Red Smoke Radio

Katelyn Best and Tyler Nguyen talk goings on in Portland, the fact that the Thorns are somehow still in the NWSL Challenge Cup, and hexing the moon.

Katelyn Best and Tyler Nguyen break down the exciting new tactical formations the Thorns brought to Utah for the one-off tournament and are full of admiration for the youthful and exciting team the Thorns are trialing there.

Katelyn Best chats with Thorns legend Emily Menges about which players she's been studying, what books she's been reading in quarantine, talking to Scott Vallow about the importance of players associations, and playing in club continental woso.

Katelyn and Tyler chat with Claire Watkins and Sandra Herrera about the now legendary 4-4 draw between the Chicago Red Stars and Portland Thorns in 2019.

The 2014 Portland Thorns season. Riley Ball. The most entertaining team in the world. What happened? Katelyn and Tyler look on, astonished, at Portland's place in one of the wackiest NWSL seasons in history. Were they good? Unclear.

Katelyn and Tyler talk what we know about NWSL cancellation and then subsequently spend the rest of the podcast talking about Das Boot and Troy and the virtues of sick day movies.

Katelyn and Tyler talk through everything we've missed over the long offseason, from Emily Sonnett's departure to Becky Sauerbrunn joining. They talk launching a new soccer journalism website in Portland.

Katelyn and Tyler are joined by Leo Baudhuin to talk the Thorns recent form, the coming semifinal matchup with the Red Stars and what the stars tell us about various players in the NWSL.

Katelyn and Tyler look back on another improbable game without a Thorns goal, puzzle over how serious the playoff contenders are and engage in a discussion of whether Sonnett was attempting to jump onto Christen Press' back like a kid trying to jump on their mom's back.

Katelyn and Tyler recap a pretty odd week of Thorns soccer where the team scored no goals in open play and still got a win and a draw out of it. They debate the lineup choices, the state of refereeing and examine NWSL expansion options.

Katelyn and Tyler talk some kind of high water mark for the Thorns, what it means for the team going forward, and the fact that USWNT players are leaving us again next week (albeit briefly). 

Katelyn and Tyler talk about a weird weekend in the NWSL, featuring Marta on her revenge tour, ramshackle defending and a confused looking AD Franch in the stands handling some baby food.

Katelyn and Tyler talk about the World Cup and how it defied expectations, the loss to Tacoma last weekend, Orlando and whether they're getting better or not and the practice of rolling up one's shirt sleeves.

Katelyn and Tyler take a call from Jacob Cristobal of Sounder at Heart and Coffee and Valkyries to talk USWNT against England, the upcoming Thorns/Reign game in Portland, and a little bit of pro wrestling.

Tyler recaps the 3-0 win against Chicago in the home opener briefly and previews the game away at North Carolina before visiting Anabelle to get predictions about how players will do this season, the state of the league and the legacy of this year's World Cup.

Katelyn and Tyler celebrate and overreact to the Thorns 1-0 victory over Sky Blue, try to get some distance on how good the debutants are exactly and look forward exuberantly to the home opener this sunday.

Katelyn and Tyler review the 3-1 loss to the Spirit, discuss what they feel the team's strengths and weaknesses are heading into the World Cup season and lament the return to the Big Field in New Jersey next week.

Katelyn and Tyler talk the Thorns crushing Orlando in a messy and physical game and celebrate Thorns players getting on the same page. They debate whether Andressinha's goal is better than Tobin Heath's efforts and the relative merits of the Trailblazers and Detective Pikachu.

Katelyn and Tyler talk two weird weeks of Portland soccer, who had bad games and whether there are any long-term concerns about the team. They look forward to the weird NWSL season kicking off.

Katelyn and Tyler lament how bad the Orlando Pride are but are hopeful for the shape of the Thorns going forward, looking ahead to the big early season match against Chicago.

Katelyn Best and Tyler Nguyen discuss the return of the soccer, where the Orlando Pride are at, predictions for the season and the future of the league.

Katelyn and special guests Sandra Herrera, Claire Watkins, and Susie Rantz chat about the Thorns Spring Invitational. 

