NWSL Semifinals Are Set ft. Megan Rapinoe and Ali Krieger 🏆

It’s Monday, October 23rd. Give us four minutes, we give you everything The Women’s Game.

IRISH BANGERS, EVERY WEEKEND: Arsenal’s most reliable menu item, a remarkable Katie McCabe moment, does it again this weekend as the Kilnamanagh native scored not just one, but two stunning goals on Sunday to lift Arsenal past Bristol City.

I. NWSL Semifinals are set! 🇺🇸🏆

Wistful romantics may be in luck if the current trend holds true, for a pair of American legends and retiring stars are running deep with their teams into this year’s NWSL playoffs.

For both players — whether Megan Rapinoe with OL Reign, or Ali Krieger and Gotham FC — the possibility of winning it all in 2023 would not simply be poetic justice on storied careers, it would also be the first Championship trophy for their respective clubs.

But first, the semifinals! And they’ll face formidable foes on either side of the bracket.

After overcoming Angel City at home this Friday, OL Reign booked their ticket to meet Casey Stoney’s Supporters Shield-winning San Diego Wave in the SoCal cauldron they call home, SnapDragon Stadium, on November 5th. (The international break interrupts the playoffs).

And while Veronica Latsko’s late goal (placed past Angel City’s Angelina Anderson in the 87th minute of a testy, defensive affair in Seattle) was enough to settle the quarterfinal 1-0, Laura Harvey’s side will need all the weight of their veteran-powered momentum to escape through San Diego to the final.

The good news? The momentum is mounting, key players are performing (longtime NWSL stalwart and Megan Rapinoe soccer sidekick Lauren Barnes won all her tackles and ground duels, and was 53/53 for passes as she led a near-perfect backline on Friday). Emily Sonnett was all over the place in the midfield, ready to stymie all threats. And one last assuring sight for any sore eye: Rose Lavelle is back, baby!

Down in Cary, N.C., the Courage hosted Gotham FC in the absence of their Brazilian star and NWSL Golden Boot runner-up, Kerolin, who left Decision Day with an ACL injury.

The Courage are a pragmatic and cohesive team with plenty of other talent in their side. But the absence of Kerolin stung in the end, as Gotham garnered the performance necessary to escape Cary with the 2-0 victory.

How’d they do it? In the words of Midge Purce: “We defend as 11, we attack as 11”. The defensive work on every line of the field was evident, impacting the win and inspiring their attacks.

A pair of goals at the end of each half settled it. The first arrived from Delanie Sheehan, her first-ever NWSL goal, and what a time to score it. In the 91st minute, Lynn Williams won a ball sent down over the top from Jenna Nighswonger, and slotted it across to Yazmeen Ryan for the perfect finish.

The win marks the first NWSL playoff win for Gotham FC, an occasion to celebrate for their loyal fans. And carrying forward a theme from Gotham’s Ali Krieger farewell celebration on Decision Day, the team celebrated by noting once more, it’s still not Ali Krieger’s last game.

They’ll meet the reigning champion Portland Thorns next in Oregon.

MORE: From Sandra Herrera at CBS Sports, Mark Parsons is let go from his role as manager of Washington Spirit, after falling just short of the playoffs on Decision Day this year.

II. 27 Americans prepare for tough Colombia test in upcoming October friendlies 🇺🇸🇨🇴

Before the NWSL playoffs resume their cause across the West Coast on November 5th, the USWNT resume a different journey as interim-manager Twila Kilgore reconvenes a 27-player roster that remains mired in a state of relative limbo.

That inertia is downstream of a hiring process that US Soccer hopes to settle by December. In the meantime, Kilgore works closely alongside Sporting Director Matt Crocker to select the squads that must prepare (with nine months dwindling fast) for next summer’s Olympics in Paris.

Over a call with media last week, Kilgore confirmed that absent injury, World Cup players will continue to be selected, for now. The two then work together to identify other players to fold into the program. Exciting signs of those fresh faces began in the September window, as Mia Fishel and Jaedyn Shaw appeared. And this time, Portland’s teenage game-changer, Olivia Moultrie, joins the evolution.

