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Knapp Notes: Eight Weeks In, All WPS Teams Are Ready To Play
All seven Women's Professional Soccer teams have shown they can play entering week eight. Every team has won, while every team has at least one loss.
May 16, 2009 2:12:30 AM
For the first few weeks of Women’s Professional Soccer, all of the seven teams were trying to find their own identities. Along the way, they’ve played some soccer. And now eight weeks in, every team has a win. Every team has a loss. At the end of the day, they can all score goals. And they can all post clean sheets. It’s finally a level playing field.
NOT MUCH SEPARATION
So when the season started out, the Los Angeles Sol was the dominant team. No question. But now, the seven teams are separated by only a handful of points. Prior to Friday night’s match, Los Angeles had 11 points, while the bottom three teams had five points. The league is up for grabs. And with month two half way over… this weekend could be when the weak get separated from the pack. But definitely in the next month – we’ll find out which teams are true contenders.
DOUBLE DIGITS
Only two WPS teams have double digits in the points category going into this weekend’s games. Los Angeles had 11 points, while the Boston Breakers have 10. A win for either the Chicago Red Stars or FC Gold Pride will allow the team to enter the double-digit club. Right now Chicago has eight points, while FC Gold Pride has seven.
SLOW SCORING
After two weeks of lots o’ goals… 21 in six games, the scoring has slowed down this past weekend, with just three goals. And that’s fine. More importantly the dominant teams are slowing down. And the sleepers are sneaking in there. Sky Blue FC and Saint Louis Athletica are scoring goals, which helps everyone in the long run.
CHANGE IN PLANS
While the WPS teams were worried about being without some key players for a while, things have changed a bit. The U.S. Women will still report to camp. Only they’ll play in one friendly against Canada in Toronto May 25th, instead of two against Japan in different U.S. cities. So while the top players will still be gone… they won’t be traveling crazily across the country.
LOOK OUT FOR MCLEOD
The Washington Freedom has been one of the strongest teams in the league – offensively. They’ve dominated opponents, tallying the most goals of any WPS team with nine. But defensively, they’ve been sorting things out. Goalkeepers Briana Scurry and Katie Jo Spisak have each struggled in goal, allowing six goals a piece for a total of 12. Opponents have only sent 32 shots on goal, and 12 of them have sailed into the net. Erin McLeod is finally with the club. Expect her to receive some playing time soon. And if she does, she may help the Freedom climb from the bottom of the league to the top.
Kathryn L. Knapp
For more on Women's Professional Soccer, go to Goal.com's women's soccer page.
NOT MUCH SEPARATION
So when the season started out, the Los Angeles Sol was the dominant team. No question. But now, the seven teams are separated by only a handful of points. Prior to Friday night’s match, Los Angeles had 11 points, while the bottom three teams had five points. The league is up for grabs. And with month two half way over… this weekend could be when the weak get separated from the pack. But definitely in the next month – we’ll find out which teams are true contenders.
DOUBLE DIGITS
Only two WPS teams have double digits in the points category going into this weekend’s games. Los Angeles had 11 points, while the Boston Breakers have 10. A win for either the Chicago Red Stars or FC Gold Pride will allow the team to enter the double-digit club. Right now Chicago has eight points, while FC Gold Pride has seven.
SLOW SCORING
After two weeks of lots o’ goals… 21 in six games, the scoring has slowed down this past weekend, with just three goals. And that’s fine. More importantly the dominant teams are slowing down. And the sleepers are sneaking in there. Sky Blue FC and Saint Louis Athletica are scoring goals, which helps everyone in the long run.
CHANGE IN PLANS
While the WPS teams were worried about being without some key players for a while, things have changed a bit. The U.S. Women will still report to camp. Only they’ll play in one friendly against Canada in Toronto May 25th, instead of two against Japan in different U.S. cities. So while the top players will still be gone… they won’t be traveling crazily across the country.
LOOK OUT FOR MCLEOD
The Washington Freedom has been one of the strongest teams in the league – offensively. They’ve dominated opponents, tallying the most goals of any WPS team with nine. But defensively, they’ve been sorting things out. Goalkeepers Briana Scurry and Katie Jo Spisak have each struggled in goal, allowing six goals a piece for a total of 12. Opponents have only sent 32 shots on goal, and 12 of them have sailed into the net. Erin McLeod is finally with the club. Expect her to receive some playing time soon. And if she does, she may help the Freedom climb from the bottom of the league to the top.
Kathryn L. Knapp
For more on Women's Professional Soccer, go to Goal.com's women's soccer page.
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