—by Garrett Dittfurth

I'm going to try to do this at least once a week during the season. It's going to be full of stuff you should probably pay attention to as a fan of the mighty Portland Timbers. No I am not going to flaunt endorsements of keeper of the week, which is one of the biggest jokes on MLSSoccer.com. As we all know the winner of that is going to be us, Seattle, or whatever other team is able to activate (drink!) their fan base. Mostly Seattle but we're definitely in that hated world over at MLS HQ by everyone employed there that looks at the comments sections (real talk hurts doesn't it?). I'll try to repeatedly drag this on every weekend with snippets of stuff you should look at..

Anyway. Here's your weekly.

Ummm 5mtko podcast. Why are you not subscribed and why are you not listening by now? It's possibly the best podcast out there by anyone following the Timbers. Nevets and Roberto give you humor and have been kicking around the north end since pickle buckets were the preferred percussion method. Rumor has it they also still have Roger Lavesque's phone number from when he stayed at the Double Tree written down on a napkin.

On another side Toronto FC is going to be fun to watch this season. It will either be a fabulous success or a GIGANTIC train wreck. Considering Toronto's last 7 years I'm not so sure which side I'm going to lean to considering the historical ineptitude. Honestly I do feel for their supporters. Poor bastards!

Our captain signed a new contract that will keep him here long term. Are you excited or are you excited? I am always a fan of the good players that can piss everyone off because they're just good. As an example I hate the Seahawks yet love Richard Sherman. Will Johnson is just my kind of guy. Everyone hates him but us. That isn't a bad thing.

There is absolutely no place for discrimination of any kind. Thankfully MLS agrees. I am glad MLS is at the forefront of this. They will be on the right side of history.

Obviously he was a fan favorite. I also liked running into him at my local grocery store. David Horst seems to be off to a good start in Houston. Good for him!

Kip Kesgard gives an always in depth preview of the match against Chicago.

As always Rifer's match reports are better than you'll find in most of the local papers. If you aren't tuned into him start now.

The more you know about our players the better. Here's a nice little bit on Gaston Fernandez (La Gata).

Life happens. We celebrate the life of Conner Firstman (Kim Sung Ho). A dedicated fan and friend to many. May you rest in peace!

As always be well!

Hey Timbers Army supporters! The official soccer library of the TA, Booked!, is collecting footballing books and other media (mags, vids, DVDs,...) at the Fanladen before the match this Sunday (3/16) and before the 4/3 match vs the fishing village to the north.

Lending for 107ist members will begin 4/12 before the Chivas USA match! We will also have a monthly Booked! Night! once a month at the Fanladen (date TBA) for lending and other literary events.

So bring your media to the Fanladen (1633 SW Alder) on Sunday and help make the Booked! library awesome!

To check out our list of current titles, see the Booked 107 Library Thing webpage: https://www.librarything.com/catalog/Booked107

You can also follow them on Twitter at @Booked107

—by Chris Rifer

Sometimes preseason performance is indicative of early regular season performance.  Just as the Timbers dominated the ball, controlled much of the game, and came away disappointed against San Jose and Vancouver, Portland failed to earn a result despite an on-paper advantage and dominating possession against the Philadelphia Union.

Like Vancouver, Philadelphia put on a performance at Providence Park that surprised many.  Rebuilt with Austin Berry in defense, Maurice Edu in defensive central midfield, Vincent Noguiera in a central attacking role, and Cristian Maidana on the wing, the Union side that walked into Portland on Saturday bore no resemblance whatsoever to the listlessly direct side the Timbers battled to a stalemate last year.  And for much of the game, the Timbers looked surprised by what their opponents presented.

Things could have been very different for the Timbers, however, if Pa Modou Kah knew he was allowed to use his feet.  After Will Johnson flicked a header off a Gaston Fernadnez corner kick across the box in the 4^th minute, Kah dropped to his knees at the back stick to inexplicably try to head a ball one foot off the ground.[1]  Not surprisingly, it didn’t work.

In many ways Kah’s blooper reel attempt at a submarine header was typical of the Timbers’ day in the box, as time and again Portland was foiled by last minute Union defending or their own clumsiness.

Like Vancouver a week before, Union came to press, but the Timbers’ ball movement forced them to drop off.  That, however, didn’t make Philadelphia any less dangerous.

After a 20^th minute ball pinged around in the Timbers’ defending box off a hopeful cross from Edu, Maidana picked it up at the top with his back to goal, turned Diego Chara, and fired a low shot toward goal, but Ricketts reacted well to parry away.

Fifteen minutes and another spell of Timbers possession later, Jack McInerney found his way onto a long chipped pass on the left side and turned on the byline under little defensive pressure.  He chipped the ball over a stranded Ricketts, but Norberto Paparatto cleared off the line at the far post.

The end of the half belonged to the Timbers, however.  In the 39^th minute it was the ball bouncing around the Union box where Nagbe controlled and fed Maxi Urruti twelve yards out on the right side of goal, but Amobi Okugo made the first of a number of saving interventions on the day to deflect Urruti’s goalbound shot away.

Four minutes later, the Timbers got out on the break after a timely Diego Chara interception where Gaston Fernandez fed Valeri thirty-five yards from goal.  Valeri took two touches and whipped a hard shot toward the near corner that had Zac MacMath at full stretch, but the shot buzzed just wide of the near post.

All told, the game at halftime looked a lot like San Jose two weeks before.  The Timbers had a lot of the ball but the poorer of the chances, as Portland repeatedly showed reluctance to pull the trigger in the final third.  And when possession isn’t turned into goals, games that should be filed into the win column can slip away in a hurry.

