The Orlando Pride did not turn things around against a struggling Gotham FC side. Instead, one of the teams in the NWSL scoring fewer goals than the Pride put two past Anna Moorhouse in the first half to win comfortably in Orlando. The winless streak continues and is becoming a problematic losing streak. Everything is terrible and nothing will ever be good again, apparently.

We look back at our score predictions, which were too optimistic, discuss the key moments of the match and our overall thoughts, and make our selections for Player of the Match.

This week's mailbagbox asked us about Grace Chanda, wild scoring celebrations to pump up the team, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We'd also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we'll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we discussed the Pride's signing of Elyse Bennett to add depth to the attack, the club's Tuesday night Concacaf W Champions Cup debut, and the upcoming trip to play Ludmila and the Chicago Stars, who are playing better soccer of late. We provide our key matchups and score predictions for the NWSL game over the weekend.

If you'd like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we'd love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how Episode 99 went down:

0:15 – The Pride continue not scoring and that leads to the Pride continuing to not win.

19:19 - The mailbagbox is feisty and out of the box, and we like that.

29:36 - A new striker, continental competition, and a Chicago preview.

The Orlando Pride are winless in five games, and that's the longest such skid since the final six matches of the 2022 season. You may recall that the Pride were not a good team in 2022, finishing 10th out of the 12 NWSL teams that competed in the league that season. The Pride return from an unsuccessful road trip that saw Orlando claim just one of a possible six points in two away matches, with a late goal conceded at Angel City costing the club one valuable additional point that could have been won. Not only did the Pride fail to score again, but they managed only one shot attempt in the second half — one that Ally Watt pinged off the near post. We break down another awful offensive display and a worrying loss that has Orlando teetering on the brink of going from NWSL Shield contender to playoff hopeful.

We look back at our score predictions, discuss the key moments of the match and our overall thoughts, and make our selections for Player of the Match.

Making matters worse for the Pride is the loss of star striker Barbra Banda for the remainder of the 2025 season. Banda's hip injury is a serious one, and she'll need months to recover. Without a viable scorer (but more on that in a moment), the Pride could slip below the playoff line if some adjustments aren't made.

Speaking of adjusments, Haley Carter made a big one with the signing of Lizbeth Jacqueline Ovalle from Tigres in Liga MX Femenil. Ovalle is a gifted winger who can set up goals or score them herself. Her signing was a huge deal, and it comes with a huge price tag, as Orlando set a world women's transfer fee record to get her, reportedly at least $1.5 million. Ovalle would have been a tremendous asset when paired with Banda, but now she may have to carry the entire offensive load herself. Marta isn't scoring, Summer Yates isn't scoring, Watt isn't scoring, Julie Doyle isn't scoring, and Angelina isn't scoring. That's a lot of non-scoring.

This week's mailbagbox asked us about Banda, Ovalle, back-to-back road games, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We'd also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we'll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we looked ahead to Orlando's match against NJ/NY Gotham FC Friday night at home. Had it not been for the last four or five games, this would be another big game against a tough opponent. As things stand, this is a must-win match for a Pride team that badly needs to stop the bleeding. Ovalle likely won't yet be in the team, and the Pride will be without Banda, so it's anyone's guess as to how Orlando is going to score goals, but the team will need at least one to win. We look at the all-time series, provide our key matchups, and make our final score predictions.

If you'd like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we'd love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how Episode 98 went down:

0:15 – The Pride haven't scored a goal for themselves in three matches. It's beyond concerning, and a last-minute loss to Angel City doesn't help the vibes.

19:19 - We discuss the signing of Ovalle and Morgan Gautrat's loan to Newcastle W.F.C. and retirement from the NWSL.

29:36 - The mailbagbox, unlike the Pride, is not in a slump, and the Pride return home to face Gotham FC. We preview that very match.

[Note: This episode was recorded Monday evening, prior to the reports breaking that the Pride were in advanced talks to finalize a deal for Lizbeth Ovalle, so there is no mention of that on the show.]

The Orlando Pride extended their winless skid to four matches with a scoreless draw at the Kansas City Current. However, there's a big difference between home draws against Utah and Louisville and a road stalemate with the league leaders. What was troubling about the draw was that Orlando didn't score a goal and Barbra Banda had to leave the game due to injury after landing awkwardly following a shot attempt. The Current, unlike Louisville a week ago, did not score a goal against themselves for the Pride. That was rude, but it's also why the Current lead the NWSL. The match itself was a defensive battle and neither side created much all night. Whether the three-and-a-half-hour delay for extreme heat had anything to do with stifling the offenses is debatable, but ultimately the Pride will take that point from Kansas City and move on.

We looked back at our pessimistic score predictions, discussed the game, and made our selections for Player of the Match. No attackers were chosen.

This week's mailbagbox asked us about the Pride's offensive struggles, and how much of them can be attributed to a myriad of different players being deployed by Seb Hines this season. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We'd also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we'll find them easily and read them on the show.

