PawedCast Episode 327: Jarrod Dillon Interview, Orlando City & Pride Preseason Results, Red Bulls Preview, “The Wall Kit,” MLS Playoff Format, and More

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Orlando City was nearly perfect in the preseason but a couple of late goals against the New England Revolution on Saturday night at Exploria Stadium gave the Lions their only loss in the buildup to the 2023 MLS season. In this week’s show, we discussed that loss and the win over Stetson University in the final two friendly contests before things get real. We also talked about the update on rookie Duncan McGuire, putting all three of the Lions’ first-round picks from the 2023 MLS SuperDraft under contract for 2023 and potentially well beyond.

The club also unveiled some stuff in the last week, including the sharp new home “The Wall” kit on Saturday and a plethora of new (local) food offerings within the stadium on Tuesday evening. We also touched on Major League Soccer’s new playoff format and how weird it is (and why).

Orlando City SC President of Business Operations Jarrod Dillon returned to the PawedCast this week to discuss the lessons he’s learned in his first year on the job, some of the adjustments that have been made, some more that could soon be made, and we grilled him on the topics of how to maximize the acquired land adjacent to the stadium and a potential throwback third kit. Big thanks to Mr. Dillon for speaking with us in the middle of his evening job as taxi driver for his kids.

After the chat with our guest, we dropped some news of our own as to the future of this show and our coverage of the Orlando Pride. We feel like we can do a better job and give the club the respect it deserves with our decision and we can’t wait to turn that into a reality as soon as possible.

The Orlando Pride got their preseason friendlies underway with a 2-0 win over Gotham, which is still a club with a name that works best when abbreviated. Other topics included Seb Hines officially naming a couple of new staff members, Haley Bugeja leading Malta to victory, Adriana and Marta playing a competitive match at Exploria Stadium with Brazil in the SheBelieves Cup, and the U.S. Women’s National Team winning the event.

Finally, we looked in our mailbag, in which our listeners asked us about what road stadiums we want to visit (and why), which Eastern Conference teams will give Orlando City trouble, and more. If there’s anything — and we do mean anything — you want us to address on the next show, just ask by tweeting it to us at @TheManeLand with the hashtag #AskTMLPC.

Stay safe and enjoy the show!

Here’s how No. 327 went down:

0:15 – Preseason Orlando City results, all rookies are signed, a new kit, new food, and a dumb playoff format.

33:14 – Jarrod Dillon entertains and informs us (and possibly you, too!).

56:32 – A plethora of Pride news, our mailbagbox responses, and our key match-ups and score predictions for the Lions vs. the Red Bulls.