After dodging a bullet a moment before as Ricketts picked up a Noguiera shot late and could only push behind for a corner, the Timbers got their just desserts.  In the 65^th minute, Maurice Edu caught the Timbers flat footed in attacking the ensuing corner and nodded to the back post where McInerney was waiting for the finish.

The Timbers came right back, though.  Off the ensuing kickoff, Nagbe drove to the byline and put Urruti in goalscoring shape inside the box, but MacMath was quick off his line to get his body in front of Maxi’s finish.

Over the course of the next 20 minutes, the Timbers looked like they might be starting to figure it out.  Whereas they had previously been unable to generate anything genuine in the final third, the Timbers started to play teammates into promising positions.  But every time they did, the Timbers would always find a foot between them and the goal, even if sometimes one of their own.

But as the game progressed into stoppage time, the Timbers looked out of gas.  But oh the value of one last gasp.

After a dangerous Steve Zakuani shot was deflected out for a corner well into the third minute of stoppage, Will Johnson’s quick corner deflected off Brian Carroll’s foot and straight to the head of Fernandez at the far post where he nodded into the open net.

On one hand lucky and on another deserved, the Timbers had their equalizer.  On Saturday night the Timbers showed some of the flaws that caused hands to wring in preseason as well as some flashes that perhaps suggest light at the end of the tunnel.

Just how quickly those flashes turn to flames, however, will go a long way to determining the Timbers success in 2014.

Match Observations

While it’s easy to look at finishing as the problem for the Timbers—and indeed, on Saturday it was contributory—Portland’s offense has not done a good job of keeping pace in the transition from middle to final third.  In many respects, the middle of the field has looked as good early on as it did in 2013.  While Will Johnson and Diego Chara each had a little bit of an off day on Saturday, recent experience suggests that was more fluke than trend.

But Nagbe, Fernandez, Valeri, and Urruti have been wonderful…until they get 30 yards from goal.  They’ve been effective at moving the ball quickly through the midfield, cutting defenders out of the play and finding the spaces the defense gives them to put them in prime position to attack the box.  But then, for some reason, the Timbers have shown a tendency to slow down.

Once the Timbers have launched into their midfield run, opponents have learned to back into a tactical retreat to their own box; giving Portland plenty of room outside, but nothing inside.  Slowing down, then, often undoes the advantage gained by stellar work through the midfield, as cut out defenders recover and pack the final 15 yards—leaving the Timbers, already without a genuine direct threat, looking for an inch of space to pass their way into a decent shot.  Even when that space is found, however, more often than not somebody like Okugo is there to make sure it never gets anywhere near goal.

There really isn’t any remedy to this problem short of improving the transition from middle to final third.  The good news is fixing this problem is probably just a matter of time—once Urruti, Valeri, Nagbe, and Fernandez all get on the same page, they should be able to markedly improve their transitional efficiency. But the bad news is it’s probably a matter of time.  Time, now that the regular season has begun, comes at a cost.

Timbers Grades

Donovan Ricketts, 6 After the game, a funny story started spinning around the press corps about Ricketts once again being a hero.  While, yes, his first save was good, it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary for a good goalkeeper like Donovan.  Of the Union’s other five shots on goal, only one troubled Ricketts, and that was because he picked a ball up late.  In the end, it was a solid, but far from heroic outing for Ricketts.[2]

Michael Harrington, 4.5 Harrington was quite good for the first sixty or sixty-five minutes, but struggled in the late stages.  Mikey fluffed a couple crosses he normally whips and even had a couple defensive lapses that—while ultimately not costing the team—were uncharacteristic.

Pa Modou Kah, 4 Decent defensively, but making a mess of the finish on the corner in the 4^th minute was a big missed opportunity.

Norberto Paparatto, 4 Had the clearance off the line, but that was partially precipitated by a lack of communication between he and Jewsbury in handling a 2-on-2 situation.  Also shares some culpability for the concession, as he let Edu come across him.

Jack Jewsbury, 5 Made the mistake in letting McInerney go down the left on what ended up the clearance off the line, but otherwise had a passable game defensively and contributed nicely on the offensive end after Alhassan came on to give the Timbers more of a threat down that right side.

Will Johnson, 5.5 Was in some respects the Timbers’ biggest offensive threat for much of the day, as his late runs were one of the few things the Timbers did that required emergency defending from the Union.  Joined his midfield companions in having a couple loose passes out there.

Diego Chara, 4 It’s been a long time since I’ve seen somebody get the better of Diego like Noguiera and Maidana did.

Gaston Fernandez, 5 Rescues his grade—and the team—with the finish at the death, but otherwise was a step or two slow in offensive movement for much of the day and had a number of loose touches and passes.

Diego Valeri, 4.5 Had a frustrating night, as his touch betrayed him and seemed perpetually out of synch with the attack.  Probably mostly a matter of getting in rhythm, but the Timbers would really like to see Valeri back in form soon.

Darlington Nagbe, 6 The only guy that really asked questions of Philly all night.  Led the team in key passes and kept up his stellar completion rate in attacking areas. Also have to admire his lack of bellyaching after suffering another five fouls.

Maxi Urruti, 4.5 Had moments where he was presenting himself nicely in the box, but with a bunch of self-proclaimed passers around him, Urruti needs to be the guy providing the direct threat or pulling defenders out of position to give his teammates no choice but to take the space he creates.  He’s done neither consistently since Tucson.