We previewed the Pride's trip to Los Angeles to face Angel City FC in a rare Thursday night match. It'll be a late one Thursday, as it kicks off at 10:30 p.m. our time, so take some PTO from work so you can get some rest. We looked at the series history, provided our key matchups, and made our final score predictions.

Finally, we spoke a bit about the Pride signing goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse to a new contract through 2027.

If you'd like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we'd love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how Episode 97 went down:

0:15 – The Pride haven't scored a goal for themselves in two matches. It's concerning, but a draw on the road against the first-place Kansas City Current is a good result.

11:36 - The mailbagbox went from large last week to more compact this week, but listeners are concerned with the lack of goals.

18:07 - The Pride head even further west to take on Angel City FC.

The Orlando Pride are now winless in three games, and without a late own goal by Racing Louisville, would have been swept in the season series by the Kentucky-based side. Making things even worse were the two missed penalties Orlando had, giving the Pride ample opportunity to take all three points at home. Unfortunately, the hosts politely declined two of those points.

We looked back at our score predictions, broke down the key points from the game, and made our selections for Player of the Match. It wasn't an easy decision.

This week's mailbagbox was huge! Our listeners wanted to know about the Pride's offense, our memories from the first day of school, NWSL officiating, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We'd also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we'll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we previewed the Pride's battle Saturday at the Kansas City Current. The match will not have an effect on first place as it has in the past few meetings, but it's an important opportunity for Orlando to make a statement if the Pride are not going to roll over and let some other team claim all the trophies this season. We break down the matchup, provide our key matchups, and make our final score predictions.

If you'd like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we'd love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how Episode 96 went down:

0:15 – The Pride can't score from the penalty spot and required help from Racing Louisville to grab a point.

14:55 - The mailbagbox is supersized this week!

41:38 - The Pride head west to take on the NWSL's top team.

The Orlando Pride returned to NWSL play Sunday night but things hadn't improved much since their 2-0 loss at Racing Louisville back on June 20. While it wasn't a loss, and the Pride scored a goal, the result against the league's bottom-dwelling club at home can be seen as nothing short of disappointing. The match could have ended as a 1-0 win if not for another highly suspect goal conceded early in the match, as Anna Moorhouse was caught napping well off her line by Mina Tanaka. Prisca Chilufya got the Pride on level footing, but Orlando didn't create a lot of clear-cut chances, and couldn't put away anything after the Zambian's goal.

We looked back at our incorrect predictions of a Pride victory, broke down the key points from the game, and made our selections for Player of the Match.

Following our match recap, we discussed the ESPN report that Ally Watt has been dealt to Denver Summit FC and loaned back to the Pride for the rest of 2025. It hasn't been officially announced, but Jeff Kassouf is a solid reporter and cited multiple sources. Watt, who is currently injured, has been an integral part of the locker room culture the past few years in Orlando and was a big part of the Pride's run to the double in 2024.

This week's mailbagbox asked about our feelings regarding Watt's apparent (eventual) departure, where the responsibility lies with Sunday's result, Marta's best role with the club, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We'd also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we'll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we previewed the Pride's upcoming rematch against Racing Louisville. The Pride were far from their best in Kentucky, as well as on Sunday, and they'll need to improve to get back into the win column after a draw and a loss. We discuss the series history, provide our key matchups, and make our final score predictions.

If you'd like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we'd love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how Episode 95 went down:

0:15 – The Pride played with their food a bit too long against the Royals, and Ally Watt may very well be on the move after the season.

21:10 - The mailbagbox is not filled with contentment.

45:50 - The Pride look to regain their form against Racing Louisville.

The Orlando Pride will finally be back in action this weekend after a lengthy midseason stop for international tournaments. We are also back after a couple of weeks off as the club was quiet for the bulk of July.

We open this show by discussing how several of the Pride players spent the "break." Six of those players all spent a lot of time with their national teams in Europe, South America, and Africa. We discuss Anna Moorhouse's team winning the Women's Euros, Zambia's run — featuring Barbra Banda, Prisca Chilufya, and Grace Chanda — in the Women's Africa Cup of Nations, and Marta and Angelina representing Brazil in the Copa America Femenina. We'll also discuss which players won't be back in time for Orlando's match Sunday against the Royals.

This week's mailbagbox asked about Orlando's openness to an Adriana return, national team kits, whether the Pride could beat up Spain in a (soccer) fight, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We'd also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we'll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we previewed the Pride's upcoming second match of the season against the Utah Royals. Sunday's visitors may be statistically the worst team in the NWSL, but that doesn't mean Utah lacks players who can do some damage. We break down the all-time series, provide our key matchups for the game, and predict the final score of the match.

If you'd like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we'd love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how Episode 94 went down:

0:15 – The Pride sign a couple of players, pick up the options on a couple of others, and loan a handful out.

