Utah Royals FC had a goal in Sunday’s regular-season finale at Gotham FC: get to the postseason.
That goal was mostly accomplished late last Saturday, when the club and several of its most ardent fans celebrated clinching a franchise-first playoff berth after a scoreless draw with Seattle and some second-half heroics by Portland after the Royals’ own final whistle.
If the regular-season finale felt anticlimactic for Utah, then, it’s because — in plenty of ways — it was.
A win could’ve pushed Utah as high as sixth in the table, but that would have still placed them behind the Thorns on goal differential.
Gotham FC, on the other hand, had plenty of motivation to come out firing Sunday.
Guro Reiten and Jaedyn Shaw scored a goal in either half as Gotham FC clinched the first NWSL Shield in club history with a 2-0 win Sunday to highlight NWSL Decision Day.
The win (or loss, as it were) locked Utah (14-5-11, 47 points) into the No. 7 seed for the playoffs, with a road quarterfinal next Sunday at San Diego. The Wave finished the regular season 3 points off Gotham FC after a 1-0 win over Bay FC.
“We were going to be excited for whoever we played,” Royals midfielder Ana Tejada said after the match. “We know every match is going to be a war from here on out.”
With the enormous expectations of a first NWSL playoff appearance in club history clinched a week ago in somewhat anticlimactic fashion, Utah rested a trio of injured starters including talisman Mina Tanaka (hamstring).
Head coach Jimmy Coenraets doesn’t expect Tanaka to miss the postseason, but the Japanese international joined midfielder Narumi (thigh) and forward Cece Delzer (thigh) on the injury report at Sports Illustrated Stadium.
But Coenraets wasn’t trying to “rest” any of his players, even a star like Tanaka who has been sidelined for the better part of the last month.
“I’m not here to organize results, or to do anything special like that,” Coenraets said. “I want to win every time I go out on the pitch.
“I will never go on the pitch thinking how we can organize a game to look better next week,” he added. “That should never be our mentality, not even in this game.”
In Tanaka’s absence, Jameese Joseph earned a start in attacking midfield Sunday, and Utah native Courtney Brown also earned time in the role in recent weeks (including off the bench in the final weekend). Both players showed quality in moments, Coenraets said, while also noting that Tanaka’s absence probably should be felt for a player who leads the team with nine goals and five assists in 24 matches.
“I think there are a few positions on the pitch where having players of the quality of Mina that also enables others,” Coenraets said. “But I have to be honest: I saw Jameese playing at a very good level today, Courtney came in had an impact; everyone who has taken that spot has showed something.
“We don’t have to joke around: Mina has scored the most goals for us this season, so that’s something you’re missing. Similar to what missing Jaedyn Shaw meant for a team like Gotham.”
Utah started fast. But Gotham (18-7-5, 61 points) started even faster.
Still, the league-leading club formerly known as Sky Blue FC came out hot, looking for a win or a draw that would clinch the NWSL Shield for the first time in club history.
That may have been on Midge Purce’s mind when she drove to the end line in the ninth minute and delivered a cross into the box for the opening goal.
Reiten gave the hosts the early lead, finishing that cross that deflected off Ana Tejada in front of goal from inside the six-yard box to put Gotham in front, 1-0.
Miyabi nearly equalized less than five minutes later. But the Japanese fullback’s attempt in the 13th minute was saved by Ann-Katrin Berger.
Gotham outshot Utah 4-2 in the first half, though the Royals matched the Bats with two shots on target in the first 45 minutes.
Utah produced just one shot after halftime before Purce set up another goal for Gotham, this time finished by Shaw in the 80th minute to double the Bats’ advantage.
The loss wraps up Utah’s inaugural postseason berth in team history, and clinches a No. 7 seed in the NWSL Playoffs. The Royals will open the quarterfinals at San Diego, which finished off Bay FC 1-0 on Sunday — the Wave’s sixth straight match with a result to end the regular season.
Gotham scored eight goals in their final five matches.
The Royals, on the other hand, end the regular season winless in four, goal-less in three, and with just one win in the final six fixtures. But reinforcements are on the way in Tanaka, Delzer and Narumi, none of whom have been ruled out for the playoffs as of Sunday evening.
“It’s a long season, and we were disappointed not to have them today,” Utah defender Nuria Rabano said. “But I think it’s very important that we have them ready for next week, and to have everyone available in the squad.”
Of course, context also matters here: the Royals’ final three fixtures came against Kansas City, Seattle and Gotham — all playoff teams. But the fact also remains that Utah scored just one goal in its final four matches — a 96th-minute equalizer from Brecken Mozingo that helped salvage a 1-1 draw with Racing Louisville back on Oct. 3.
“We’ve shown that we’re capable of getting results … against a good team all season,” Coenraets said.
Utah will open the NWSL Playoff quarterfinals Friday. Kickoff from Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego is scheduled for 8 p.m. MT on Amazon’s Prime Video.