Futty, 5.5 Spelled Kah nicely after coming on in the first half.  Classic Futty performance; solid defending, a couple sprayed passes.

Kalif Alhassan, 6.5 Brought a new dimension to the Timbers attack when he came on, as the right side opened up a lot more than it had been.  Won more than his fair share of corners, too.

Steve Zakuani, 5 Took a few minutes to settle into his Timbers debut, but did nicely to pop up in a nice spot on the shot that led to the equalizing corner.

Preseason Prediction: Timbers 3, Union 1.  Johnson, Urruti, and Nagbe.

Actual Result: Timbers 1, Union 1.  Fernandez.

Onward, Rose City!

Featured for the 2014 MLS home opener against the Philadelphia Union.

The tifo drew on the heritage of the Portland Timbers through time and the iconic look of the Portlandia statue. Earlier in the afternoon before the match, the Timbers Army twitter account shared a beautiful poem which accompanies the actual statue. The poem, by Ronald Talney, can be found here.

Photo Credit: Jennifer Kesgard

Photo Credit: Jennifer Kesgard

Photo Credit: Jennifer Kesgard

Photo Credit: Jennifer Kesgard

Timelapse of the tifo taking shape and its unveiling by sama093

—by Chris Rifer

The Timbers play jazz. Most of MLS plays classical.

In the Portland Timbers’ system, the distinction between the various midfield positions and forward is largely one of degree, perspective, and circumstance. Will Johnson is the perfect example. In any given game, he can sit in front of the backline, step up centrally to join the attack, dovetail a wide run to create space like a winger, or even make a run off a player holding the ball up like a deep-lying second striker. While Johnson primarily spends his time as a box-to-box midfielder whose defensive responsibilities are paramount, this role is better viewed as a starting spot than an inflexible positional assignment.

Understanding, embracing, and loving this distinction is necessary to understating, embracing, and loving the Timbers attack. Because while Johnson is extraordinary vis-à-vis the rest of MLS in this respect, the flexibility in his positional duties is thoroughly ordinary in Caleb Porter’s system.

In one respect, the team sheet it easy to fill out. Darlington Nagbe starts on the right wing. Gaston Fernandez starts on the left wing. Like Johnson, Diego Chara starts in defensive central midfield. Diego Valeri starts at attacking central midfield. Maxi Urruti starts at striker. Each player in the Timbers’ first choice starting eleven has a natural role that fits nicely with the others; giving great satisfaction to napkin lineup sketchers and Twitter semicolon connoisseurs alike.

But if you look down at the Timbers’ shape at any given moment, you’ll likely notice the Timbers attacking shape looks little like your napkin. Maybe one of the wingers has floated central or even to the other side to unbalance the formation. Maybe Valeri has dovetailed with a winger—or even fullback—and effectively made an overlapping run. Or maybe Urruti has come back into the midfield and Fernandez assumed a position up top. Or maybe Caleb Porter made a substitution and shaken the proverbial etch-a-sketch that is the Timbers attack.

The point is Caleb Porter has effectively built a modular attack with a base of Johnson and Chara—who just as easily could have been discussed in the defensive preview—a pinnacle of Urruti, and a trio of interchangeable attackers who can float between spots by design and at will to bend defenses out of shape and create space to take the decisive touch.

Defenders like predictability. They like to know who is going to pop up where and what they’re going to do when they get there. Put another way, they like to read the opponents’ sheet music to know where in the song they are and what’s coming next.

The Timbers attack is intentionally built to be unpredictable, force defenders to react rather than predict, pull them out of their spots, and capitalize on the mistake. To their opposing Timbers’ dismay, Caleb Porter doesn’t give his players sheet music.

The challenge with such a modular offense is it is difficult to assemble and execute. It’s relatively easy to teach a unit discrete roles to be executed together to create a larger system. Reading sheet music, while a nice skill, isn’t rocket science. It’s much more difficult to teach a unit the system and set the individuals free to execute the proper role the situation calls for in that moment.

Put another way, most MLS attacks are a string quartet; they have distinct instruments precisely playing pre-written parts with little room for variation. The Timbers’ attack is a jazz combo; a collection of players playing a variety of instruments with general starting points, but only bound by a general chord chart and the expectation that they will improvise and trade functions throughout the tune.

Once healthy, if Caleb Porter wants to add another instrument to Chara and Johnson’s bass,[1] Valeri’s piano, Nagbe’s drums, and Fernandez and Urruti’s guitars,[2] Porter can look to Steve Zakuani on saxophone or Rodney Wallace on trumpet. Smooth and soaring, Zakuani can take on solos as well as anybody in green and gold, even if he perhaps isn’t the player you’d look to support the combo. Similarly, Wallace isn’t going to slip into playing gentle combinations, but can more than effectively—if perhaps awkwardly—deliver the headlining punch that transforms gentle chordal combinations into direct attacks that turn defenders kind of blue.

There’s a special place in any combo for jazz flute, or in the Timbers’ case, Kalif Alhassan. Jokes aside, Alhassan is the ultimate studio player; capable of coming on and competently laying down tracks at multiple positions and even providing a flare of his own once in a while. And in reserve, the Timbers can look to backup bassist Ben Zemanski or secondary saxophone from the horn of Schillo Tshuma.

But regardless of which pieces Caleb Porter[3] puts into his combo, the general chart and expectation of improvisation remains the same. The instruments and roles may change, but the combo’s expectation of continuity, fluidity, and improvisation are constant.

And that’s what makes the difference between the Timbers attack and most of the league Night and Day.

