Game 19: Tampa Bay Rowdies v. Portland Timbers

After their abysmal performance on Wednesday away to AC St. Louis, Portland Timbers will try to find their form against Tampa Bay Rowdies at George Steinbrenner Field on Saturday. Tampa have put together a streak of even two consecutive games without a loss since May, leaving the Rowdies three points shy of Portland on the USL table. The Timbers had gone five straight without a loss before inexplicably losing 3-0 to St. Louis.

With only three points separating the two sides in a closely contested race for the fourth playoff positions (a race that also currently includes Carolina, Minnesota and Puerto Rico), Saturday’s match will go a long way toward deciding the relative positions of both Portland and Tampa. The Timbers need a positive result to regain confidence after their shocker on Wednesday, but also to keep above the fray and remain atop the second tier of clubs behind Austin, Vancouver and Rochester.

Portland’s defense will be greatly improved by the return of skipper Ian Joy, who missed the St. Louis game due to yellow card accumulation. Joy’s leadership at the back will surely force a defense that was completely out of position for much of Wednesday’s game, back into the cohesive unit that allowed only eleven goals over the first seventeen games of the season.

At the front, the Timbers need some kind of spark. Clearly the combination of George Josten and Bright Dike was not one that led to any kind of offensive threat. Perhaps Dike has been figured out by defenders who now have several games worth of tape to watch, or maybe he needs a different kind of attacking partner than Josten. Either way, it was a pathetic display at the top on Wednesday.

In the end, any discussion of tactics or substitution patterns may be a complete waste of everyone’s time. It’s clear that the try-out mentality of the coaching staff has continued throughout the season. When it was has introduced good, young players like Dike and Derek Gaudet, the club has benefitted. But when Gavin Wilkinson and company constantly change the line-up for the sake of getting a look at each player at different positions, it has badly damaged the Timbers’ chances this season. But with Major League Soccer firmly in front, it’s growing increasingly clear that this season does not matter to the manager or to the front office.

Category: Portland Timbers, USSF Division II