rebound attempt, before the defense could clear the ball away from danger.
Unfortunately, Christine Sinclair was injured on the foul, an injury that head coach Paul Riley said looked to be a bad one. “She said she heard a pop. Something to do with the ankle, I don’t know what. And Sinc’s not a whiner, whatsoever, so I think I have a feeling it’s a bad injury, but fingers crossed it’s not.”
Paul Riley also hinted at an upcoming announcement from defender Rachel Van Hollebeke, who traveled and warmed up with the team but did not play.
Despite Sky Blue’s best efforts, and Jim Gabarra’s hope that other teams would assist them in their quest to stay alive with a chance for playoffs, due to Boston’s loss at FC Kansas City, Sky Blue was officially eliminated from playoff contention. The Thorns are all but eliminated, with Riley admitting that making the playoffs with 28 points is a long shot.
Sky Blue will travel to Seattle to take on the Reign on Saturday, August 29th, and then immediately return to Yurcak Field for their final game of the season on Wednesday, September 2nd, against FC Kansas City.
