Houston Dash pulled off one of the biggest shocks of the NWSL season as they defeated runaway leaders the Kansas City Current 1-0.
Midfielder Ryan Gareis scored the only goal of the game in the 69th minute – her first in the NWSL – and despite a late flurry of attacks from the Current, their record-equalling 17-match unbeaten run was broken.
But head coach Vlatko Andonovski was sanguine – saying that he would rather have this loss now than in the play-offs for the NWSL Championship, where a defeat would mean being knocked out of the competition.
“This was one of those games, and sometimes things like this will happen,” he said. “You’re going to dominate, you’re going to do everything well but you’re not going to score a goal and you’re going to get punished…I’m glad it happened now and not two games from now.”
The Dash are tenth in the NWSL table, outside the play-off qualification spots – but now with a chance of making it through should they win their final game of the regular season and the other results all go their way.
San Diego Wave join Kansas City Current in play-offs
San Diego Wave confirmed their place in the play-offs with a 6-1 thrashing of Chicago Stars. Coached by former Arsenal boss Jonas Eidevall, the Wave moved into fifth place in the league table with the victory.
And Marta notched the winner for Orlando Pride, converting a penalty to secure a 3-2 win over Washington Spirit.
The Pride are third in the NWSL table, and should they finish in the top four following the last round of league fixtures, they will play their first-round play-off game at home.
Hines: We hold our own destiny
“Great game and a great result,” concluded head coach Seb Hines afterwards. “We were disappointed with the goals that we conceded, but we showed a lot of resilience to come back and win the game.
“Credit to all the players and the staff as it has been a journey to get here. We now hold our own destiny in trying to reach that top four spot.
“I think any time we play Washington, it is always an emotional game, and it is competitive. Both teams are going after it. For the neutrals it was a good game.”
