Orlando Pride
Orlando Pride vs. North Carolina Courage: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More
The Pride kick off their 2023 NWSL Challenge Cup against the North Carolina Courage at Exploria Stadium.
Welcome to your match thread as the Orlando Pride begin their 2023 NWSL Challenge Cup campaign against the North Carolina Courage tonight at Exploria Stadium (7 p.m., Paramount+). This is the first of four games the two teams will play this season, and the first of two in the Challenge Cup. The other cup game will take place on July 29 in Cary, NC.
Here’s everything you need to know about tonight’s game.
History
The Pride and Courage have played 19 times since the Western New York Flash moved to North Carolina and became the Courage. The Pride are 4-11-4 in those games (4-9-1 in the NWSL regular season, 0-0-2 in the Fall Series, and 0-2-1 in the NWSL Challenge Cup).
The most recent meeting between the two teams came on Sept. 21, 2022 at Exploria Stadium. The Courage got off to a great start when Debinha scored in the second minute. The Brazilian then assisted Tess Boade in first-half injury time to double the lead, and later added another, dooming the Pride to a 3-0 defeat.
Prior to that contest, they met on May 18 in North Carolina. The Pride got off to a great start in that game, with Sydney Leroux scoring early. Mikayla Cluff doubled the lead with her first professional goal. A late goal by Brianna Pinto got the Courage back within one, but it wasn’t enough as the Pride took the 2-1 win.
The Pride and Courage were placed in the same division for the 2022 NWSL Challenge Cup, so the teams played twice before the regular season started. The first game was on March 26 in North Carolina. Merritt Mathias converted a penalty after Gunny Jonsdottir was called for a handball in the box, lifting the hosts to a 1-0 win. The return match in the tournament took place on April 16 in Orlando. The Courage got off to a fast start in this one, scoring three goals in the first nine minutes. Darian Jenkins netted a brace to make it 3-2, but a late Debinha goal put the game away and North Carolina won 4-2.
The teams played three times during the 2021 NWSL season. On May 22 in North Carolina, goals by Leroux and Alex Morgan gave the Pride a 2-0 lead late into the game. Jessica McDonald scored late to pull one back but the Pride held on for a 2-1 win. On July 4 in Orlando, Debinha and Havana Solaun goals helped the Courage take home a 2-0 win. The final game came on July 31 in North Carolina. Leroux opened the scoring but Brittany Ratcliffe equalized moments later and the teams drew 1-1.
The two teams were also matched up in the 2021 NWSL Challenge Cup but they only played once in that tournament. Neither team was able to find the back of the net in that game as the teams went away with a scoreless draw.
Similar to the Challenge Cup, the teams were in the same group of the 2020 Fall Series, resulting in the teams meeting twice. The first game was on Sept. 19 in North Carolina and ended in a scoreless draw. The second was on Oct. 17 at Exploria Stadium. Led by a Debinha brace, the Courage went up 3-0. But the Pride came back with goals by Marisa Viggiano, Kristen Edmonds, and Ally Haran for an exciting 3-3 draw.
The Pride and Courage played three times during the 2019 season. The first game was on April 17 in North Carolina. The Courage took a 1-0 lead into halftime but scored four times in the second half to win 5-0. They played a second time on June 1 in Orlando. Again, it was a dominant performance by the Courage as the Pride fell 3-0. The final meeting that year was another thrashing by North Carolina. The Pride got a goal in that one but still fell 6-1.
The teams also met three times in 2018 but the results were much closer. On May 23 in Orlando, goals by Alanna Kennedy and Rachel Hill saw the Pride come back from a 3-1 deficit. But McDonald scored a winner in the 90th minute and the Courage won 4-3. The Pride went down by three goals in the final two games that season, but were unable to come back and fell 3-0 in both contests.
The 2017 season saw the teams meet for the first time. The Courage took the first game 3-1 on Apr. 29 in North Carolina. They played a second time two weeks later in Orlando when the Pride took the 3-1 win. The final meeting in 2017 came in the final game of the season on Sept. 30. The Pride took a 2-0 lead but the Courage came back to even it at 2-2. It looked headed for a draw until Kennedy netted a late winner, leading the Pride to a 3-2 win.
Overview
The Pride have had a tough start to the 2023 NWSL season. They fell 4-0 to the Portland Thorns in the season opener and have given up the latest goal in NWSL history three times in their last two games. The first was a second-half stoppage time goal in a 2-1 loss to Angel City and last weekend two injury time goals in a 2-0 loss to NJ/NY Gotham FC.
