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Austin FC sees disappointing season finale in 3-0 Timbers loss
Austin FC couldn't end their first season with a win as they lost 3-0 to the Portland Timbers on Sunday. (Portland Timbers/Twitter)
Austin FC ended their season on a disappointing note as they fell 3-0 to the Portland Timbers Sunday night to wrap up their first year of play.
The Verde and Black left their inaugural season with an unassuming 9-4-21 record, narrowly missing a chance to be crowned the Best in Texas and end in 11th place in the Western Conference over FC Dallas. Instead, the club edged past the Houston Dynamo to earn a 12th place slot in the West, beating out the Dynamo and the East's Cincinnati and Toronto in overall points to close out the season.
And although they saw moments of greatness—including two dominating wins over Portland in the past—the challenges of a new team, inconsistency on the pitch and injuries kept the club from making a solid playoff run.
But that didn't stop fans from pouring into Q2 Stadium every week or traveling to see their team, including over 100 Verde attendees at the final Portland match.
The club was unable to bring the energy from their David-and-Goliath win over No. 2 Sporting Kansas City for their final home match on Wednesday, however, as the Timbers successfully pulled off a revenge victory.
Austin nearly got an early lead as they had Wednesday as Diego Fagundez maneuvered past the Portland defense to get one in goal just three minutes into the match, but a handball call just prior kept the goal from counting.
Just a few minutes later, the Timbers found themselves alone against Austin keeper Brad Stuver in the Verde box—a pattern that would repeat itself in the poorly-defended match.
By the 17th minute, Austin FC was punished for their leniency as a blunder in the back led to Portland's first goal. The 1-0 Timbers would keep control for the rest of the match, scoring once more just before the halftime whistle as Portland's Yimmi Chara beat out Austin defender Zan Kolmanic to set his teammate Jaroslaw Niezgoda up for a close-range header.
The second half proved just as dismal for Austin as they seemed to hang their heads for the rest of the match. A few bright spots—including winger Jared Stroud's well-placed crosses and some playing time for young players like Freddy Kleeman and Owen Wolff—shone through, but Portland still scored again in the 53rd minute to clinch the match.
After seven months of weekly matches and over three years of anticipation, Austin FC's first ride has come to a close. And though they've lost plenty of matches—and garnered plenty of criticism—support from thousands of Verde fans has never wavered.
Those fans will see their team once again after a few months of regrouping in late February as the 2022 MLS season begins.
Here were the biggest plays of Austin's final match:
53' Portland makes it 3-0
Sebastian Blanco makes it 3-0 in favor of @TimbersFC!#PORvATX // #DecisionDaypic.twitter.com/zSL872EaY6
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) November 8, 2021
Despite a valiant parry from Austin keeper Brad Stuver, Austin FC concedes their third goal of the night as Portland's Sebastián Blanco gets it in off a deflection from just a few feet out.
It seems as though the Verde and Black have already checked out of their final match, and it will be very hard to gain some dignity with a goal or two by the end of the match.
46' Dominguez subs in for Djitte
Senegalese striker Moussa Djitte has subbed out for Designated Player Cecilio Dominguez, who will play up front for Austin's final half of the season. Dominguez is tied with Diego Fagundez for the most goals this season.
A minute into the second half, Sebastian Berhalter receives a yellow card for a shirt grab that he can't quite conceal.
And just a few minutes in, Portland has once again found no one between themselves and Austin FC's goal a few too many times. If the Verde and Black don't plug their holes, it's only a matter of time before another goal is scored against them in their last match.
45+' Austin concedes second goal at the half
Niezgoda uses his chest to double the lead for @TimbersFC! #PORvATX // #DecisionDaypic.twitter.com/P8MdUIT0Xb
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) November 8, 2021
Less than a minute before the end of the half, Austin FC was once again punished for haphazard defending as Portland's Yimmi Chara beat out Austin FC defender Zan Kolmanic to set up Timbers teammate Jaroslaw Niezgoda with a close range header and double the lead.
Austin FC has been consistently outplayed by the Timbers, a stark contrast from their other Portland matchups, as they head into the half with a 2-0 deficit.
17' Portland scores as Austin loses momentum
Paredes taps it home and @TimbersFC take the lead! #PORvATX // #DecisionDaypic.twitter.com/OJgVQ5r4oR
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) November 7, 2021
Portland has finally broken through Austin's sluggish defense as the club capitalizes on a Verde misstep and scores from just a few feet away in the 17th minute of play.
It's the first time Austin has conceded first in a Portland matchup and was bound to happen sooner or later as blunders in the back keep leaving Portland alone in the box. If the club looks to have a season shutout for their final match, they'll need to close some gaps and welcome new urgency across the pitch.
3' Austin—and Portland—nearly score early
Austin FC almost started this match much like their Wednesday victory—just three minutes into play, the club did some maneuvering near the box before Diego Fagundez beat out the Portland defense and put the ball into the back of the net. But just before the would-be goal, a handball call was called on Fagundez off a bounce.