Defensive Central Midfield Depth Chart
1. Will Johnson
1a. Diego Chara
3. Ben Zemanski
4. Steven Evans
5. George Fochive

Left Midfield Depth Chart
1. Gaston Fernandez
2. Steve Zakuani
2a. Rodney Wallace
2b. Kalif Alhassan
5. Jorge Villafana
6. Michael Nanchoff

Attacking Central Midfield Depth Chart
1. Diego Valeri
2. Kalif Alhassan
3. Michael Nanchoff

Right Midfield Depth Chart
1. Darlington Nagbe
2. Kalif Alhassan
3. Schillo Tshuma
4. Aaron Long

Forward Depth Chart
1. Maximiliano Urruti
2. Frederic Piquionne

Onward, Rose City!

[1] While the undeniable captain and metronome of the combo, anybody who thinks bassists can’t take outstanding solo runs hasn’t listened to enough Ray Brown.

[2] Come on, they’re Argentine.

[3] Um, Cole Porter.

—by Chris Rifer

This time of year, the forests of the Pacific Northwest are shrouded in mist, and a dense layer of grey covers the skies of Portland.  But here at The Morrison Report, the clouds obscuring our vision into the 2014 Timbers have parted, and the Crystal Log has revealed its secrets.

March 8 – Philadelphia Union

Timbers 3, Union 1.  Catching a confident Union team before its backline has time to gel is fortunate for the Timbers, as Portland dominates possession and runs circles around the Union.  Will Johnson’s 22^nd minute strike off a late run into the box opens the lead which Maxi Urruti doubles eight minutes later after catching Austin Berry in possession.  Urruti completes his brace in the 64^th by finishing a brilliant through ball from Nagbe to put the game so far out of reach that Sebastian Le Toux’s late strike from the right corner of the box can’t dampen the spirits at rainy Providence Park.

March 16 – Chicago Fire

Timbers 1, Fire 1.  Chicago came into the game looking to play for the draw, and for 75 minutes Bakare Soumare and Jhon Kennedy Hurtado kept a persistent Timbers attack at bay.  But in the 75^th minute, Darlington Nagbe picked up a partially cleared ball at the top of the box and fired it past Sean Johnson for the opener.  Chicago’s push for an equalizer paid off, however, as Juan Luis Anangono draws a penalty from Pa Modou Kah and Mike Magee slots home.

March 22 – @ Colorado

Timbers 1, Rapids 1.  Drew Moor puts the Rapids up by nodding an early corner past Donovan Ricketts, but the Rapids’ search for a second goal is their undoing as Diego Valeri takes advantage of openings in the Rapids midfield just before halftime and bends a ball home from 20 yards.  The second half features up-and-down play and several saves from Ricketts and Clint Irwin, but no winner is forthcoming.

March 29 – @ FC Dallas

FCD 2, Timbers 0.  The first truly poor performance form the Timbers in 2014 unnerves the Rose City somewhat heading into their first Cascadia match, as Mauro Diaz and Blas Perez notch goals on either side of halftime to send the Timbers to their first loss of the season.

April 5 – Seattle

Timbers 3, Seattle 0.  Hopes were high in Seattle after a promising preseason, but their reshaped roster has stumbled at the start of the real thing.  Will Johnson loves games like this, and bends a free kick past Stefan Frei to open the scoring in the 12^th minute while the Timbers go up 2-0 just before halftime when Gaston Fernandez finally opens his Timbers account.  Steve Zakuani makes his season debut as a substitute in the 73^rd minute and ten minutes later dumps a bucket of salt in the Emerald City Supporters’ wounds by beating DeAndre Yedlin one-on-one and finishing past Frei.

April 12 – Chivas USA

Timbers 1, Goats 0.  Coming off their Cascadian triumph the week before, the Timbers fight a little hangover in the first half of Andrew Jean-Baptiste’s return to Portland.  The Timbers come out of the locker room on fire, however, and Valeri finds Maxi Urruti as he slips past Carlos Bocanegra for the finish.

April 19 – @ RSL

RSL 1, Timbers 0.  Just like the last time these teams met, the story is RSL’s backline.  The Timbers control much of the game and find more success among the Claret-and-Cobalt’s midfield than they have in the past, but a stout backline and an Alvaro Saborio goal off of a set piece are the Timbers’ undoing.

April 27 – @ Houston

Timbers 3, Dynamo 1.  A Dynamo defense that hasn’t come together is absolutely shredded by a Timbers offense that finds its road form.  After Norberto Paparatto and David Horst trade first half free kick goals, the Timbers attack bludgeons the Dynamo defense out of the locker room with 49^th and 55^th minute goals from Fernandez and Nagbe.

May 3 – D.C. United

Timbers 1, D.C. United 0.  A genuinely improved D.C. United team hangs in there with the Timbers, but ultimately can’t overcome an Urruti 34^th minute goal after he breezes by Jeff Parke to finish a feed from Fernandez.  Things get nervy in Providence Park in the 62^nd minute when Eddie Johnson finishes a set piece, but Kyle Porter is whistled for pulling Paparatto down on the play.

May 11 – L.A. Galaxy

Timbers 2, Galaxy 2.  Nothing about this game disappoints…other than the result.  The Galaxy stun Providence Park with early goals from Robbie Keane and Gyasi Zardes, but it’s all Timbers thereafter.  Valeri pulls one back in the 41^st minute with a juggling finish reminiscent of his golazo against Red Bulls a year before and Nagbe finishes in tight quarters on the byline to level the score in the 57^th.  Portland pushes hard and thinks they have the winner in the 83^rd, but Urruti is flagged offside.

