The Portland Thorns earned a ticket to the playoffs last Sunday thanks to a header by Alex Morgan that ended up being the lone point of a 1-0 victory over top seeded Seattle. Portland will now head to the playoffs in defense of their NWSL crown against a familiar first round foe in FC Kansas City. But the Thorns’ toughest “big bad” to another title may not be a soccer team per se but an obstacle known as the road.
At Providence Park, the team plays in front of large, loud crowds ready to cheer their team on for the next 90+ minutes. Their last couple of home games saw attendance above 19,000 and 17,000. Thorns’ fans come ready with banners, chants and an overall excitement that is unmatched in the NWSL. The road, however, is nothing like Providence Park. The road features smaller stadiums and even smaller crowds where fans are more likely to show up because they won tickets at an office party giveaway rather than to have actually purchased them. Take this weekend’s game against FC Kansas City for example; the teams will be playing at Durwood Stadium where the seating capacity is 3,200. 3,200 show up at Providence Park just to watch Alex Morgan warm up for an hour before the game. I’m starting to wonder if these varying degrees in atmosphere from playing at home to playing on the road have some psychological effect on the Thorns.
The Thorns were 3-4-5 on the road this year. Their goal difference away from home was -4 compared to +8 at Providence Park. Perhaps it’s harder than we thought to go from record setting crowds at home to a league average attendance of 3,500 on the road. Look at it this way. Say you are a rock band and you just got done playing to a sold-out crowd in front of thousands of screaming, key-chain jingling fans. The week after you have the privilege of playing at a high school field that is half full. How motivated would you be? Of course, these are professional athletes and motivation should always come from within. But, you can’t tell me there isn’t some challenge in mentally getting yourself motivated in certain venues. It’s human nature. It’s why in almost every sport, every team plays better at home than on the road.
There are other factors as to why this season was so up and down for Portland, particularly on the road. The Thorns defense has been shaky at times to downright awful, including 5-0 losses to Seattle and Western New York (at home) and a head scratching 4-1 loss to the cellar dwelling Boston Breakers early in the season followed by another 2-0 loss to Boston later in the year that almost derailed their playoff hopes. Both losses to Boston were on the road. They also contended with injuries to Alex Morgan and Rachel Van Hollebeke as well as having key players like Tobin Heath playing overseas. It took the Thorns almost half a season to finally be at full strength, but even then the team suffered with inconsistencies. They did show flashes of the team they hope to be in the playoffs with victories like last Sunday’s win against Seattle and a 7-1 blowout victory over their first round opponent Kansas City in July. Even their much hyped offense has been inconsistent at times. If their defense can be as stingy as it was last weekend, their offense is sure to come alive as is there too much firepower on this team just waiting to let loose.
Back to this whole road issue, maybe the Thorns will find some extra motivation in knowing the game will be televised on ESPN2. Not only will a maximum of 3,200 be watching the Thorns and FC Kansas City on Saturday afternoon in person, but a nationally televised audience will be watching as well. Kansas City has not lost a home game all year, sporting an 8-0-4 home record. Kansas City, like Portland, struggles on the road but plays with a different passion at home. Their crowds may be smaller, but KC plays with pride in front of their fans. Motivation shouldn’t be a problem this weekend. It’s the playoffs. It’s time for the Thorns to get focused on the one goal they set out for at the beginning of the season. It’s time for the Thorns to show their true colors. Of all the different variations of this team we have seen throughout the year, which team is the real Portland Thorns? Is it the team that lost twice to Boston or is it the team that beat Seattle to secure a playoff spot? We’ll get an answer on Saturday in front of a national audience.
FC Kansas City VS Portland Thorns FC
Saturday, August 23rd, 10:00am
Taking Place at: Verizon Wireless Field at Durwood Stadium
See it on: ESPN2
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