Justin Thompson checks in after the Timbers tough road trip through Atlanta and Charleston over the weekend. With two games in two days the Timbers took three points from Atlanta before suffering their third loss of the season to Charleston. Here is his report from the road.
Friday, July 20 - 10pm
The boys are buzzing after another big win last night against Vancouver. We battled hard and were full value for all three points. It was especially nice for me, as Vancouver is my old club and I know many of their players well. We arrived into Atlanta around 8pm local time after a stop-over in San Francisco this morning. A long day's traveling won't dampen the spirits because we know we're getting to the crunch time of the season and every point is precious.
Saturday, July 21 - 1pm
I'm sure most of the guys slept like babies last night after the tough travel day and time change. Gavin wanted us up fairly early this morning for a walk and stretch. I'm sure a big part of the reasoning behind getting us together is to make sure our minds are starting to focus on tonight's game. Atlanta is a very difficult place to come and play because it is extremely hot, they are a big physical team, and they have good crowd support. But we have scouted them well and know exactly what to expect. It will be a war tonight and we will be prepared.
Sunday, July 22 - 2 am
Wow, what a game! It was exactly as we expected and we got the job done. I felt that this was the most exhausting game of the year. I don't know if it was the heat, the travel, the two gigantic forwards from Atlanta, or a combination of all 3... but I'm shattered! It makes it worse that we are not in a cozy bed somewhere, but instead out on the open highway heading northeast to Charleston with an expected arrival time of 5am. We wanted 4 points out of the 3 games this weekend, and we've already got 6 with a game to go! Not a bad start to the weekend and our winning streak still in tact!
Sunday, July 22 - 9pm
Tonight's game was a real disappointment and I just hope this loss doesn't come back to haunt us late in the season. We never got the engine going tonight and it sure showed. Nobody likes to make excuses, but there is simply no getting away from the fact that we have played 3 games in 4 days. We were physically and mentally exhausted. We went down a goal fairly early and when BJ (Bryan Jordan) got sent off early in the second half, it was a long way to get back in it. I think we have to take this one on the chin and make sure we show them what we're made of when they come and visit us in Portland in a couple of weeks time.
At the end of the day, we're still in first place and have lots of momentum. We've got two huge games coming up against Atlanta and Seattle and if we can get a decent point return in those games, we'll be set up nicely for the last leg of the season. It's great year to be a Timber fan and we sure could use your support down the stretch...
Until next time,
Justin