May 17 – Columbus

Timbers 2, Columbus 1.  Dominic Oduro catches the Timbers out early by slipping between Paparatto and Kah and slotting past Ricketts, but the Timbers quickly equalize via a Will Johnson penalty in the 39^th minute.  Everybody in the stadium can see the winner coming in the 67^th minute when Gaston Fernandez flattens out the Crew line with a deep run, then steps back to receive a pass from Nagbe, turns, and fires into the side netting.

May 24 – @ New York Red Bulls

Red Bulls 2, Timbers 1.  The Red Bulls and Timbers appear headed to a 1-1 draw after Portland goes up on a Rodney Wallace goal in the 23^rd minute and Peguy Luyindula equalizes fifteen minutes later, but a controversial Red Bulls goal in second half stoppage time breaks the deadlock when Thierry Henry appears to handle the ball before laying off for Tim Cahill to bury the winner.

May 28 – @ Chivas

Chivas 1, Timbers 0.  Coming off the disappointment in New York, the Timbers sleepwalk through a trip to the StubHub Center. Cubo Torres’s goal on the edge of halftime is the difference in a game in which a tired, listless Timbers team never shows a pulse.

June 1 – Vancouver

Timbers 2, Whitecaps 2.  The Timbers are beat.  After seemingly coming out of their road trip-induced funk by way of first half goals by Kalif Alhassan and Valeri, Portland melts down after they run out of gas late in the game, giving up goals in the 83^rd and 88^th minutes to Darren Mattocks and Kekuta Manneh to drop two points.

June 7 – @ RSL

RSL 3, Timbers 1.  A trip to Salt Lake is the absolute last thing the Timbers need right now.  This one is never close; RSL scores in the 17^th and 36^th minutes to put the game seemingly out of reach by halftime, and tacks on one more by way of Joao Plata in the 62^nd minute.  A late Frederic Piquionne goal – reminiscent of his goal in the 2013 Playoffs – is little comfort.

June 11 – FC Dallas

Timbers 4, Dallas 0.  The punditry are unanimous that the Timbers can’t get to the World Cup break fast enough.  Dallas – looking better under Oscar Pareja – has been playing well lately.  But then there was Maxi Urruti.  Goalless for a month, he burns Dallas for a hat trick with goals in the 8^th, 41^st, and 62^nd minute before being chanted off the pitch three minutes later.  Gaston Fernandez adds one more for good measure in the 71^st minute to cap a game that was just what the doctor ordered for a previously struggling Timbers team.

June 27 – Sporting KC

Timbers 3, SKC 1.  The schedule makers ruin what should have been one of the games of the year in MLS.  With Zusi and Besler having been eliminated along with the U.S. National Team the night before, the Timbers jump all over SKC scoring goals on either side of halftime by way of Nagbe and Fernandez.  The Wiz make a cameo in the game in the 64^th minute by way of an Aurelien Collin header, but Valeri puts an end to the suspense six minutes later with a brilliant curling finish from 25 yards.

At the midway point of the season, the Timbers 30 points have them tops among the West and in the thick of the Supporters Shield race.  Maxi Urruti’s seven goals lead the way, but balance is again the Timbers’ strength with five players – Urruti, Johnson, Nagbe, Valeri, and Fernadnez – having each logged three or more.

July 4 – @ L.A. Galaxy

Timbers 1, Galaxy 1.  Another instant classic from the two leaders of the pack in the West.  With Landon Donovan back from the World Cup, both teams create enough chances in the first half to justify a goal, but both Ricketts and Jaime Penedo each make a handful of saves to keep things scoreless.  The Timbers come out of the locker room on the front foot, but can’t find the go-ahead goal before Donovan breaks through for the Galaxy against the run of play in the 77^th minute.  All seems lost for Portland until Will Johnson buries a free kick from 25 yards to level the score in the 89^th minute.

July 13 – @ Seattle

Timbers 0, Sounders 0.  After a dry spell in May and early June, the Timbers have been playing some of the most exciting soccer in MLS over the last month.  That stopped abruptly, however, when the Timbers faced the Sounders.  In a game filled with many more tackles than chances, neither team seriously threatens to break the stalemate.

July 18 – Colorado

Timbers 1, Colorado 0.  It’s been a rough go for Colorado in 2014, and they come into Providence Park playing scared, negative football.  Bunkering in works for Colorado until the 53^rd minute when Gaston Fernandez – becoming more comfortable in MLS by the day – breaks through Colorado’s line to gather a Valeri pass and slot past Clint Irwin for the winner.

July 27 – @ Montreal

Montreal 2, Timbers 0.  Twitter is positively toxic after Troy Perkins stands on his head to deliver a shutout for the disappointing Impact against his “upgraded” former team.  In reality, though, this was just one of those games in which the Timbers dominate everything except the scoreboard.  The Timbers brass gets the last laugh, however, when the Impact crash out of the Eastern Conference playoff picture two months later.

August 2 – @ Los Angeles

Galaxy 2, Timbers 1.  The Galaxy finally break the deadlock between these two teams by way of goals in the 22^nd and 25^th minutes that have Caleb Porter fuming about his team’s focus.  The rest of the game plays out largely like the last two fixtures, including a beauty of a Will Johnson crack from distance in the 70^th minute to pull one back, but the hole is too much for the Timbers to overcome.