Several key players remain absent due to injury, including the long-injured Catarina Macario and precautionary absence of Rose Lavelle (who re-emerged for OL Reign Friday evening). The people’s captain, Becky Sauerbrunn, is back in camp as well, after missing the World Cup due to injury.

With the World Cup roster still largely in tow, an interim manager at the helm and a few exciting young talents in camp, the US will host Colombia for a pair of matches in Sandy, Utah and San Diego. The visiting team arrives fresh off a remarkable World Cup run, where 18-year-old cancer survivor and football virtuoso Linda Caicedo helped lift her team to the quarterfinals, where they ultimately fell in a tight contest to tournament runner-up, England.

MORE: US captain Lindsey Horan comes to camp in top-form, scoring four goals in her past two matches with Lyon. That includes this one from just yesterday.

AND MORE: Former US boss Vlatko Andonovski is set to return to NWSL, leading the Kansas City Current

III. The Reggae Girlz are on strike as the federation fails to deliver 🇯🇲

We often speak of the World Cup as a stage where players can launch their careers forward, turn their names into stars, inspire their country, and lobby for change and opportunity at various levels.

In pursuit of that, Jamaica’s Reggae Girlz did wondrous work down under to capture the imaginations of their fanbase and attention of the world. They drew France and Brazil and defeated Panama to escape Group F, a remarkable achievement worthy of the talent in their squad, before falling 1-0 in a tough battle with Colombia in Melbourne. The result marked the best result yet for the Reggae Girlz at the World Cup.

But despite all that earned momentum, change has not come for a federation that drew ire from players predating the tournament. Players have long cited inequitable conditions, neglect, and insufficient funds as festering issues plaguing their growth.

Unfortunately, as of last week, the Reggae Girlz have announced they will go on strike and won’t be playing in the upcoming international window. The squad indicates delayed payments as among their core complaints.

In the words of football legend Ian Wright, who weighed in:

“This is why it can't just be about ‘inspiring girls’ because that is not enough to actually improve the conditions that these teams deserve.”

IV. UWCL format draws criticism as major powers are eliminated before the groups 🌍

The Champions League in Europe settled the second leg of the second qualifying rounds last week across the continent. And with a few major players knocked out before the Group Stage, invested observers have criticized a format that saw Manchester United, as well as last year’s semi-finalists Arsenal and runner-up Wolfsburg, knocked out before the Group Stage.

In particular, Manchester United’s boss Marc Skinner lamented the qualifying process, given that they were faced with beating a tough opponent like PSG in the qualifying round. Skinner’s side lost 3-1 to PSG in Paris last Wednesday, ending 4-2 on aggregate after drawing at home.

Skinner: “It's crazy that we have to play PSG in this qualifying round, crazy”.

Manchester’s gaffer also criticized the referee in the match: “If that's the level of officiating at this standard, it's not good enough.”

And while there may be room for critique of the qualifying process, Chelsea manager Emma Hayes later lambasted the comments, calling them arrogant: “I think that’s ignorant and arrogant all at once for us to say that”, adding that the teams qualified for the Group Stage deserve to be there.

Skinner has since apologized for causing any offense.

MORE: Emma Hayes responds to Marc Skinner’s comments

V. News and Notes

1. Vivienne Miedema is back in action in WSL after 311 days away from the pitch, impacting the game near immediately with a wicked, trademark pass. The world class talent is also called in to camp for the Dutch this international break.

2. Christine Sinclair has announced her retirement from the international game. In a year where some of the greats that carried this game so far are stepping away, it feels almost fitting — but still bittersweet — that Canada’s all-time top goalscorer is retiring from the world stage. A bonus point of the announcement is we learned Sinclair has blocked the USWNT Twitter account.

3. Jenni Hermoso is back for Spain this window. The recent World Cup winner and goalscoring legend for club and country was not named to last month’s international roster, after Luis Rubiales’ unrequested kiss placed her into the unwanted spotlight of a global reckoning that’s still falling out.  

VI. Parting shots

Rylee Foster, the Canadian goalkeeper we wrote about in last week’s newsletter, is finding a happy home in her return to the field of play. In her second appearance for Wellington Wanderers, Foster kept a clean sheet to mark the team’s first win of the season.