Will Johnson is questionable. We’ve heard everything from a minor sprain to a broken bone in his shoulder.
Fredy Piquionne is most likely out with whatever that foot thing was.
Futty is out.
Chara is out with a handful of yellow cards. But, honestly, who didn’t think that was eventually going to happen?
Horst and Silvestre have both been out since the beginning of time, along with Dike and Richards and who else? I can’t even remember anymore.
And I’m unconcerned. Completely unconcerned.
We’re going to Seattle on Sunday. Our squad is depleted. They’re having a hard time pulling anything more than a draw. We’ve seen what’s possible from this team and we’ve seen games they should have won slip away in the most ridiculous fashion. This is not new for us, but after such a phenomenal start to the season, it may seem unfamiliar to those with shorter memories.
But we have something we didn’t have at this point last year.
These guys get it.
They understand what it means to wear the badge. They understand that we live and breathe with this team. They know the importance a Seattle match carries.
At the beginning of the season, I was concerned about this more than anything. With all of Caleb Porter’s quips about “no game is bigger than another,” I worried that something would be lost.
This was all we had last year. When everything else was said and done, it was the importance of the Cascadia Cup that pushed us forward and, after so many divisive issues over the course of the season, united us. And it was their desire to win it for us that finally brought the Timbers together as a club.
It took them all year to get there, to reach the place where we all stood waiting. And, together, we lifted the Cup.
The difference this year is that they’re already together. You saw it after the USOC loss to Salt Lake and you saw it tonight. There is nothing quite like the weight of a loss (or a draw that should have been a win) to strengthen their resolve to not let it happen again.
So, while almost all of you are FREAKING OUT, I’m unconcerned.
They get it. They’re going to go to Seattle and get us three points and put us at the top of the Cascadia Cup table. They do this not for themselves, but for us.
octoberthoughtspdx 