Match 12: Portland Timbers 0-0 Minnesota Thunder

By: Bob Kellett | June 5th, 2008

The Bottom Line: The Portland Timbers and Minnesota Thunder battled to a 0-0 draw in front of 5,651 at PGE Park on a June evening that easily could have been mistaken for a night in February. Both teams had ample opportunities to find the net, but were unable to convert their chances in a game that featured the return of Timbers forward Bryan Jordan, a combined 26 shots and where tempers flared on more than one occasion. Portland (4-3-5) has now gone four straight games at home without scoring. Minnesota (4-3-2) picks up a road point after losing in Portland back in April.

Timbers Lineup:
GK: James
Def: S. Thompson Knowles J. Thompson Griffin
Mid: Brown Poltl (Higgins 61) Gregor Guante
For: Jordan Suzuki

Three Stars

1. Bryan Jordan – On a brief loan from the LA Galaxy, Jordan made his presence felt early and often. His speed has clearly been missed this season, but the thing that struck me about him tonight is his fearlessness. He throws his body around with utter disregard for its well being. He also has tremendous hops and an uncanny knack for winning balls in the air. I credit the kid for playing his balls off for the Timbers. He didn’t have to, but he did.

2. Aaron Paye – While Gavin Wilkinson stood on the sideline content to let the guys he started go the full 90, Thunder coach Amos Magee went for the win and he almost got it. He inserted Paye into the lineup in 77th minute and the guy’s first touch, a header off a set piece, was almost a goal. In his 13 minutes or so of work, Paye almost scored twice and he nearly set up Melvin Tarley for the game winner. Fresh legs on a fast player can do wonders for a team late in the game, eh?

3. Jordan James – Making just his second start, James was tested. The stat line says he only made three saves but two of them were huge. After Cameron Knowles, who had his second weak game in a row, made a blunder in the center of the pitch, Melvin Tarley broke free one-on-one with James. The rookie keeper stoned the veteran forward. He also made a nice fingertips save on Paye’s header. His play tonight makes me think that the Timbers will be fine if Ray Burse goes back to Dallas full time.

Did you notice….?

* The Timbers played their best game in a few weeks and it still wasn’t good enough to pick up three points at home. The team did a better job with possession, but the big difference was that when they resorted to kick-and-run they actually had someone who could run. Jordan can make up for errant passes and long balls with his speed and athletic ability. He can make a guy like Leonard Griffin into a decent passer. He can make up for a lot of this team’s deficiencies. What worries me is that they might look at this game and decide that long balls over the top are the answer. They won’t be unless there is someone with a combination of speed and skill up front.

* I thought Takayuki Suzuki and Chris Brown worked very well together on the same side in the first half. With Brown playing in support of Suzuki, Taka had someone to feed the ball too when he got in trouble and had his back to the goal. Andrew Gregor was the other part of the right side triangle and even though he was still off his game, I thought the trio connected. I also thought Brown looked spent in the second half. He was playing with an injury and was even less fleet of foot than usual. At times he looked like a rugby player throwing his body around out there.

* If Miguel Guante had a better game and finished his chances he might have ended up with three goals.

* All the talk of injuries before the game, but it sure didn’t show with Taka. Suzuki, who celebrated his birthday today, was very active and I thought played his best game in a month. He also benefited from having Jordan playing next to him. He needs someone who can make runs and who he can feed going forward. I also am pleased that he is now taking the corner kicks. The balls he struck tonight were better than what we have seen from Gregor all season.

* Tom Poltl looked a dime short and a day late for most of the game. I love his competitiveness but when he is off his game he really is off his game. I wasn’t surprised when Wilkinson went with Higgins midway through the second half. This was the first game all year that Higgins didn’t start. Did anyone miss him?

* We’ve heard a lot about the team’s depth this year, but did we see it tonight? Late in the game playing at home and who could Wilkinson turn to for a late game goal? No one. Bagley was available but he’s scored once since he’s been here. Little hasn’t convinced the boss. Lara, nope. Arsene Oka didn’t even dress tonight. He simply didn’t have anyone to turn to. If he weren’t injured, Lawrence Olum might have been that guy tonight.

* The surest sign that it is a USL referee is when both coaches are walking off the field yelling at him at halftime. The man in the middle this evening didn’t have much of a clue. Everyone on the field had Andrew Gregor Syndrome — the uncontrollable urge to throw one’s hands up in the air in disgust. Even Merritt Paulson was flinging some shit his way at the end of the game when Brown was knocked down in the box. By the way, the linesman on the west side was Yao Ming. That guy was like three Tom Poltls.

* The first base dirt patch was turfed over. First time all year. Hooray. Up next: home plate.

* The weather kept the beer garden crowd away from this Thirsty Thursday.

* This is the fourth scoreless draw the Timbers have had this season and it is the sixth time in 12 games that they haven’t scored a goal. We are all officially allowed to be concerned about the lack of goals.

Final Thoughts: – The effort was there, the chances were there, and yet this one still leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Dropping points at home is a fool’s game in this league. If you drop too many, you end up fighting for your life at the end of the season. That is where things seem to be headed with this team. It was nice to see Bryan Jordan give everyone a bit of energy, but unfortunately he isn’t a long-term solution. He might not even be a solution on Saturday if he is back in LA. Clearly the team works better when it has some speed up front. What isn’t clear is where that will come from and whether it will come in time to pick up some road points against a very stingy Vancouver team.

Match Reports (I’ll update when I see them or when I wake up)

Game stats (USL Soccer)

Timbers settle for draw with Thunder (The Oregonian)

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Match Review: Timbers v. Thunder 6/5 (Nasty Challenge)

Some progress, but no goals for Jordan-led Timbers (Portland Tribune)

Timbers, Thunder end in draw at PGE Park (Portland Timbers)

Scoring drought continues, Timbers and Thunder scoreless at PGE Park (Soccer City USA)