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PawedCast Episode 151: Nani, Orlando City Preseason, Pride Off-Season, and New York City FC Preview

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It’s been a long time since we’ve talked, my friends, and I apologize for that. Moving into a new neighborhood, it didn’t occur to me that I’d have to wait for high speed internet infrastructure to be installed in my community. After a month and a day, I finally got the hookup and, as a result, we’re finally back.

Now there’s no way we can cover everything that’s happened since December, so we stuck to some of the major talking points. We discuss the Nani signing, obviously, and the Orlando City Invitational. There was some Orlando Pride discussion about the recent departures of a pair of Brazilians — though thankfully not Marta! We also discussed Cristian Higuita being honored for 100 matches as a Lion.

I’m sure we probably missed some, but we tried our hand at answering our mailbag questions, and we had one of the most long-winded and also awesome questions ever asked. Plus we give you our key match-ups and sure-to-be-wrong score predictions for opening day against New York City FC.

If there’s something you want us to address on our next show, just ask by tweeting it to us @TheManeLand with the hashtag #AskTMLPC.


Here’s how show No. 151 went down:

0:15 – After our brand new, crunchy show intro (complete with lion’s roar), we explain our absence, talk about Nani, and dive into some of the other recent preseason happenings.

21:40 – It’s been a bit too quiet on the Orlando Pride side of things but information should start trickling out soon about players re-signing (or not) and potentially new signings as we head for the 2019 NWSL season.

26:52 – Our mailbag section asks about the team captain situation at Orlando City, which players will be fun to watch, and tailgating.

42:01 – Cristian Higuita honored for 100-ish appearances for Orlando City. We discuss!

50:02 – Our key match-ups and score predictions for you to write down and laugh about later.


We’ll be back next week to break down the opening game against NYCFC and some SheBelieves Cup action, and look ahead to the Lions’ first trip of the season to face Chicago!

Podcasts

SkoPurp Soccer Episode 88: Utah Rewind, International Pride, Listener Mail, and More

The Pride not only pick up a win going into the international break, but Barbra Banda led the way with the club’s first hat trick ever.

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride

The Orlando Pride stopped their skid with a 3-1 win at Utah, but it was far from a crisp performance, even if they outplayed the Royals in the first half. The second half was about managing things and fighting the effects of the altitude, but there wasn’t much to say about it other than it took place and no more goals were scored. Friday’s performance was a step in the right direction entering the international break, but more must be done to prepare for tougher games ahead.

Barbra Banda scored the first hat trick in club history to lead the way, and the only other true threat to the goal was Ally Watt — off the rebound of a saved Banda shot. The offense still needs some work, and not all defenses will allow Banda the acres of space the Royals provided for the star striker to run into. Still, it was a win by multiple goals on the road, and that’s always a good thing.

We break down Orlando’s win on Friday in Utah, look back at our surprisingly accurate (for one of us) score predictions, and make our selections for Player of the Match. I know you’ll be shocked by our decision on that front.

There are a couple more Orlando players on their way to their national teams, as Emily Sams and Kerry Abello were named to the USWNT for the upcoming window. Will Emma Hayes finally give Sams some minutes? Will Abello get a runout for the senior team? We’ll see.

This week’s mailbagbox wants to know about the Pride’s chances if Banda and Marta play average soccer, what will happen if and when Rafaelle is fully healthy, our thoughts on Mystery Science Theater 3000, something about furries, 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.

Following our mailbagbox segment, we finished! There is no Pride game this weekend, but they’ll be back in early June with a home game against the Houston Dash. We’ll preview that for you next week.

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 88 went down:

0:15 – It’s Bandamonium as the Bandawagon pulls out of the station following the Zambian’s three-goal performance at Utah.

18:19 – The mailbagbox has an unorthodox selection for Player of the Match.