August 9 – Chivas USA

Timbers 4, Chivas 1.  Frustrated after tallying no points and giving up four goals on a key late summer road swing, the Timbers get it all back in one swoop in their final game against the Goats.  Goals by Urruti, Nagbe, Zakuani, and Kalif Alhassan pave the way for a steamrolling of the Rojiblancos that leaves a victimized Jean-Baptiste red in the face.

August 16 – @ New England

Timbers 1, Revs 1.  For the second game in a row, the Timbers play excellent soccer, but this time they just can’t find the finishing touch to run away.  New England jumps out by way of a Teal Bunbury goal against the run of play in the 17^th minute, and for a period it appears the Timbers might just be cursed on the night.  But Urruti pulls things back even in the 60^th to begin a frantic finishing 30 minutes in which Portland rocks the post twice and is stoned by Bobby Shuttleworth three more times.

August 24 – Seattle

Timbers 2, Seattle 0.  It hasn’t been a fun ride for Seattle in 2014, thin on talent and unable to find continuity.  Sigi Schmid’s coaching grave diggers already have their shovels out before the game, but are compelled to stick them in the dirt in the 9^th minute when Nagbe slices through a porous backline and finishes smoothly past the inexplicably starting Marcus Hahnemann.  The Timbers don’t put away a game that isn’t really that close until the 77^th minute when – you guessed it – a substitute Steve Zakuani gets out on the break and finishes the Sounders.

August 30 – @ Vancouver

Timbers 1, Vancouver 1.  Sometimes two good teams play a good soccer game and, to be honest, there just isn’t much to say about it.  Good offense and good defense leads to an entertaining game for the most discerning supporters and leaves casual fans wondering what all the fuss is about.  Jack Jewsbury reprises his crack from distance that won the 2012 Cascadia Cup in the 33^rd minute, only to have Russell Teibert level it for good eight minutes later.

September 7 – San Jose

Timbers 0, Quakes 0.  This team is a bit of a hulabaloo for the Timbers.  This is essentially a flashback to the preseason tournament sans set piece concession – which the Timbers have improved significantly as 2014 has gone on, by the way – as Portland dominated possession and created oodles of half chances, but they couldn’t fracture the packed-in Quakes defense.

September 13 – @ Colorado

Timbers 2, Rapids 0.  The Timbers caught the Rapids in Colorado at a good time, as the Commerce Citizens have entered full meltdown mode in what has turned into a lost year.  The Timbers’ two first half from Urruti and Johnson goals are enough to put the Rapids out of their misery and let the Timbers pass their way through the second half.

September 20 – Vancouver

Timbers 2, Whitecaps 1.  A win or tie brings the Cascadia Cup back to the Rose City, and the Timbers secure the win in dramatic fashion.  Pedro Morales opens the scoring for Vancouver, but Will Johnson levels things before halftime by converting a penalty awarded – albeit a couple years late – after Jay DeMerit takes down Kalif Alhassan in the box.  The heroics are Piquionne’s, however, as he rises above Andy O’Brien to find the end of a Rodney Wallace cross in the 88^th minute to seal the win.

September 27 – @ Toronto FC

Timbers 2, TFC 2.  It’s been a better year for the Reds, but not they are clearly still looking up at the Timbers and the MLS elite.  The Timbers jump out to an early lead by way of a Will Johnson 23^rd minute goal, but Jonathan Osorio pulls Toronto back level just before halftime.  The Timbers take a deserving lead again in the 64^th minute by way of a Darlington Nagbe driving wonder goal, but Michael Bradley erases the advantage in the 81^st minute to finalize the scoreline.

October 4 – @ San Jose

Timbers 3, Quakes 0.  Talk about your ultimate backfires.  Emboldened by a string of positive results against Portland and being at home, San Jose comes out trying to play football with the Timbers.  Bad, bad idea.  Valeri, Fernandez, and Urruti make it, in Caleb Porter’s postgame words, an “Argie Hat Trick” as the loss sends San Jose out of playoff contention for good.

October 8 – San Jose

Timbers 1, Quakes 1.  You have to hand it to the Earthquakes.  After getting walloped four days earlier, the Quakes come into Providence Park playing for pride.  The Timbers put one up early by way of Nagbe, but San Jose is resolute and their 73^rd minute Shea Salinas goal isn’t entirely undeserved.  It can’t pull the Quakes back into the playoff picture, but it substantially weakens the Timbers’ chances at the Supporters Shield.

October 17 – Real Salt Lake

Timbers 1, RSL 1.  The Timbers just can’t shake the Claret-and-Cobalt.  Again, Portland looks awfully good in the home draw, but Joao Plata’s early goal makes Portland climb out of a hole against the still hyper-organized MLS royalty.  The Timbers get their heads above water in the 51^st minute when Gaston Fernandez streaks through for the equalizer, but neither team can break through in the final forty minutes.

October 25 – @ FC Dallas

Timbers 2, FCD 1.  Portland needs a win, a Galaxy loss or draw, and a Kansas City loss to take home the Western Conference and MLS crowns.  The Timbers take care of the former, as Urruti and Nagbe score first half goals to put the Timbers well out of the gate.  Fabian Castillo pulls one back for the all-but-eliminated Burn, but it’s not enough to keep their season from going up in flames.  Earlier that morning, however, the Galaxy knocked off Seattle in the Emerald City to clinch the conference crown, and the next day Sporting stomps New York to capture the Supporters Shield.

