(image credit: Erica McCaulley/Wikimedia Images)
The NWSL Championship is upon us. No more predictions, no more consideration for who might be in the final. What all of us know for a fact is that the Washington Spirit will take on the Western New York Flash for perhaps the biggest prize women’s club football: the NWSL title. For the Flash this will be their second chance to claim the title (they previously lost 2-0 to Portland Thorns FC in the 2013 tilt), for the Spirit their first.
Yet beyond the basics of the match there is very little that is known about this match. It is one of the exciting and frustrating things about sports: the uncertainty of it all. Both teams will enter BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston, Texas with a certain moxie and some level of confidence knowing that they have earned their spot.
There is also previous performances between the two sides. With the Spirt and Flash having already met twice this season there are certainly things that both teams can look at entering into this match. Although this is very much a different type of match with the stakes being raised certain key points from each game could prove to be the difference-maker in this match.
So pull out the popcorn, fire up the Chromecast and let’s take a look at the two previous match-ups.
Washington Spirit 3- Western New York Flash 0 (4/29, Sahlen Stadium Rochester, New York)
Goals: Diana Matheson (4′, 72′) and Katie Stengel (82′)
Despite what the scoreline indicates this was actually a much closer game than it looks. The Flash controlled possession for most of the match and were able to put together several sustained drives. Western New York out-shot the Spirit 16-8 and delivered five shots on target to Washington’s four. But without Jessica McDonald (10 goals in 2016) the Flash lacked a physical striker to match up with Shelina Zadorsky and to open up space for Lynn Williams (11 goals in 2016).
The one thing that coach Paul Riley can take from this match into the final is making sure that Jaelene Hinkle marks Crystal Dunn. Hinkle was successful in limiting Dunn’s influence in this match to most shots and passes from outside the eighteen yard box. Dunn has perhaps one of the best first touches in the NWSL and likes to use a bit of misdirection to open up space. As evidenced by her play in this match Hinkle doesn’t buy it which helped a Flash side that were still finding themselves at this point in the season stay close.
From the Spirit perspective coach Jim Gabarra will look to mimic Diana Matheson’s fearless style on the attack and bring it to Houston. While the goals were certainly nice, she worked seamlessly with Christine Nairn to hit the Flash early and disorient the inexperienced Flash defense. She worked very much as a destroyer, breaking down the structure between the outside midfielders and backs by going wide with some of her passes. That in turn opened up space in the center of the pitch, a place where the Spirit are perhaps their deadliest.
Washington Spirit 1- Western New York Flash 1 (9/3 Maureen Hendricks Field Boyds, Maryland)
Goals: Stengel (64′) and Mewis (86′)
Both sides looked more like the teams that we will likely see on Sunday with the Spirit building chances through the defensive midfield and the Flash looking to grind out a result. The Spirit took a lead late thanks to Stengel polishing off a chance from a cross from Dunn.
Although Dunn was still struggling to find scoring chances she was starting to find an invaluable role down the right flank. Perhaps it was due to her pedigree (she is the reigning NWSL MVP) but Dunn was very successful towards the end of the season at drawing an opponents top defender and thus leaving them susceptible. Hinkle was still able to disrupt her play, but Dunn seemed more comfortable in this match with her new role, which in turn led to greater success for her teammates.
The one difference in this match seems to be the play of McDonald and Williams. With two strong center-forwards the Flash could push the Spirit defense on their heels. As opposed to the previous match, Gabarra did not use Zadorsky who had just come back from Canadian national team duty. Without that physical presence and with the Flash having McDonald back Riley could press the center of the pitch. That in turn gave Mewis the space to go forward and nail a long distance shot late.
Communication, or lack thereof, was a really important part of this match. Gabarra right around the time of the Olympics opted to bench Stephanie Labbe in favor of Kelsey Wys. While Wys has had moments of sheer brilliance her ability to organize her defense hasn’t always been up to par. Even in last week’s late victory over the Red Stars there were moments late it seemed as if players really quite sure who was supposed to mark Christen Press.
Against McDonald and Williams the Spirit will have a small margin for error especially in the final 15 minutes. Since Wys took over as starter on July 9th the Spirit have conceded five goals after the 75th minute and nine goals in the second half (out of twelve goals). That should be of concern to Gabarra and a sign of hope to Riley.
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Scorelines are largely meaningless when it comes to predicting the result of a future match. There are just too many variables and too many differences in the lineups and the teams to really make a good guess from. However, there are certainly some things that both sides can take from this match and bring to Houston on Sunday night. If both sides pay to attention to the little things from their previous two encounters and make adjustments accordingly it could create a very fascinating final.
