FootyPop: Mal Swanson’s Heartbreaking Injury, Sinead Farrelly’s Ireland Debut, and More
This week was intense, to say the least. We witnessed the return of two players: Julie Ertz and Sinead Farrelly, who both performed well. But we also saw Mallory Swanson, the star for the US, face a severe knee injury, leaving her future up in the air. We’ll be looking forward to the USWNT’s second friendly against Ireland tomorrow, and NWSL matches this weekend. So, without further ado, here’s everything you need to get caught up on the past week’s women’s soccer news.
High of the Weekend
Sinead Farrelly makes her debut for the Ireland Women’s National Team 🇮🇪🥹 pic.twitter.com/LnOspvyTRF
— Attacking Third (@AttackingThird) April 8, 2023
Sinead Farrelly made her debut for Ireland on Saturday! Farrelly has a history of playing for the USWNT on the youth level but was also eligible to play for Ireland. She played an excellent game, and we’re excited to see more of her for Gotham in the NWSL!
Farrelly’s return to soccer after six years of being away is remarkable. She left her playing career after coming out with her story of sexual abuse, which went public in 2021 and catalyzed multiple investigations into abusive coaching in the league. It’s great to see the once-USWNT-hopeful back on the field and playing at a national level, and we’ll also be looking to see her at the World Cup.
Low of the Weekend
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In the USWNT vs. Ireland match, we possibly saw the most heartbreaking injury we’ve ever seen. Mallory Swanson suffered a ruptured patellar tendon in her left knee. She was carted off the field and signaled a heart to the stadium, but this injury most likely means she won’t play in the World Cup.
Swanson has been in the best form of her life and arguably looked like the best on the team. It’s a harsh blow to the team before the World Cup and even more to Swanson, who’ll miss out on some of the best playing time of her career. All our well wishes to Mallory in the coming months!
News of the Weekend
💥💥ANNOUNCEMENT💥💥
Women's pro soccer is coming to the Bay!Join us in this new chapter for Bay Area and women's sports and show your support for #NWSLtotheBay #NWSL pic.twitter.com/Xz1RZlw3FR
— NWSL to the Bay (@nwsltothebay) April 4, 2023
As we know, the NWSL will expand in 2024 to 14 teams. One of the two new teams is the Utah Royals, and the other was just announced! The 14th NWSL team will be based out of the Bay Area. The bid for the team is led by four former USWNT players: Aly Wagner, Brandi Chastain, Leslie Osbourne, and Danielle Slaton. Can’t wait for more details on the third Californian team!
Team of the Weekend
Une réaction en ÉQUIPE 🤜 #FiersdetreBleues pic.twitter.com/SmevKAO1G0
— Equipe de France Féminine (@equipedefranceF) April 8, 2023
France is BACK. They have a new coach, their best players are back on the team, and they just beat Colombia 5-2 after being down 2-0 at first! They are definitely in contention for that World Cup title.
Goal of the Weekend
goodness gracious diana ordóñezpic.twitter.com/rHFDtcFlnO
— ugh (@838_carlisle) April 8, 2023
ScOrdóñez is back again! Diana Ordóñez scored a banger in the Mexico WNT’s friendly against the Chicago Red Stars. They ended up defeating the NWSL side 5-2. Last season, Ordóñez was in contention for the Golden Boot in her rookie season. It looks like she’ll only be going up from there!
Player of the Weekend
After the news about Mallory Swanson, Coach Vlatko Andonovski chose Alyssa Thompson to join the team. It’ll be great to see Thompson at this level, especially after her success for Angel City so far this NWSL season.
Save of the Weekend
Keeping a clean sheet, that's our @att Play of the Match 🚫 pic.twitter.com/glrIQCWTV4
— U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) April 9, 2023
This save from Alyssa Naeher may have been frantic, but it goes to show how tough in goal she really is.
Fav Social Media Post
We did it #USWNT pic.twitter.com/2GEO7gq3yZ
— Gal Pal Sports (@GalPalSports) April 8, 2023
Julie Ertz got some playing time in the USWNT’s game, and she looked like she hadn’t taken a day off!
What to Look Forward To
International Break
Tuesday, April 11: Germany vs. Brazil at 12:00 PM ET/9:00 AM PT on Youtube
USWNT vs. Ireland at 7:30 PM ET/4:30 PM PT on HBO Max
NWSL
Friday, April 14: Portland Thorns vs. Houston Dash at 10:30 PM ET/7:30 PM PT
Saturday, April 15: Orlando Pride vs. Gotham FC at 7:00 PM ET/4:00 PM PT
North Carolina Courage vs. Washington Spirit at 7:00 PM ET/4:00 PM PT
Chicago Red Stars vs. Kansas City Current at 8:00 PM ET/5:00 PM PT
OL Reign vs. San Diego Wave at 10:00 PM ET/7:00 PM PT
Angel City vs. Racing Louisville at 10:00 PM ET/7:00 PM PT
Women’s FA Cup Semifinals
Saturday, April 15: Manchester United vs. Brighton & Hove Albion at 12:15 PM ET/9:15 PM PT
Sunday, April 16: Aston Villa vs. Chelsea at 9:15 AM ET/6:15 AM PT
Featured image via Getty Images
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