After his team’s victory last Sunday over the Houston Dash, Thorns head coach Mark Parsons described Portland’s final month as a “mini-season,” one that, if all went well, would extend over five games: from that 1-0 victory through to a third-straight NWSL championship game appearance.
Another way to define that stretch would have been in terms of a ladder, though. Each game going forward presented a small, incremental chance to step up. Hand-over-hand, foot-over-foot. If the Thorns stuck to the basics and kept moving up, they’d be at a much higher level come the final.
With today’s loss in Tacoma, though, it feels as if the Thorns are back to rung one.