Just a minute later, Portland found themselves nearly alone and quicker than Stuver in a worrying play in the box, but a last-second touch from center back Julio Cascante kept the Timbers out of goal.
Final starting lineup
Almost that time.#AustinFC x @YETICoolerspic.twitter.com/a1Hbb0XRbj
— Austin FC (@AustinFC) November 7, 2021
Jared Stroud, a rare starter who saw a goal in his first start in months on Wednesday, is back in the starting XI as he looks for his second MLS goal. DP Cecilio Dominguez is on the bench tonight, with star transfers Moussa Djitte and Sebastian Driussi up front alongside Stroud.
With center back Jhohan Romana still out, it looks like Captain Alex Ring will once again take his place instead of his regular spot in the middle. Although untraditional, it's a trick that worked last match, and a young Sebastian Berhalter looks to be taking his place. Tomas Pochettino is back in midfield alongside Berhalter and Diego Fagundez, who is tied with Dominguez as the team's top scorer.
In the back, Hoctor Jimenez is back in for right back, with Julio Cascante taking center back alongside Ring and Zan Kolmanic flanking the left hand side. As always, Brad Stuver is taking the keeper position for the final match.
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Popular
(Bob Daemmrich)
Hours following the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark ruling that guaranteed a constitutional right to an abortion, on Friday, about 1,000 people gathered in Republic Square with signs calling for change.
The rally, organized by the group Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights Texas, started at the federal courthouse on Republic Square on Friday at 5 p.m. before the crowd marched to the Texas Capitol. More protests are expected to ensue over the weekend.
People showed up with all types of signs like Mindy Moffa holding up, "Keep your filthy laws off my silky drawers."
Austin joined cities across the country that saw protests for a women's right to an abortion after the ruling.
According to a recent UT poll, 78% of Texas voters support abortion access in most cases.
Sabrina Talghade and Sofia Pellegrini held up signs directed at Texas laws. A Texas trigger law will ban all abortions from the moment of fertilization, starting 30 days after the ruling. When state legislators passed the trigger law last summer, it also passed laws for more protection of firearms, including the right to open carry without a permit.
Lili Enthal of Austin yells as around 1,000 Texans marched to the Texas Capitol.
From the Texas Capitol, Zoe Webb lets her voice be heard against the Supreme Court ruling.
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(Paxton Smith/Instagram)
Paxton Smith’s 2021 valedictory speech at Lake Highlands High School in Dallas wasn’t the same speech she had previously shared with school administrators. She dropped the approved speech and made a case for women’s reproductive rights after lawmakers passed the Texas "Heartbeat Bill.”
Her advocacy made news on NPR, YouTubeTV and in The Guardian. Just over a year later, the “war on (women’s) rights” she forewarned has come to a head as the U.S. Supreme Court voted Friday morning to overturn Roe v. Wade, ending constitutional protection for abortion access.
“It is up to the people to show up and show the courts and the politicians that we won’t sit back and let this happen,” Smith told Austonia Friday morning. “We will show up, we will fight back. Before, we were scared of them, now they should be scared of us.”
Now a University of Texas sophomore and abortion rights activist, 19-year-old Smith said she wanted to give the same speech in the “the most public way possible” to reach “as many people as possible who don't agree that I deserve this right.”
However, she says the response was “actually overwhelmingly positive” and supportive of her cause. According to a recent UT poll, 78% of Texas voters support abortion access in most cases.
The speech opened up further opportunities for activism: she advocated for reproductive rights at the International Forum on Human Rights in Geneva, interviewed with Variety magazine and spoke to tens of thousands at Austin’s Bans Off Our Bodies protest at the Texas Capitol in May.
Smith also serves on the board of directors for the Women’s Reproductive Rights Assistance Project, a national nonprofit organization that helps fund abortions or medication abortion—like Plan C pills—in all 50 states. Most recently, Smith has been attending protests in Washington, D.C. leading up to the ruling.
“This is land of the free. This is where you get to choose how you live your life,” Smith said. “Overturning Roe v. Wade violates everything that we have come to believe about what it means to live in this country. I think a lot of people aren't willing to accept that this is a human right that is most likely just going to be gone for over half of the country within the next couple of weeks.”
Bracing for the next steps, Smith gave some tips for supporters:
- Find a protest to attend.
- “I would say invite somebody to go to those protests with you, invite a couple of friends, invite people into the movement,” Smith said.
- Talk about the issue on social media—use the platform you have.
- “Have these kinds of conversations where people can just talk about their fears and then find ways to go and advocate for yourself,” Smith said.
- Volunteer at a nonprofit near you.
“I feel like a lot of the reason things have gotten as bad as they have within the abortion rights world is that people are not making a scene, not protesting, not putting the effort into ensuring that the government doesn't take away this right,” Smith said. “I want to emphasize that if you're not doing anything, don't expect the best scenario, expect the worst because that's the direction that we're going in.”
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