Game at a Glance: URFC vs. POR
Utah Royals FC 1, Portland Thorns FC 1
April 81, 2018; Sandy, Utah; Rio Tinto Stadium
Utah Royals FC (0-4-1, 4 points); Portland Thorns FC (2-2-1, 8 points)
Woman of the Match
On Saturday, April 28, FW Amy Rodriguez scored her first goal for URFC— 27th career goal in the NWSL—and registered her first start since tearing her ACL in 2017. The USWNT striker dominated the attacking third, getting an opportunistic volley in the first-half, and spreading out the Portland defense for the remainder of her time. Rodriguez’s tenacity up top allowed her to win the ball from the Thorns’ center backs, resulting in a one versus one opportunity against GK Britt Eckerstrom. Demonstrating immense composure in the box, Rodriguez tapped the ball wide of the keeper’s diving gloves and found the back of the net – a feat worthy of this week’s “Woman of the Match.”
Telling Stat
Almost even across the board, URFC’s statistics parallel Portland’s in almost every category, with the exception of crosses (Portland with 21 to Utah’s 11). The statistics represent the near equal flow of the match, with Portland registering about 51% possession to URFC’s 49%. Another representative statistic includes duels won, with Laura Harvey’s team winning 52 challenges to the Thorns’ 51.
The correlation between these statistics makes sense because both Laura Harvey and Mark Parsons play a similar playing style that encourages high-pressure defense and building out of the back. Both teams cleared the ball about 20 times (Utah 20, Portland 23), both claimed about 10 tackles (Utah 10, Portland 11), both completed roughly 415 passes (Utah 415, Portland 420), and both held a passing accuracy within 1% of the other (Utah 68%, Portland 69%).
What You Missed
Saturday’s match was a game of firsts. Cheered on by a stadium of gold jerseys, Amy Rodriguez scored her first home goal for the club, and her first goal back after a year-long ACL-surgery rehab. This was also the first game for Australian international Katrina Gorry, who subbed in at the 62nd minute for her Rio Tinto debut. Gorry excelled in the midfield, commanding distribution and organizing traffic in the center of the pitch. It was also the first time that all three USWNT members—Kelley O’Hara, Becky Sauerbrunn, and Amy Rodriguez—started for the squad.
So What:
The team will remain at the fortress of Rio Tinto Stadium for their Saturday, May 5, match against the Washington Spirit. Hoping to get their first win of the season, URFC will kick off against USWNT stars such as Mallory Pugh and Ashley Hatch, at 7:00 p.m. MT. You can catch this highly-anticipated match on KMYU, the KSL app, or listen to it on ESPN700.