Second in the West.  Third on the league table.  The Timbers’ 57 points on 15 wins, 7 losses, and 12 draws don’t mark a plateauing from 2013, but rather progress against the backdrop that is the reality of an even stiffer Western Conference.  Despite playoff optimism based on a 12-game unbeaten streak to finish the season, the Timbers meet their end in the Western Conference Finals on the Galaxy’s way to the MLS Cup, but a US Open Cup title, Cascadia Cup reunion, and routine run through the group stage of the CONCACAF Champions League sweeten the bitter pill that was falling just short in MLS play.

The Timbers’ spread the scoring load once again in 2014, with Maxi Urruti leading the way with 12 goals, but five players over five and three with seven or more.  The Timbers goalscoring is up three from 2013 with 57 and their concessions stayed flat at 33, giving the Timbers the goal difference crown for the second year in a row.

From the perspective of December, cooler heads look back in 2014 as a success.  Despite a brutal conference schedule, the Timbers matched their 2013 point total, won a pair of trophies, had the best goal difference in MLS, and have positioned themselves as one of the teams to watch for the regional crown in the spring.  In the end, the combination of league disappointment but Cup success positions puts the Timbers in perfect position for their prime run in 2015 and ’16.

Onward, Rose City!

Counting down the hours to the start of the season is always a bit rough. On one hand the offseason is really short and on the other it’s been too long since the intensity of a game that matters has coursed through your veins. Finding that balance is where we are all at right now. Some of us are ready and some of us aren’t. Nothing wrong with being either way. What does have to happen is all of us need to be ready on March 8th. If the season opener can’t wake you up from the offseason I don’t know what will. You all know the drill. Get up, stand up and sing for the boys on the pitch.

We wanted to share with you the press release below regarding the total contribution made by 107ist to the Bless Field project that is on the verge of completing fundraising. All of these funds were raised by the organization and our members through the various fundraisers thrown, collaborations, merchandise projects launched and individual donations of all sizes. While the dollars are impressive, the most important contribution to this project thus far has been all hands on deck mentality that you, our membership, have shown in support of this project. By each of us passing on the story of the project to friends, families and coworkers and spreading the love and message behind our participation we all made this happen together.

Thank you for all of your contributions.

- 107ist Board

PORTLAND — The 107 Independent Supporters Trust is pleased to announce a donation of $50,000 to Operation Pitch Invasion on behalf of the Timbers Army towards the completion of Bless Field. Bless Field will be a youth-sized all-season soccer pitch for the children who live in Portland’s New Columbia Housing Project. A check presentation from Tyler Segel of Factory North, a Timbers Army member and organizer of Art Takeover, will occur on March 16th before kickoff between the Portland Timbers and Chicago Fire.

“We are thrilled we are able to make this large of a contribution,” said 107ist President Scott Swearingen. “Our goal was met and it was incredible to watch the Timbers Army community rally around this project. It will be fun for everyone when the kids who live at New Columbia have this field to play the game we all love.”

About the 107 Independent Supporters Trust

The 107ist (107 Independent Supporters Trust) is a member-based non-profit organization open to anyone (regardless of where they sit in the stadium) who loves soccer, the Timbers, the Thorns, Portland, and especially the combination of the four.

About the New Columbia Housing Project

The New Columbia Housing project is located in North Portland’s Portsmouth neighborhood, the housing mix of 852 units includes public housing, affordable rental housing, elderly housing and homes for sale. In addition, the New Columbia community is home to nearly 1,200 kids from 22 countries speaking more than 11 different languages.

—by Chris Rifer

Mark Geiger got the red card on Donovan Ricketts absolutely wrong.[1]  The correct call was a yellow card on Deshorn Brown.

After Dillon Powers played a 68^th minute ball over the top in the direction of Deshorn Brown, Ricketts and Brown were placed on a collision course to the ball.  The first bounce in unkind to Brown, however, and the ball skipped away from him and toward Ricketts.

In this split second, both Ricketts and Brown had crucial decisions to make.  Brown could either pull out of the play and try to evade the collision, or he could challenge for a ball he really didn’t have a realistic chance of winning.  Ricketts, on the other hand, had to decide how to go in for the ball.  One choice was, in traditional goalkeeper fashion, to dive in headfirst and gather with his hands.  This option presented a better chance of securing the ball, but carried substantial risk for the goalkeeper.[2]  The other option was to jump in feet-first and try to clear the ball away.  This option, while safer for the keeper, is much more dangerous for the attacker as a high boot is inevitable when the ball is bouncing.

Brown chose to challenge withot in the air for a ball that, by the time Ricketts arrived, is the better part of a yard away from him.  Ricketts chose the self-preservation option and went in feet-first, perhaps getting unlucky to catch a hard boot to the knee.  The elder Jamaican got there first, but, because he tried to tackle a bouncing ball with an attackers boot bearing down on his head, whiffed or perhaps got only a very glancing touch on the ball on its way through his legs.[3]  Ricketts’ high boot catches Brown in the thigh on the way by and Geiger accordingly pulled a red card for the keeper.

Take a step back. Who was issued the card here?

Geiger apparently adjudged Ricketts made the wrong choice.  But this decision is betrayed by two indisputable facts.  First, Brown had not made a touch on the ball when Ricketts arrived; the last player to touch the ball was Dillon Powers when he hit his pass over the top.  Second, the ball was Ricketts’ to win – he’s clearly there first.  So Geiger effectively punished Ricketts for making an impossible decision between risking serious injury to himself or to Brown.[4]

Thus, the last person to make a choice was Geiger.  On one hand, Geiger could have imparted a duty on Ricketts to choose to sacrifice himself, increase his chance of making the play, and mitigate the danger for his opponent.  On the other, he could have imparted a duty on Brown to avoid going in for a hopeless challenge that brings to the fore Ricketts’ catch-22 between self-preservation and making the play.  Geiger chose the former.  The latter, however, is the only option that protects a helpless goalkeeper in this situation.