9:13 - The mailbagbox is ready for some Orlando Pride soccer.

25:59 - The Utah Royals are coming to town. No, not the old Utah Royals. The new ones!

The Orlando Pride don't play another game for a few more weeks, but that doesn't mean stuff isn't happening with the club. Haley Carter has been busy, and we discuss the club picking up the 2026 option year for a couple of players and signing some other players to new contracts. It was a tidy run of business for Orlando.

Additionally, the club sent a whopping five players out on loan for the rest of the 2025 season. These were not Pride players who were getting minutes, so it can only help them, but it kind of feels like we'll never see some of them in Pride purple again.

This week's mailbagbox has a lot of questions. In fact, it has double-digit questions, and that was just from one of our listeners! Is it bragging to say we were up to the challenge? Well, we were, so it doesn't matter if it's bragging. At any rate, it wasn't just one person asking questions, but it was one person asking a lot of them. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We'd also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we'll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we discussed Orlando's three Zambians in their Women's Africa Cup of Nations match against Morocco. Barbra Banda had a great start to the international break, while hopefully Prisca Chilufya and Grace Chanda are gaining much-needed confidence and improving their form ahead of their return to NWSL play in early August.

If you'd like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we'd love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how Episode 93 went down:

0:15 – The Pride sign a couple of players, pick up the options on a couple of others, and loan a handful out.

17:45 - The mailbagbox is celebrating the summer break with volume, volume, volume!

48:11 - Pride players get back to international play in WAFCON.

The Orlando Pride still haven't won in Kentucky. The Pride went to Racing Louisville on Friday and struggled offensively, while giving up an easy, uncontested opening goal on a set piece and conceding a senseless penalty kick off a routine throw-in. It was a poor performance from the defending champions and another worrying sign of a team that has taken steps backward after last year's magical season.

We checked our score predictions from last week, broke down the key moments in the the game, and tried to figure out who to select for Player of the Match.

This week's mailbagbox wanted to know about Simone Jackson, whether reinforcements should be expected (and when), and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We'd also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we'll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, without a match until August, we discussed Pride players who have been recalled recently by their national teams or youth national teams. It's going to be a long wait to erase the frustration of the last match of June, but in the meantime, we'll be keeping an eye on the club's international players.

If you'd like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we'd love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how Episode 92 went down:

0:15 – The Pride did not look good on the road at Louisville. Our thoughts.

17:53 - The mailbagbox is a bright spot after a dark weekend.

35:53 - Pride players who will be representing their countries this summer.

The Orlando Pride remained unbeaten in the state of California, but it wasn't easy. Barbra Banda snapped a scoreless tie early in the second half and the Pride held on against a barrage of Bay FC attacks down the stretch to claim another road win. Anna Moorhouse played well to keep the clean sheet in Orlando's second consecutive 1-0 win and third victory in a row.

We looked back at the key moments and players, checked our score predictions from our last show, and made our selections for Player of the Match.

This week's mailbagbox wanted to know about the Pride's ideal formation, the Tampa Bay Sun winning the USL title, the recent addition of Simone Jackson, Moorhouse's performance, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We'd also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we'll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we previewed the Pride's trip to face Racing Louisville on Friday in Kentucky, starting with the evenly played series history, Orlando's struggles on the road against Louisville, and the relative position of the two teams in the table. We provided our key matchups and made our final score predictions.

If you'd like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we'd love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how Episode 91 went down:

0:15 – A look back at a wild finish that prevented a meh 0-0 draw against Houston.

24:17 - The mailbagbox is chock full of questions.

39:48 - Our preview of the Pride's trip to Lynn Family Stadium to face Racing Louisville.

The Orlando Pride returned to action after the international break and left it late before dispatching the Houston Dash 1-0. Cori Dyke was the improbable hero, scoring deep in stoppage time to snare all three points for the hometown Pride. A goal to win it late is better than no goal at all, especially when that goal is the game winner. It nearly wasn't, as Anna Moorhouse was saved blushes for a mistake by an offside flag, but in the end, even ugly wins are wins.

We look back at the key moments in the match, check our score predictions, and make our selections for Player of the Match.

We also discussed Marta and Angelina being selected for Brazil's Copa America Femenina roster.

Afterwards, we jumped into this week's mailbagbox, which wanted to know about a listener's outfit, whether the Pride can just for once make things easy on themselves, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We'd also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we'll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we previewed the Pride's upcoming Friday match against Bay FC. We look at both teams' 2025 seasons so far, break down the short series history, provide our key matchups for the game, and make our final score predictions.

If you'd like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we'd love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how Episode 90 went down:

0:15 – A look back at a wild finish that prevented a meh 0-0 draw against Houston.

23:17 - The mailbagbox is always a nice cherry on top of a Pride victory.

39:48 - A look ahead at the Pride's second-ever trip to play Bay FC.