The Orlando Pride will get back to business on Friday night with a big road game on the other side of the country against Angel City. It’ll be great to have the team back in action after a month’s interruption to the season.

Before we get into talking shop about the NWSL, Orlando Pride Head Coach Seb Hines returns to the show to discuss the state of the club, working with Caitlin Carducci, the team’s horrible injury luck this season, putting banger-scorer Cori Dyke at striker (OK, not his idea, but it was discussed), what could happen in the transfer window, and more. Big thanks to Seb for joining us. It’s always great to chat with him, even if Dave wasn’t available to be part of the questioning.

This week’s mailbagbox asked us about timing in soccer, why stoppage minutes aren’t counted in player stats, what we’d ask PRO referees, 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, we looked ahead to the Angel City match late Friday night in California. The Pride will be playing their third consecutive California-based team while looking to make it three straight. Meanwhile, Angel City will be playing its first game under a new manager. We look at the teams’ places in the standings, provide our key matchups, and give you our score predictions.

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Here’s how Episode 127 went down:

3:36 – Seb Hines joins us to discuss the state of the Pride.

26:59 – The mailbagbox asks about timing.

37:46 – A look ahead to the Pride’s trip to play Angel City.

Orlando City B is anything but predictable. Sunday night, after a lengthy weather delay, the Young Lions looked ready to concede on any number of occasions. They finally did, but then they bounced back to take a second-half lead (seemingly their favorite game script), and just when they were moments away from a win in a huge Eastern Conference matchup against the Columbus Crew, they conceded off a defensive third turnover and then lost the ensuing penalty shootout, dropping two points from a position to win all three.

We briefly touch on the match and especially the painful, decisive play.

We touched on the World Cup, including Paraguay’s improbable elimination of Germany in one of the wildest penalty shootouts in terms of momentum swings, and discussed the USMNT’s loss to Turkey.

Our mailbagbox asked us about changing international allegiances, Mexican internationals playing in Orlando, 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.

Antoine Griezmann is finally in town and training with his new Orlando City teammates. We talked about what that means for an OCSC side that needs to figure out the defensive side of the game. Even attacking players can elevate a team’s defense.

We also discussed the friendlies Orlando City has scheduled prior to the restart of the MLS season. Will Griezmann play against the Tampa Bay Rowdies? That would be a quick introduction to club history!

Finally, we touched on OCB’s upcoming match against Crown Legacy on the road. It’s another team at the top of the Eastern Conference and Crown Legacy can score goals in bunches. The Young Lions have to figure out the defensive side of the game to take their next step.

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. 540 went down:

0:15 – OCB drops points and World Cup teams could use more Orlando City players if they want to advance in the knockout stages.

20:10 – A multi-part question based on a hypothetical situation? That sounds like our mailbagbox.

33:02 – Griezmann is on site and OCB heads to Matthews, NC.

We went from a short show last week to a marathon this week, as we had a lot of ground to cover and a special guest! We’re joined this week by The Mane Land senior columnist Ben Miller, giving us three in the booth for the first time in a while.

We opened the show with a brief discussion of the report out of Europe that Orlando is in play for AC Milan and Mexican international forward Santiago Gimenez. None of us think it’s happening — at least not at the price as reported. It’s nice to be linked with all of the rumors again with Antoine Griezmann obviously having an effect.

After our transfer rumor discussion, we discuss OCB’s home loss to Philadelphia Union II, which was unexpected the way the Young Lions have been playing. In truth, OCB should have gotten something from the game, but they were wasteful in front of goal, so creating far more chances meant nothing with all of the shots hitting the Philly goalkeeper in the chest.

Ben was then given his time to shine, as he has just returned from Seattle, where he watched the U.S. Men’s National Team’s win over Australia, including former Lion Alex Freeman’s first World Cup goal. It was great to get the vibe of such a momentous piece of USMNT history from someone who was there to experience it. Big thanks to Ben for spending some time with us and discussing not only the match itself, but also Freeman’s continued development and how Mauricio Pochettino might approach the final group stage match against Turkey on Thursday night.

Our mailbagbox was chock full, so we tried to go quickly, but you can only do so much. Our listeners wanted to know about the World Cup, Orlando City’s biggest need, and much 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 looked ahead to OCB’s showdown Sunday at home against Eastern Conference leader Columbus Crew 2. It’s a chance for the Young Lions to get redemption for Sunday’s loss to Philadelphia and get back on track.

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. 539 went down:

0:15 – A forward is linked with OCSC and OCB’s streak-snapping loss.

21:02 – A firsthand account of the USMNT’s huge win over Australia.

1:09:48 – Our mailbagbox and a brief preview of OCB-Crew 2.