Onward, Rose City.

—by Chris Rifer

Looking across the Timbers backline heading into the 2014 season, there aren’t a lot of surprises. Barring injury, the opening day starters on the back line will be Michael Harrington, Pa Modou Kah, Norberto Paparatto, and Jack Jewsbury. And even further barring injury, it’s a good bet that those four will makeup the closing day quartet, too.

Three of the four players on the backline are incumbents from 2013. Paparatto, a newcomer from Club Atletico Tigre in Argentina, represents the only newcomer, and even he occupies the position the Timbers were universally expected to upgrade over the winter.

As such, like the goalkeepers, the Timbers 2014 backline presents few surprises at the top of the depth chart. Nonetheless, much of the Timbers success in 2014 depends on the backline’s ability to permit the team to commit the desired numbers and mold the shape of the attack to Caleb Porter’s liking. Thus, while not at all surprising, the addition of Paparatto is one of the keys to the Timbers season—and not necessarily for defensive purposes.

The Timbers’ 33 goals allowed in 2013 were the second fewest in MLS. It’s easy to imagine the Timbers putting together a trophy-winning campaign by coming close to reprising that defensive production—a prospect that is far from farfetched.

If Paparatto and Pa Modou Kah can be as reliable in back as the Timbers hope, Caleb Porter will be free to push his fullbacks at will, potentially opening up spaces for the attack and pinning opponents’ midfields and forwards in their own end. Put another way, the Timbers needed an upgrade in central defense to help them score more goals.

Early returns on Paparatto’s signing are solid. His tour of duty in Tucson passed largely without incident, and although Paparatto conceded an own goal against San Jose, a closer look at the concession reveals it was caused more by the wrath of Kah than Paparatto.[1] Considering the Timbers’ defensive accomplishments in 2013 with a MASH unit in the middle, a defense that fulfilled its responsibilities more than capably in 2013 appears to have only improved in 2014.

While the starting unit remained mostly consistent, the defensive bench underwent more changes. Out are Mikael Silvestre, David Horst, Andrew Jean-Baptiste, Ryan Miller, and Sal Zizzo. In are Paparatto, Jorge Villafaña, and Taylor Peay.

What looked like a deep rotation of fullbacks before preseason, however, has become less certain as the Timbers approach the regular season. Coming into camp, it appeared Jorge Villafaña and Alvas Powell had firm grasps on the backup left and right back positions, respectively. Both Powell and Villafaña, however, have failed to impress in camp— at least at their fullback positions—prominently including poor-to-catastrophic performances at their primary positions in the Rose City Invitational against Portmore United. And, as he said after the game against Portmore, Caleb Porter projects Taylor Peay as a centerback despite seeing minutes at fullback as a result of Futty and Rauwshan McKenzie having the backup center half spots locked down.

Who, then, is the Timbers’ third fullback? The answer is probably Ben Zemanski. Coming off a good preseason, Zemanski seems likely to get the nod to enter the starting XI should Captain Jack or Harrington go down. Considering both Jewsbury and Harrington can play on either side of the defense, Zemanski would likely step into right back while the starter left standing would play on the left.

In central defense, Futty and McKenzie have solidified the Timbers’ third and fourth spots, and Timbers supporters have reason to have confidence in those two as the immediate reserves. Behind Futty and McKenzie, however, the field becomes less certain, with Peay likely filling the fifth spot. In 2013, however, the Timbers started six different centerbacks through the course of the season, suggesting that relying on four to man the middle of the backline throughout the MLS season—to say nothing of U.S. Open Cup and CONCACAF Champions League—is not necessarily a simple task.

Questions remain, then, about the Timbers depth in each of the defensive spots. It may well be that the Timbers can get through 2014 without having to dig deep into the depth chart at their defensive positions. And so long as that is the case, the Timbers backline seems likely to be at least as good as it was in 2013 when it combined with the midfield to yield the second fewest goals in MLS. If Portland has to go to the bench with regularity, however, the defense could stand on shakier footing.

Projected Centerback Depth Chart

1. Norberto Paparatto
   
2. Pa Modou Kah
   
3. Futty Danso
   
4. Rauwshan McKenzie
   
5. Taylor Peay
   

Projected Right Back Depth Chart

1. Jack Jewsbury
   
2. Ben Zemanski
   
3. Alvas Powell
   
4. Taylor Peay
   

Projected Left Back Depth Chart

1. Michael Harrington
   
2. Jack Jewsbury
   
3. Jorge Villafaña
   

Onward, Rose City!

[1]Kah first went on a bit of a walkabout out of his zone and into Michael Harrington’s to challenge for the first ball into Clarence Goodson. Although inconsistent with zone marking dogma, this isn’t the worst thing for the Timbers, as they would probably like the Kah-Goodson matchup better than Harrington-Goodson. The new half of the Great Wall of Gambia, however, completely whiffed on winning the header, allowing Goodson to cut in front of him to head the ball back in front of goal, where Paparatto then had to cover his zone as well as Kah’s. This play, however, was only indicative of a simple truth about Pa Modou Kah: For a 6’1” centerback, he is a surprisingly poor aerial ball winner. Watch, for example, the number of times Kah will venture 30 yards upfield to win an aerial ball on a goal kick, only to lose the header and leave his defense exposed.