Racing 0 - Thorns 2 Analysis and broader trends
Courtesy ISI Photos
I’m sure most fans were disappointed in the outcome of last night's victory. Two sets of eyes that I really trust, Benton from Vamos Morados and Bekki from BGN both commented that the performance seemed off. Judging by Benton's immediate post game video reaction, I think it might have been hard for him to envision a different outcome. Becki and I chatted at halftime and she said that if Racing ending up losing 0-2, that it would be a disappointing night for her. I think I saw a slightly different match but like I said, I value their opinions.
I could clearly have envisioned a point from this match. Reasonable people can differ on whether the contact from Nagasato on Rodriguez was a penalty (I think it was) but a few seconds prior, there was a shove on Fox that caused her to tumble over. I have seen this called as a foul from an ensuing corner a great many times and I believe it was a foul on this occasion too. A few bounces here or there, and I could have clearly seen a path to a draw.
I think Racing looked better in attack than in the previous game against Portland. Milliet again was great going forward. I think Kizer looks more comfortable playing out wide and Salmon has proved that sometimes she only needs half a chance to score. Yuki and McCaskill came fairly close to socring. Overall I thought the attacking performance was decent. The defensive performance I thought was decent as well, although Racing clearly missed Bonner, especially on that second goal.
The Trends
However, I do see what Benton and Bekki were talking about. The passing accuracy was off in this game. It was only 71%. In fact passing accuracy has generally been trending in the wrong direction:
To be fair, the opponents accuracy has been generally lower trending as well, which tends to mean more pressure being applied by Racing. As you saw above, the 2 most recent wins have come when Racing has been the more accurate passing team. The odd thing when you look at the passing stats, is sometimes the player of the Match has bad passing stats. Milliet and Fox both had relatively low passing stats, but were two of the best players for Racing last night. To be fair Fox had the most completed passes for Racing.
Looking on the bright side, the shot trends are looking better.
Racing’s total shots have been pretty steady, and that number needs to increase. What I will say, is that most of Racing's shots have been quality ones. Rarely do they take an ill-advised shot. Racing's opponents shots are dropping too. They still obviously need to drop more. It's frankly a great testimony to Racing's defense and their captain that they have 10 points while being out shot in all buy one match.
The shots on target are clearly trending in the right direction. Last night, Racing had opportunities to score, even though most of those lacked real quality in the finished product. Racing's opponents are getting fewer attempts on target too.
Final Thoughts
Perhaps the most encouraging positive trend is something that cannot be measured. Last night's reactions tell me that expectations have increased tremendously. On many people's minds was the fact that Portland was missing 4 starters due to Olympic commitments. Many people expected a better performance and possibly a win vs Portland. When I asked Grant Little from Stumptown Footy who covers the Portland Thorns if he was concerned about the missing starters, he said that he really wasn't. He knew that the Thorns roster was plenty deep. I think some of the Racing fans thought that Portland Thorns might roll out 4 stiffs to replace their missing starters and that obviously wasn't the case. However, from the Racing perspective this was seen as a real opportunity to grab a result. This is the right attitude to have. Like I said I think last night was a missed opportunity, but not a crippling defeat. Going forward, the trip to Orlando ought to be met with the same optimism. It is a chance for points against a weakened team. Let's see if Racing can meet those expectations.
