Providence Park: Where Knees Go to Die

The Portland Thorns remain unbeaten at home after a 2-2 draw against Gotham this past Friday night. This tie marks the 11th straight regular-season game played without defeat on home turf for the Thorns. This streak is the longest in club history.

While this record is rather impressive, it is also important to note that the Thorns have not won the last three matches they've played, two of those being away games against their rivals, Seattle, and the newly formed Denver Summit.

There’s been a lot of speculation on what makes the Thorns so special at home and so inconsistent on the road. Is it long travel days without enough recovery? A lack of Riveters in the stands to feed the players energy? Inadaptability and inexperience from the rookies? This is a very young team with an average age of 25 years old, while Denver Summit's and Gotham's average ages are both 28. The NWSL allows for 6 chartered flights per season, which are usually reserved for playoff or cross-country games.

With 21,743 fans in attendance, this match was off to a rough start for the Thorns when, in the 1st minute, Gotham's newly recruited transfer from Chelsea, Guro Reiten, assisted former Thorn Midge Purce in an easy volley to solidify a 1-0 lead for Gotham.

Before the Thorns had a real chance to respond, USWNT gold medalist and former Thorn Emily Sonnett went down with a non-contact knee injury in the 7th minute while trying to defend against Pietra Tordin. (Gotham has just confirmed that Emily Sonnett underwent surgery and they’ll update the public later this week with more information.) This is a story Providence Park knows all too well.

In the last three years alone, Julie Dufour, Caiya Hanks, Midge Purce, and Janine Beckie have each torn their ACLs while playing on Providence Park's turf. It’s also important to note the injuries of Thorns who have called Providence Park home and have suffered season-ending knee injuries during that same period: Bella Bixby, Morgan Weaver, Nicole Payne, and Marie Müller.

The MLS averages about 14 ACL tears per season with a roster of around 900 players, while halfway through this NWSL season alone there have already been 14 ACL tears among a roster of around 400 players. In the MLS, 6 teams use artificial turf while 24 teams use grass. In the NWSL, 3 teams use turf while 13 teams use grass.

Women are up to eight times more likely to tear their ACL than men, and there are currently studies being done by FIFA to see if menstrual cycles are playing a part in this.

While all research can be helpful, this feels a bit like a cop-out to blame it on women's bodies in an attempt to avoid funding expensive external change. Whether that includes producing new cleats, different pitch maintenance, or trying out new training and recovery methods to strengthen support muscles, something needs to change urgently.

If this problem was plaguing men in the same way it is women, there is no doubt in my mind that we would throw every dime necessary into researching and resolving this problem. 94% of athlete injury research is done on men, while only 6% is done on women. This problem continues to show a disgusting oversight of the women’s game. These elite athletes need to feel safe on the field they practice and play on.

The Thorns have officially moved their practices to the new 150 million dollar-dual-training facility that they will be sharing with the Portland Fire. While construction on the building isn't set to be done until August 22nd, the two soccer fields are already fully functional. This campus features one grass field and one turf field. The routine as of now is to train mostly on the grass and switch over to the turf right before game day to adjust back.

I interviewed Thorns captain Sam Hiatt and asked her if she feels that turf may be playing a role in all of the injuries we've seen in the NWSL.

"I think grass is the best; you can just feel the difference in your body. You can feel it in the little things, in your joints when you're playing, and just the quality of the game as well. There's a reason that for the World Cup they brought in grass and put it in those typically turf stadiums. Long term, it would be great if we could all be playing on grass. That is the standard, and doing what we can to work towards it might look different for each club. For us, it's training during the week on grass, which is a great start. I think it does make a difference, and we feel very lucky and grateful to have this now. I think any athlete, soccer or otherwise, would say they want to play on grass."

Concern and shock were ever-present on both teams' faces as Sonnett didn’t even attempt to get up and immediately called over the medical team. USWNT teammates Sophia Wilson and Olivia Moultrie stood by Sonnett's side as she was worked on, and after an excruciatingly silent examination, a stretcher was brought onto the field, and a US giant was stretchered off. While we don’t currently know Sonnett’s condition, we are less than a year away from the World Cup in Brazil, and it has proven to be important for the team to have their oldest and most experienced player on the field.

