Utah Royals Vs Sky Blue FC: 3 things we learned
By Drew Hubbard
This weekend, the Utah Royals defeated Sky Blue FC 1-0 to take second place in the NWSL Challenge Cup standings. Here are three things we learned.
On Saturday, the Utah Royals grabbed their first win of the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup with a 1-0 win over Sky Blue FC. Amy Rodriguez’s goal in the 41st minute was all the separated the two sides, moving Utah into second place in the preliminary standings.
Rodriguez’s first goal of the tournament came after nearly an entire half of pressure by Utah while Sky Blue once again seemed content to play for a draw after they drew with OL Reign in their first matchup.
Their defense could only hold on for so long, though, and when Veronica Boquete slipped in a perfect through ball to set up Rodriguez perfectly for the finish, it was inevitable what the result would be. Utah now find themselves in second place after the win and a 3-3 draw with Houston. Sky Blue meanwhile, sit in dead last with one point after two games played.
Here are three things we learned from the matchup.
3. Big three points for Utah
Following a draw in their opener, Utah needed all three points against Sky Blue for a high seeding before playing OL Reign and Chicago. They got just that.
In the knockout stages, anything can happen. A team can bunker its way to penalty kicks or spring forward on one counter-attack and have that be the game-winner. And because every team is making it to the knockout round, the preliminary stages are for the sole purpose of setting up the best chance to make a run at the final.
Like the past two NWSL seasons, it looks like North Carolina are going to dominate this competition and earn the number one overall seed (as many expected them to). So, for other teams, a big part in making it to the final is to avoid the Courage for as long as possible and hope another team upsets the champions. The way the knockout round is set up, the two, three, six and seven seeds are on the opposite side of the bracket from the top spot.
With Utah’s win, they put themselves in second place, which would put them on the opposite side of the Courage, with two games remaining. Holding onto second place is going to be a tough ask, but their win on Saturday gives them more than a fighter’s chance.