Crystal Dunn given Ring of Honor, plus USWNT friendlies
Hello Courage Country!
The weather improved slightly by Saturday’s match, and the Courage held a lovely ceremony celebrating Crystal Dunn as this year’s Ring of Honor recipient.
The Courage also faced a 0-2 loss to the Washington Spirit. The Spirit got creative when their initial attack plan didn’t work as well as they’d hoped, and put up two goals by the end of the first half. The Courage gained momentum by the second half, but a controversial VAR call set them back, and ultimately they weren’t able to score.
Week over week, players, coaches and our team here at The Lion’s Pitch keep asking why the urgency and consistency doesn’t feel as present in the first half of the match, so we’ll see what adjustments are made in next week’s matchup against Bay FC.
What we learned: Courage v. Washington Spirit
Aggressive attacks from the wing backs work … and need to be more frequent in this formation
This was addressed by both defender Ryan Williams and head coach Mak Lind in the post-game press conference in response to our questions. The Courage had more momentum in the second half, but with Washington up two goals already, the Spirit could commit more players to defending the box.
For the majority of the season, the Courage have opted for keeping four players back when defending, switching to a three back formation in moments when they can spring Ryan Williams, especially in transition attacks.
Unique for this match, they had Feli Rauch in her natural position as left back, and would switch from five backs when defending to three on attack, pushing Williams and Rauch forward. For a short time, this did allow the Courage to control for both Trinity Rodman and Gift Monday, attacking from either side of the pitch. After the hydration break, the Spirit made adjustments and came with a more effective attack.
After the half, the Courage made more attacks into Washington’s territory and at times, looked like they might score and even equalize the match. Lind said he wanted to see more fearless risks and attacks in the first half of matches, and has repeatedly indicated the team is working on the issue.
THAT VAR call
Ashley Sanchez was awarded a free kick around 50’, and sailed an outstanding kick over the defensive wall into the goal. For a moment, it seemed the Courage were reversing the momentum of the match, but the effort was ultimately ruled a “no goal” by the referee after a VAR check.
For the rule in question, attacking players must maintain at least a 1m distance between themselves and the defensive wall. Shinomi Koyama was marking Trinity Rodman, and followed her right into the wall before Sanchez took her kick.
We asked the officials for clarity on the ruling, and also asked if Shinomi was warned about the distance, since typically the ref makes adjustments before the kick is taken.
Match officials confirmed the rule violated, and said, “During the setup of the wall, the referee marked the 1m distance from the defenders’ wall using the spray and indicated to #20 of North Carolina to not encroach.” We also later confirmed the encroachment has to happen before the kick occurs.
The result was that the ball was turned over to Washington, and the goal was called off.
Here’s a screenshot of the moment in question.
The unfortunate aspect of the ruling is that Shinomi wasn’t interfering with the defensive wall and had no impact on the play. This brought two issues up:
- Courage fans were left wondering why the ref, who’s watching this play, didn’t make further adjustments to Shinomi. This foul is rarely called, because usually the referee addresses the issue with the player before the kick is taken.
- It directly illustrates the arguments fans and players have brought up regarding VAR. Clearly, the ref the didn’t think Shinomi was interfering with the kick, and signaled a goal for Sanchez. The VAR check reversed the decision. It would be a frustrating outcome for any team.
Look ahead: Courage v. Bay FC
It will be interesting to see how Bay shows up for this match. They had three draws and three losses, including a loss to Chicago, heading into the June break.
Last week, they beat Racing Louisville on the road, and now will host the Courage at home.
Like the Courage, Bay has a new coach in Emma Coates, who so far has earned a 4-3-6 record, with Bay sitting at 11th on the table. As a relatively new expansion side, the team fields a strong starting XI without much depth, so injuries can plague them into the late season.
Their midfield is their biggest asset, having recently acquired Claire Hutton from Kansas City, who pairs with former Duke Blue Devil Hannah Bebar. Two of their starting defenders are former Courage players: center back Brooklyn Courtnall and right back Sydney Collins. Keeper Jordan Silkowitz is very solid.
Recently, they’ve played Karlie Lema and Kennedy Fuller up front, with Alex Pfeiffer and Racheal Kundananji as wingers. Like the Courage, Bay spreads out their scoring among multiple attackers.
The Courage split their recent matches with Bay, suffering a 1-3 loss at home in March. Last year, the Courage had a 4-1 victory in October, and a 0-1 loss back in April 2025.
With Coates and Mak Lind now squaring off for the second time, it should be a fun match to watch.
Courage news and updates
- In case you missed it, last week we wrote up an evaluation of the team’s preseason moves to date.
Around the league and beyond
- Weirdly, this is not Courage news: former Courage captain, midfielder Denise O’Sullivan, joined Gotham on loan from Liverpool, per Jeff Kassouf at ESPN. It’s strange to see O’Sullivan playing for another squad, though its hard to imagine exactly how she’d fit into the current Courage format.
- The USWNT will host two friendlies against current world champions Spain this fall. The first will be Oct. 10 at Audi Field in Washington, and the second on Oct. 13 near Philadelphia.
- Crystal Dunn will also be honored at the Oct. 10 match. Drivable for Courage fans in the area!
That’s it for this week! As always, you can get in touch with tips, suggestions, corrections and more: contact@lionspitch.com.
Next match: Saturday, July 18, 4:00 pm ET
North Carolina Courage v. Bay FC
Away
Streaming on: CBS / Paramount+
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