NWSL (USA)

There was a clash of Australians at the Cascadia Derby when Portland Thorns traveled to play bitter rivals Seattle Reign.

Starting for Seattle in goal once again was Lydia Williams with Steph Catley leading the defence. It was a quiet night for Williams who wasn’t tested all that much.

At one point, Portland’s Hayley Raso had an excellent opportunity to score when she found the ball right on her foot at close range, but her shot fired high and way off target.

In the 56th minute, Catley released a left-footed cross into the box, but her target couldn’t hit the goal.

The play was stopped briefly as a ball hit Catley in the face. After a visit from the trainer, she was back in action. Because of a series of injuries, Portland dropped Ellie Carpenter back into the defender role. Seattle over Portland, 1-0.

It’s feast or famine in Orlando as Alanna Kennedy and Emily van Egmond’s team suffered a tough home loss against league-leading North Carolina Courage.

The Pride defence gave up three goals in four minutes. Early in the first half, van Egmond fired a shot on goal at the near post but was denied by the Courage goalkeeper.

Watch Alanna Kennedy’s press conference:

Chicago Red Stars came up with a much-need win against the Washington Spirit thanks in part to the dynamic combination of Sam Kerr and Yuki Nagasato.

In the 60th minute, Kerr blasted down the left flank with the ball at her feet and delivered a perfectly-placed cross to the head of the Japanese star, who scored on a diving header.

Watch Kerr’s assist:

The Utah Royals beat visiting Sky Blue FC 3-1. Utah’s Katrina Gorry continues to be a consistent force in the midfield taking most of the corner kicks and being intricate in set pieces.

Gorry sent a long cross into the box to the feet of a streaking Gunny Jonsdottir, who mistakenly over-stepped her shot. This resulted in the ball sliding underneath Jonsdottir and across the frame to the waiting feet of Press, who took a touch and slotted the ball into the near post. 

After the match Gorry talked about Utah’s backline – “I think we have the best backline in the league that makes it so much easier on us midfielders. We can go anywhere we want and we know they’ll have our back.”