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Podcasts

PawedCast Episode 482: Portland Rewind, Atlanta and Chicago Previews, OCB Struggles, and More

The Lions win a tight battle with the Timbers and now must visit Atlanta before returning home to host the Fire.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City kept rolling in MLS play with a 1-0 home win over the Portland Timbers, cleansing the palate after a distasteful U.S. Open Cup last week against a star-less Nashville SC side. It wasn’t always crisp, and the Lions left several goals unscored, but Duncan McGuire’s blast off of Eduard Atuesta’s well-placed pass provided Orlando with the margin of victory. The Lions stayed focused for the full duration on defense, avoiding some of the issues they had against Nashville, and keeping a good Portland side off the scoresheet.

We discussed the game’s talking points, looked back at our score predictions from the last show, and made our unanimous selections for Man of the Match. We also discussed which Lion made the MLS Team of the Matchday bench.

After the first team recap, the OCB discussion was less upbeat, owing to a performance to forget from the Young Lions on a waterlogged pitch Sunday night in Kissimmee. It might have been a better game had OCB not handed the visitors an early goal, but the Young Lions were second best every minute of that game.

The mailbagbox asked about obvious future Lion Antoine Griezmann, Martin Ojeda coming off the bench, our expectations for the OCSC season, and more. 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 discussed OCB’s upcoming game against Eastern Conference-leading Chattanooga, before moving on to our pair of previews.

First up is a trip to Atlanta on Wednesday, as the Lions try to keep their momentum through this final week of a busy and exhausting May. Then, there’s yet another quick turnaround as Orlando City hosts the Chicago Fire on Saturday. We discussed the series history for both games, provided our key matchups, and made our score predictions.

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. 482 went down:

0:15 – Orlando City bounced back from the U.S. Open Cup loss with a win over a difficult Portland team, and OCB did not put up any sort of resistance against Atlanta Untied 2.

23:28– Mailbagbox time!

43:06 – The Lions will visit Atlanta and then return home to face Chicago. We’ve got two previews, two sets of key matchups, and twice the normal amount of score predictions.

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Podcasts

PawedCast Episode 481: Nashville Rewind, OCB Set for Atlanta, Portland Preview, and More

Lions crash out of U.S. Open Cup and prep for Portland while Young Lions vs. Atlanta changes days and site.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

After beating Lionel Messi and Inter Miami on Sunday, what did the Lions do for an encore? Well, they got knocked out of the U.S. Open Cup by a heavily rotated Nashville SC team that not only didn’t start its star players; they weren’t even available off the bench. No Hany Mukhtar. No Sam Surridge. No Joe Willis. No Daniel Lovitz. No problem. There were multiple visibly tired Lions in Wednesday’s match at Inter&Co Stadium, but it truly showed up on the defensive end, where mistakes allowed Nashville to erase a 1-0 deficit and take a 2-1 lead before the break. Orlando fought back to pull level, but then what seemed like a sure handball call against Nashville wasn’t made, and the visitors scored the winner a few minutes later.

We broke down a frustrating home knockout loss, looked back at our predictions, and selected our Man of the Match. We also discussed Alex Freeman’s USMNT call-up for June’s camp.

The mailbagbox asked about Leagues Cup, theme park rides, how the Lions can refresh their legs, and more. 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 discussed OCB’s match against Atlanta United 2, which was supposed to take place in Atlanta tonight at 7:30. That game has moved to Osceola County Stadium on Sunday at 7 p.m., but since the venue changed to OCB’s home field, the match will be played behind closed doors. We preview the Young Lions and the…2-1/2 Stripes?

Finally, we previewed Orlando City’s home match against the Portland Timbers. The Lions and Timbers don’t always play, but when they do, it’s generally entertaining. We discussed the series history, provided our key matchups, and made our predictions for the final score as both teams look to bounce back from tough U.S. Open Cup exits.

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.


Here’s how No. 481 went down:

0:15 – Orlando City looked tired and played tired, departing the U.S. Open Cup with the feeling that a potential chance to win was ignored by the match official.

32:00– The mailbagbox is a salve on our Open Cup wounds, and OCB’s game against Atlanta changes location and moves to Sunday.

1:01:15 – The Lions will host the Portland Timbers in a matchup of two teams that have played a lot of soccer this month.

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