Podcasts
PawedCast Episode 85: Toronto and Houston Rewind, Orlando Pride, and Simon Veness Interview

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Orlando City may not have won either of its games last week but we’re still feeling pretty OK about the season overall. We break down a “good” loss and a “throw-away” loss and give you our Man of the Match picks for both games. We’re more bullish on the Pride after a road draw against FC Kansas City that came soooo close to being a win. We also discuss Tommy Redding’s call-up to the U-20 national team for the FIFA U-20 World Cup and the World Cup qualifier that Orlando City Stadium will host.
We’ve got a bit of a different kind of guest this week as mlssoccer.com writer Simon Veness joins us to tell us just what prompted him to write a book about Orlando City SC. He talks about his introduction to supporting his favorite soccer team and just how many hours of interviews his better half transcribed in the writing of “Defying Expectations,” as well as how you can get it.
After a brief tangent to discuss beer and how we Americans like to celebrate other countries’ holidays, we’ve got your key match-ups and score predictions for Saturday’s match-up between Orlando City and Sporting Kansas City.
Here’s how the show unfolded:
0:12- Orlando City fell twice on the road last week, but we’re not bent out of shape over it and we’ll tell you why. Plus, the Pride, Redding to the U-20 World Cup, USMNT coming to Orlando, and more.
47:43- Simon Veness hops aboard to discuss his upcoming book, what he learned while writing it, Phil and Kay Rawlins’ place in Orlando sports history, and more.
1:11:09- Our key match-ups and score predictions for Orlando City vs. Sporting Kansas City.
We’ll be back next week as we recap OCSC-SKC and look ahead to two more games in a busy part of the Orlando City schedule, plus Pride-North Carolina, OCB-Cincinnati, and much more.
Podcasts
PawedCast Episode 488: Cincinnati Rewind, Charlotte Preview, and More
The Lions drop a tough home match and must regroup on the road at Charlotte.

Orlando City’s offensive consistency continues to be inconsistent. Days after scoring four goals that could have been eight, the Lions scored one that should have been at least two. The team has also shipped multiple goals in consecutive games, although that set piece howler on Saturday can hardly be blamed on the defense as a whole.
We checked our score predictions, broke down the key moments and players from the game, and made our selections for Man of the Match.
The mailbagbox wanted us to predict Oscar Pareja’s comfort level with his roster and how many guys on an MLS roster should be relied upon for significant minutes. Remember, if there’s anything — and we do mean anything — you want us to address on the show, just ask us by tweeting it to us at @TheManeLand with the hashtag #AskTMLPC, or hitting us up on Bluesky Social with that same hashtag.
Following the mailbagbox segment, we touched on OCB’s Monday matinee at Philadelphia, which had not yet been played at the time of our recording (we recorded Sunday afternoon because of some scheduling issues). We also discussed Alex Freeman’s selection to the MLS All-Star Team.
Finally, we looked ahead to Orlando City’s matchup on the road at Charlotte. The Lions will have to play well against a difficult conference opponent to get back in the win column. City doesn’t have a great record against the other teams above the playoff line, so maybe a game against the 10th-place team is what the club needs to get three points to erase the memory of that Cincinnati loss. We provide our key matchups, look at where the teams are in the table, and made our score predictions for the match.
Be sure to rate and review our show wherever you get your podcasts. Remember, we’ll read any five-star reviews we get on Apple Podcasts on the next show.
If you’d like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we’d love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.
Here’s how No. 488 went down:
0:15 – The Lions fell at home in a winnable game, and what’s up with these bad goals at home?
22:41– The mailbagbox is small but mighty.
32:59 – OCB hadn’t played yet when we talked about their game Monday afternoon at Philly. Plus, Alex Freeman is an MLS All-Star and the senior side heads to North Carolina.
Podcasts
PawedCast Episode 487: St. Louis City Rewind, OCB-Toronto, FC Cincinnati Preview, and More
A look back at the Lions’ win at St. Louis, a preview of the Cincinnati game, and also OCB played.

Orlando City found its shootin’ boots on Wednesday in St. Louis, scoring four goals on the road that could have been double that had a little decision making been better, some shots had been a little more precise, and Roman Burki hadn’t played so well for St. Louis City. As it was, two Lions scored braces, with Ramiro Enrique a bit unlucky not to score his first hat trick for Orlando. The less we say about Ivan Angulo’s failure to give him a tap-in late in the first, the better (but yeah, we discussed it for a bit).
We checked back on our score predictions from earlier this week to see how we did, analyze the key moments and players from the game, and make our selections for Man of the Match. We also talked about which Lions made the MLS Team of the Matchday.
One thing we didn’t discuss was Alex Freeman making the MLS All-Star Team. We’ll get to that later. It’s been a busy week.
The mailbagbox asked about Rafael Santos and bands we’d like to see reunite and go on tour. Remember, if there’s anything — and we do mean anything — you want us to address on the show, just ask us by tweeting it to us at @TheManeLand with the hashtag #AskTMLPC, or hitting us up on Bluesky Social with that same hashtag.
Following the mailbagbox segment, we looked back at another rough outing for OCB against Toronto FC II. The Young Lions were shorthanded, but defensive mistakes handed the visitors a win. We didn’t want to dwell on it too long, but if we had, we would have had to discuss how bad OCB’s pitch looked. What’s up with that?
Finally, we looked ahead to Orlando City’s matchup against FC Cincinnati on Saturday. We provide the series history and the current state of both teams in this six-pointer. We also provide our key matchups and our score predictions for the game.
Be sure to rate and review our show wherever you get your podcasts. Remember, we’ll read any five-star reviews we get on Apple Podcasts on the next show.
If you’d like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we’d love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.
Here’s how No. 487 went down:
0:15 – Orlando City should have cruised to an easier win, but the Lions got the job done and why you no pass ball, Ivan Angulo?
22:41– The questions in our mailbagbox are both soccer-related and not soccer-related.
32:59 – OCB’s loss and Orlando City’s date with Cincy.
Podcasts
SkoPurp Soccer Episode 92: Louisville Rewind, Pride International Call-Ups, and More
The Pride stumble badly on the road just before the midseason break.

The Orlando Pride still haven’t won in Kentucky. The Pride went to Racing Louisville on Friday and struggled offensively, while giving up an easy, uncontested opening goal on a set piece and conceding a senseless penalty kick off a routine throw-in. It was a poor performance from the defending champions and another worrying sign of a team that has taken steps backward after last year’s magical season.
We checked our score predictions from last week, broke down the key moments in the the game, and tried to figure out who to select for Player of the Match.
This week’s mailbagbox wanted to know about Simone Jackson, whether reinforcements should be expected (and when), and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We’d also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we’ll find them easily and read them on the show.
Finally, without a match until August, we discussed Pride players who have been recalled recently by their national teams or youth national teams. It’s going to be a long wait to erase the frustration of the last match of June, but in the meantime, we’ll be keeping an eye on the club’s international players.
If you’d like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we’d love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.
Here’s how Episode 92 went down:
0:15 – The Pride did not look good on the road at Louisville. Our thoughts.
17:53 – The mailbagbox is a bright spot after a dark weekend.
35:53 – Pride players who will be representing their countries this summer.
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