Katelyn and Tyler review the 2019 NWSL college draft and its various goings on, and look ahead to the World Cup year and everyone who will be missing.

Katelyn and Tyler review the upcoming W-League season, what the Thorns expect to get out of it and slowly descend into Australian stereotypes.

Katelyn Best and Tyler Nguyen review the Thorns 3-0 loss to the North Carolina Courage in the NWSL final. It was sad, but they also decide that the Thorns shouldn't panic and instead trust in the development of their team. Ana Hegerberg rumors are addressed and they look forward to the World Cup year on the horizon as well as the W-League coming in a month.

Katelyn and Tyler head to the NWSL Championship media day where the Thorns had both a media appearance and an impromptu game of basketball. We chat with Thorns about some soccer but mostly about their social media presence. (Sorry for the poor initial quality! Should be better now.)

Katelyn Best and Tyler Nguyen review the Thorns repeat 3-1 win (kind of) against the Seattle Reign in back to back weeks. Our Chicago friend @SandHerrera_ drops by to receive our commiserations. The Paul Riley discourse machine accelerates ahead of the final, which we look forward to with some hesitance, because it's going to suck.

Katelyn and Tyler review the Thorns' 3-1 demolition of Seattle at home and fret a little that Seattle might be holding more in the tank only to come down on the side of the Thorns being a good enough team to handle it. More inevitable Rapinoe questions, and also the question of just how good this Thorns team is compared with previous ones.

Katelyn and Tyler preview the playoff-spot deciding game against the Seattle Reign on Friday, discuss their nominations for regular season (made up) player awards and answer a lot of questions about Megan Rapinoe, a player who Portland fans are apparently obsessed with.

Katelyn and Tyler review the 1-0 win against the Spirit and decide that it isn't much to write home about. The perpetual question of how to officiate goalkeepers is discussed, and Tyler asks for better end of season awards.

Katelyn and Tyler review the 2-1 midweek win against Sky Blue FC and feel good about locking the playoff spot up. They look at all the different penalty shouts the Thorns had during that game, and look ahead to the Spirit game at the weekend.

Katelyn and Tyler review the very exciting 2-2 draw with the Chicago Red Stars that everyone hated, review some of the Thorns positional battles and look ahead to their game against Sky Blue FC.

Katelyn and Tyler are joined by Sandra Herrera (@SandHerrera_) to discuss how the Chicago Red Stars season has gone so far and how they'll match up against the Thorns on Saturday. They also review the Thorns win against the Pride and Becca Moros' yellow card, possibly the best ever received in the history of the sport.

Katelyn and Tyler review the Thorns' 2-1 loss away at the Courage and conclude it wasn't as bad as everyone thought. They look ahead to the deeply confusing Orlando Pride, reviewing their bizarre 2-2 draw against Sky Blue FC and try to understand what game they're going to play against the Thorns on Saturday.

Katelyn and Tyler review the international break: the Tournament of Nations and the most prestigious international club tournament, the International Champions Cup. They look ahead to the game against North Carolina on the weekend and ask the question: what if the NWSL had an All-Star game?

Katelyn and Tyler review the Thorn's wins against Houston and Sky Blue, discuss whether Tobin Heath is actually any good, and float the theory that US Soccer is afraid of Portland.

Katelyn and Tyler review the Thorns' destruction of Utah's best defensive record in the NWSL, ask whether the NWSL is interested in trying to get bad tackles out of the game, debate Crnogorcevic's contributions to the team and look forward to facing Houston on Sunday.

Katelyn and Tyler review the last two Thorns games, ask whether the team can drop any more points if they want to get into the playoffs, and are terrified at Utah's new and improved roster.

Katelyn and Tyler preview the two Thorns games this week, talk Lindsay Horan's appearance in Adidas ads at the men's World Cup, and answer the question of whether the NWSL's leading goalscorer is actually a defensive midfielder.

A podcast covering the Portland Thorns, a professional soccer team in the NWSL. Katelyn and Tyler discuss the Thorns season so far, which players are living up to expectations, and how the Thorns mascot should be a menacing gardener.