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PawedCast Episode 333: Alex Freeman Interview, Nashville Rewind, Pride-Angel City, OCB, and More

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Image courtesy of Orlando City B / Mark Thor

After a win at Philadelphia, Orlando City’s homecoming wasn’t a fun one Saturday, but if one looks beyond the scoreline of the Lions’ 2-0 loss to Nashville SC, the performance didn’t match the result. The Lions — for the most part, anyway — controlled the match, generated the most chances, and honestly should have scored a couple of goals. They didn’t. Instead, they got caught twice by the visitors, who created only a few chances, but converted on two of them, and the first was a gift.

We break down a frustrating home loss but we also aren’t ready to call for anyone’s head just yet, and we explain why. We also select our Man of the Match picks and look forward to Orlando getting healthy and rested for a meeting on April 15 with Minnesota United on the road.

We don’t normally talk about OCB second, but the Young Lions are the club’s only undefeated professional side after a 2-1 win over Huntsville City in the club’s home opener. Alex Freeman scored both goals for OCB and the team was albe to withstand a lot of pressure against the visitors to improve to 2-0-0.

Speaking of Freeman, he joined us as this week’s guest and we asked him about his experiences in camp, what Oscar Pareja has told him he needs to do better to get first-team minutes, how he adjusts to playing for OCB and then quickly changing gears for international play, and much more. Big thanks to Alex for coming on the show and to a couple of our Founders for submitting some questions.

The Pride dropped a heartbreaker in their home opener but man, did they ever create some scoring chances against Angel City. The visitors had to rely on a penalty and a last-gasp header, in addition to numerous missed opportunities by the home team to take three points out of Exploria Stadium for the first time. Ally Watt had a rough match in front of goal but better days lie ahead if Seb Hines can get that kind of performance out of his team each week. We also discussed NWSL expansion and the Pride’s recent signing of three young additions to the team.

The OCSC academy teams won their groups at the Generation Adidas tournament and will be in action today as a result. It’s always nice to see the kids doing well against difficult competition.

Finally, we dove into our mailbagbox, which asked us about bar brawls, how Orlando City spends money on players, and (of all things) the Tampa Bay Rowdies’ home crowd. 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. 333 went down:

0:15 – The Lions dropped a game they could have won (but didn’t) and a lot of people are upset about it. We’re going to try to stay rational and positive for the time being and explain why others should do so too.

41:41 –Alex Freeman scored twice and that really made us want to talk to him. So we did.

54:16 – The Pride played better but got the same result, although with a better scoreline. Also, the academy teams were cooking over the weekend and the mailbagbox was full.

Podcasts

PawedCast Episode 479: Charlotte Rewind, OCB-Miami II, Inter Miami Preview, and More

The Lions take down the Crown, OCB is set to face the Baby Herons, and Tropic Thunder Part I looms in Fort Lauderdale.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City put together a complete game Wednesday against Charlotte FC. The Lions not only scored multiple goals for the third consecutive match in all competitions, but they also held the visitors to just a single, well-taken goal on their only shot on target all evening. David Brekalo is turning into a valuable asset at left back, while Martin Ojeda stays hot at the other end.

We analyzed the key moments of the game, looked back at our score predictions, and made our picks for Man of the Match, which were unanimous again. We also discussed which Lions made the Team of the Matchday for their efforts in the midweek.

The mailbagbox was on short rest again, but our listeners asked us about former Lion Luke Boden and potential future Lions currently with OCB. 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 ahead to OCB’s home game against Inter Miami II on Saturday. The Baby Herons have had the Young Lions’ number, and OCB enters this contest having conceded 12 goals in three matches. Manuel Goldberg’s young men need to shore up the defense and get back in the win column.

Finally, we previewed Orlando City’s trip to play Inter Miami on Sunday. The senior Lions too will be looking to solve the riddle of the Pepto Bismol Pink, who return from a hotly contested match in San Jose on Wednesday. We discuss the series history, the teams’ place in the table, our key matchups, and 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.


Here’s how No. 479 went down:

0:15 – Orlando didn’t draw and kept streaking against Charlotte FC on Wednesday.

29:26– The mailbagbox relatively short and sweet and we preview OCB’s home match Saturday against Inter Miami II.

42:55 – The Lions head south to take on the Herons in Fort Lauderdale. We’ve got your preview and predictions.

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Podcasts

SkoPurp Soccer Episode 86: Courage Rewind, Current Preview, and More

The Pride and Current renew their growing rivalry in Orlando with first place on the line.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Jeremy Reper

The Orlando Pride continued to struggle to put the ball in the net Saturday at North Carolina, but at least they only allowed the Courage one goal. Prisca Chilufya’s improbable header off a corner kick somehow found a spot where the goalkeeper couldn’t get to it, allowing Orlando to escape Cary, NC, with a 1-1 draw and a vital road point in a tight NWSL race. But the Pride have just one win in their last four matches, which is a far cry from their form in the first half of 2024.

We break down Orlando’s road draw, discuss the game’s big talking points, check on our score predictions from last week, and make our selections for Player of the Match.

This week’s mailbagbox wants to know about the Women’s Club World Cup and the Harlem Globetrotters of soccer. 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 look ahead to the Pride’s home match against the first-place Kansas City Current Friday night. The Pride and Current have developed one of the league’s more organic rivalries over the course of the last year, when both teams were among the league’s best. That’s the case again this year, but the Current enter the weekend in better form than Orlando and a two-point lead in the standings. We discuss the series history, the tale of the tape, our key matchups, and our score predictions.

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 86 went down:

0:15 – The Pride slipped out of first place with a last-gasp draw in North Carolina.

22:35 – The mailbagbox question factory shipped us a few new ones to test drive.

34:16 – The Pride prepare to host Kansas City on Friday night with a lot on the line.

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Podcasts

PawedCast Episode 478: Revolution Rewind, Charlotte Preview, and More

Lions find some offense but draw the Revs and must recover quickly as Charlotte visits Wednesday.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City apparently never gets tired of drawing its opponent, but perhaps the Lions are tired of the 0-0 variety, as they scored not once, not twice, but thrice, and all of them came off the foot of Argentinian Designated Player Martin Ojeda. Our long national nightmare is over as a Lion not named Cyle Larin has netted a hat trick in an MLS match. Ojeda could have scored as many as seven times, as the No. 10 was popping up in spaces everywhere, and it was a joy to behold. Unfortunately, it was not a joy to see a team that had not conceded a goal in six matches (all competitions) give up three to one of the league’s lowest-scoring teams. Such as life, as the Lions had to settle for a 3-3 draw against the red-hot New England Revolution.

We broke down the match, discussed most of the key moments, looked back at our score predictions, and made our unanimous picks for Man of the Match.

The mailbagbox was on short rest, but it still managed to hit us with some queries about substitutions, Nico Rodriguez, 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.

Finally, we previewed Orlando City’s midweek home game against Charlotte FC. The visitors will be looking to avenge a best-of-three playoff loss to Orlando in 2024, so there may be a bit of extra sauce on this match. We look at the series history and the current situation the two clubs are in, while providing our key matchups and our predictions for what the final score will be on Wednesday night.

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. 478 went down:

0:15 – The Lions settled for yet another draw, but at least goals were scored this time, and Martin Ojeda had all three of them.

26:29– The mailbagbox is always full strength, never rotated.

36:38 – The Lions take one of the less impressive nine-game unbeaten streaks in MLS history (so many draws!) into a midweek clash with Charlotte FC.

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