While the team’s defense has improved, its offense has been stagnant, only scoring once in three games. To make matters worse, the club announced yesterday that forward Julie Doyle was placed on the 45-day disabled list after suffering an ankle injury against Angel City.
On the attacking end, the Pride will likely look to Messiah Bright, who scored the team’s only goal this season. They’ll also want to get more out of Adriana, and Marta is continuing to improve after returning from an ACL tear last season.
There are questions on the defensive end as Pride Head Coach Seb Hines continues to play the kids, starting Emily Madril and Caitlin Cosme as the center back pairing in all three games. The biggest concern might be the goalkeeping position. Anna Moorhouse has struggled this season and, despite not being listed on the injury report, wasn’t in the team against Gotham last weekend. Instead, 23-year-old shot stopper Kaylie Collins was in goal.
Tonight, the Pride have an opportunity to bounce back in a new competition as they start their third Challenge Cup. North Carolina is the first opponent and hasn’t been much better in the league. Before losing their past two games to the Washington Spirit and San Diego Wave, the Courage claimed their first points of the year on March 25 with a 1-0 win over the still-winless Kansas City Current.
Fortunately for the Pride, this isn’t the same Courage team that won three consecutive NWSL Shields and back-to-back NWSL championships between 2017 and 2019. Lynn Williams departed prior to last season and the Courage lost Debinha this past off-season, two key players who had been on the team since 2017.
The Courage are led offensively by Brazilian forward Kerolin, who joined the team from Madrid CFF prior to the 2022 season and has two of the team’s three goals. However, their strength is on defense, led by goalkeeper Casey Murphy. The back line of Emily Fox, Kaleigh Kurtz, Ryan Williams, and Kiki Pickett is experienced and the Courage create opportunities with their midfield, which features stalwarts Meredith Speck, Denise O’Sullivan, and newly-acquired Japanese international Narumi Miura.
“I think going back to last season, where it was the very beginning, we used (the Challenge Cup) as an add-on to preseason,” Hines said about the start of the competition. “Again, this is a competitive team. A little bit different now, we’re three games into the season, Challenge Cup’s midweek. It’s a moment to use your full roster, give players opportunities to come in, but we’re here to win as well. We want to get the ball rolling, we want to start winning games and after the disappointment of the weekend, it’s a great opportunity to bounce back and play in front of our fans again and show how far we’ve come.”
The Pride have several players out for this game, including Carrie Lawrence (knee), Julie Doyle (ankle), Brianna Martinez (concussion protocol), Haley Bugeja (concussion protocol), Celia (leg), and Jordyn Listro (ankle). The team is also without Amanda Allen, who’s on international duty with Canada.
The Courage will be without Tess Boade (shoulder), Emily Gray (knee), and Estelle Johnson (lower leg). Starting forward Mille Gejl (ankle) is listed as questionable.
Official Lineups
Orlando Pride (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper: Carly Nelson.
Defenders: Kylie Strom, Megan Montefusco, Emily Madril, Tori Hansen.
Defensive Midfielders: Summer Yates, Mikayla Cluff.
Midfielders: Viviana Villacorta, Erika Tymrak, Ally Watt.
Forward: Messiah Bright.
Bench: Kerry Abello, Kaylie Collins, Caitlin Cosme, Adriana, Haley McCutcheon, Maliah Morris, Marta.
North Carolina Courage (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper: Casey Murphy.
Defenders: Emily Fox, Ryan Williams, Kaleigh Kurtz, Malia Berkely.
Defensive Midfielders: Frankie Tagliaferri, Denise O’Sullivan.
Midfielders: Tyler Lussi, Meredith Speck, Kerolin.
Forwards: Olivia Wingate.
Bench: Sydney Collins, Millie Farrow, Haley Hopkins, Rikke Madsen, Narumi Miura, Brittany Ratcliffe, Clara Robbins, Katelyn Rowland, Brianna Pinto.
Referees
REF: Gabriele Giusti.
AR1: Kendall McCardell.
AR2: Rhett Hammil.
4TH: Richonne Clark.
VAR: Fotis Bazakos.
AVAR: Alexandra Billeter.
How to Watch
Match Time: 7 p.m.
Venue: Exploria Stadium — Orlando.
TV: None.
Streaming: Paramount+ (U.S.), NWSLsoccer.com (International).
Twitter: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow @TheManeLand and the Orlando Pride’s official Twitter account (@ORLPride).
Enjoy the match. Go Pride!