A loud and heartfelt standing ovation rang out as Sonnett was stretchered off the field. Fans with Sonnett-Thorns jerseys came across the Jumbotron, validating the "Once a Thorn, always a Thorn" mentality. Play resumed, and Portland slowly worked their way back into the game.

In the 21st minute, Renee Lyles scored her first professional goal to tie the match 1-1. Tordin found her in the box, and Lyles torpedoed a shot over Ann-Katrin Berger and into the far corner of the net.

Lyles has been a force every chance she's been given time on the field, which has only been 161 minutes so far this season. From scoring 3 goals in the preseason friendly against C.F. Monterrey to an assist and first regular season goal against Gotham, she's been making an extremely convincing case that she deserves a spot on this team.

I asked her how it's felt going from a temporary contract at the beginning of the year to being offered an extension for the whole season.

"It's definitely been such a journey with lots of ups and downs. I'm trying to stay very grounded and present and take each day as it comes and work as hard as I can each day to keep improving and take steps towards being more of an impact on the team." She is exactly the type of young, eager, and energetic talent you’d hope for in a rookie.

Pietra Tordin, or as I refer to her, Young Messi, just signed a three-year contract extension through the 2029 season. She has become one of the most important pieces of the Thorns’ attack, especially with Reilyn Turner out due to injury. Tordin is leading the league in assists and consistently creating chances for Portland even when they're struggling with possession.

In the 40th minute, Gotham defender Jess Carter received the first yellow card of the match. In the 53rd minute, Portland took a 2-1 lead as Canadian superstar Jessie Fleming got the ball in the back of the net after a chaotic back-and-forth in the box. This goal came after Portland just extended Fleming’s contract through the 2028 season.

Fleming has played every available minute this season and does a large amount of the work in the midfield, especially since Sam Coffey's departure last season. Constantly referred to as the busiest player with the most miles under her belt and an extremely high footy IQ. It is clear how much her teammates respect and admire her.

In the 56th minute, Marie Müller was shown Portland’s first yellow card. In the 57th minute, Gotham's Jordynn Dudley received a questionable yellow card for a violent strangulation throwdown of defender Jayden Perry. The replay is one of the most brutal fouls I've seen at Providence Park, and the public seemed to agree as they booed loudly every time Dudley possessed the ball for the rest of the game.

In the 62nd minute, Sam Kerr tied the match at 2-2. Her initial header hit Müller and dropped directly back towards her feet, where she scored a rebound for her first NWSL goal after nearly seven years away at Chelsea. Kerr still leads the NWSL in regular-season goals scored with 78, while Lynn Biyendolo leads in all goals with 79.

In the 69th minute, newcomer Nina Nijstad replaced Cassandra Bogere and made her Thorns and NWSL debut. Gotham’s Jaelin Howell was also shown a yellow card. In the 73rd minute, Kerr broke out behind Portland’s defense. Jayden Perry pulled her down and was shown a red card for denying a goal-scoring opportunity.

The Thorns were left to survive with 10 players against Gotham’s stacked 11. In the 74th minute, Mackenzie Arnold, a close friend of JP, received a yellow card for dissent. Providence Park roared in the 76th minute as Morgan Weaver replaced Tordin, making her first competitive appearance since Portland’s 2024 playoff loss to Gotham. Weaver’s return earned one of the loudest chants of "Morgan Weaver" this town has ever heard.

In the 82nd minute, M.A. Vignola replaced Reyna Reyes as Portland made one final defensive change to keep the backline fresh. The Thorns survived the remaining minutes and walked away with a 2-2 draw against one of the best teams in the league.

Portland finished with less than 37% possession but outshot Gotham 16-11 and put twice as many attempts on target. Lyles looked ready for the opportunity she was given. Fleming scored days after committing her future to Portland. Tordin added another assist days after doing the same. Weaver finally returned to her adoring crowd. It's not often that a draw feels like a victory.

This was an incredible game that featured everything you’d want from a match and showed just why this town is Soccer City, USA.