Here we are again, returning back to league play, and what a return it was. The Thorns traveled up to Seattle to see if they could re-create the wild magic of the Matchday 2 win only to find that, no; that wild rumpus really was a one-off. The Seattle Reign saw off the visitors with a 2-nil thrashing that was much more one-sided than the scoreline suggests.
The Thorns weren’t the only ones to suffer Seattle Sufferball; all three of our punters went long on Portland only to find themselves just as crushed. Nobody got anything from the pitch; no result, no scorers, no cards. Ken picked up a consolation prize for his yarn of Fishlock shenanigans despite the Welsh Terror riding the pine all match.
Damn.
So here’s where we stand after Matchday 15:
| Player | Latest Round | Cumulative Score |
| PTFC Dave | 0 | 0 |
| Ken | 2 | 2 |
| Barcasiempre | 0 | 0 |
| DanXP2 | 0 | 0 |
| Daniel Stratton | 0 | 0 |
| David Mellinger | 0 |
How all this works:
Before the upcoming Thorns match add a comment to this post. As your first line, put your predicted result, for example 1-3 Thorns.
In the body of your comment, start with the goals and assists, like so:
Wilson (Fleming)
Reyes (Free kick)
Moultrie (Unassisted)
Rodman (PK)
Next, name the first yellow card recipient: Sophia Wilson
Then a red card. (NOTE: no points awarded for correctly calling a red-card-free match, so take a guess.) Trinity Rodman for mimicking mooning the referee after getting an undeserved yellow.
Make your fun prediction,and give a “thumbs up” to anybody else’s prediction that tickles your fancy: “Ryan gets the start against her former club. She gets through 70 minutes without fouling her former teammates until she can’t take it anymore. She pushes over Perry, gives Muller a wedgie, gives Arnold a noogie, then flips off the Riveters and runs out of Providence Park, never to be seen again. The ref issues a red card, which she later contests, and loses.” (h/t to ABell4)
Scoring:
· Correct score: 5 points
· Correct result (draw/win/loss): 3 points
· Each clean sheet: 2 points
· Each goal-scorer: 1 point
· Each FK/PK/assist/lack of assist: 1 point
· Goal/assist bonus: 1 point
· Player with the first yellow card of the match: 1 point
· A player with a red card: 1 point
· Most liked/most outrageously accurate prediction: 2 points
Some ground rules and explanations/clarifications (the fine print):
Comments must be posted before kickoff, but you can edit or amend an earlier prediction right up to the starting whistle.
Keep your scoreline predictions realistic. No crazy scores just to pad out your odds of getting goals and assists.
The goal/assist bonus is an additional point if you predict the correct scorer and assistant on the same goal, for example, you say Castellanos scores from a Moultrie assist and that is exactly what happens.
Be clear whether you think a goal will be unassisted, assisted, or from a PK/FK. Unassisted = no assist, run of play; Assisted = player who got the assist; PK/FK = dead ball, not in run of play. FK includes olimpicos from corners. No entry means unassisted.
Tomorrow the Thorns travel to Denver to play the first of this season’s two expansion clubs, the Denver Summit.
Denver has been slightly the better of the two, although neither the Summit nor Boston has been exactly tearing up the league. Denver is currently 11th of 16 (having been leapfrogged by Seattle after last weekend’s win…) 16pts, 4-4-5, 19GF, 18GA, GD +1. They’ve been better on the road (3 of their 4 wins have come on the trot) but this weekend will be the first opportunity to see the Summit at home with their marquee signing, Lindsey “I was a Thorns MVP!” Heaps.
Denver has a trio of internationals scoring goals for them; Janine Sonis (familiar to us as “Janine Beckie”) with 5, German forward Melissa Kössler and England forward/AM Natasha Flint with 4 each. Plus another Thorns-familiar player, winger Yazmeen Ryan with 3.
Denver’s form is a bit hard to predict. They’ve played some good games; beat Gotham in Jersey back in March, thrashed Houston 1-4 in May, forced Utah to need a penalty to win 2-1 at home two weeks later, and then beat Louisville 0-1at the end of month. But they’ve also dropped some clangers; Kansas City beat them up 0-3 in Denver in early June, and Boston nicked two goals in stoppage time to win 3-2 in Foxborough.
Will Heaps make a big difference for the Summit? Will Portland shake off the Loss at Lumin?
Place your predictions and let’s see!
- The Thorns Prediction Game: MD 16 – DEN v POR - July 17, 2026
- Thorns FC: Goalless in Seattle - July 16, 2026
- The Thorns Prediction Game: MD 15 – SEA v POR - July 10, 2026
