A Step Short

The NC Courage fall 2-1 to Gotham FC in a gritty, physical match at WakeMed, dropping to seventh in the table with just five matches left. Trevor and Katie break down a wonky midfield and a defense that keeps getting caught too far forward. Then they look ahead to a road trip against the Utah Royals, on the wrong side of their win-loss-win-loss pattern lately. But they're missing two starters, so can we break that? In This Episode What We Learned This Week: NC Courage vs. Gotham FC The eighth-minute Gotham goal that kicked off the match came from Sam Kerr drawing five defenders before finding Jordynn Dudley wide open. We break down the center back over-commitment that keeps leaving space behind, why the midfield trio of Erica Meg Parkinson, Shinomi Koyama, and Vilde Bøe Risa looks technically brilliant but structurally loose, and a predictable substitution pattern. Plus, Gianna Paul's first start and what it revealed about the ongoing search for answers at right wing. Looking Ahead: Utah Royals Utah will be missing two starters to red card suspensions from their match against Angel City. They've been stuck in an alternating win-loss pattern for five straight matches. We break down former Courage midfielder Narumi Miura's growing influence in central midfield and why Trevor and Katie both see this as a genuinely winnable match at the right time. But please, let's minimize the opponent's corner kicks. Courage News A September sellout at WakeMed, the second-largest crowd in club history, with Courage legend Sam Mewis in attendance. Shinomi Koyama hits 50 NWSL regular-season appearances. Ryan Williams celebrated for reaching 10,000 career minutes, all with the Courage. And the Courage hosted a Unified match with Special Olympics North Carolina, headlined by community ambassador Riley Jackson. Around the League Gotham becomes the first team to officially clinch a playoff spot. Vlatko Andonovski is announced as Chicago's new sporting director, reuniting him with longtime youth coach connections at the club as speculation builds about what a rebuild there could look like. About The Lion’s Pitch Podcast Welcome to The Lion’s Pitch, your go-to podcast for everything North Carolina Courage. Every week, Trevor and Katie break down the latest matches, preview upcoming opponents, discuss NC Courage news, and take a look around the NWSL. Plus, we’ll bring you bonus episodes with interviews, behind-the-scenes content, and some fun surprises along the way. New episode drops every Thursday. Subscribe & Follow Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and find us online at lionspitch.com, follow us on Bluesky @lionspitch.bsky.social, or on Instagram @thelionspitch Hosted by Trevor Knoblich and Katie Cleary Produced by Mary Pruter Edited by Danielle Russell Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.