Post by Kasey on Aug 24, 2013 16:32:21 GMT -8
Alex Morgan talks Portland, Thorns fans, the NWSL season and ESPYs -- from the NWSL website:
here's the link to the story:
11 Questions: Alex Morgan
~ MKM
Forward Alex Morgan came to Portland Thorns FC with lofty expectations and has spent the inaugural NWSL season exceeding them.
The Diamond Bar, Calif. native was one of just three players in the league with eight goals and five assists on the year to help guide her team to a 38-point regular season.
Morgan hasn’t played since Aug. 7 when she suffered a minor sprain of the medial collateral ligament (MCL) in her left knee.
She has returned to training, but continues to be listed as day-to-day while she works with the hope of making it back to the field for the NWSL Playoffs - and Morgan traveled with the Thorns to Kansas City ahead of Portland’s semifinal matchup with FC Kansas City live on FOX Sports 2 on Saturday, Aug. 24 at 2 p.m. ET.
The NWSL’s Ben Meyer-Abbott caught up with the U.S. international before her injury to find out more about her in this week’s NWSL Player Q & A.
BMA: How are you enjoying Portland?
AM: I’ve been able to get around and explore a little bit. One thing I really enjoy doing is checking out all the new restaurants. There are so many amazing restaurants and so many different type of restaurants in the city. Everyone here is so nice. I’ve been feeling so welcomed ever since I moved here.
BMA: Did you know you were going to get the level of support you’ve gotten from the fans in Portland?
AM: Portland’s a huge soccer city, but I had no idea it would be as big as it and that we’d have such a great atmosphere every single game. We just had three games in a week at home and the numbers have been really great. The fans not only come in large numbers, but they’ve been on their feet the whole game and it’s really great to play in front of them and have that extra little bit of motivation when we’re playing at home.
BMA: What’s been your favorite moment of the NWSL season so far?
AM: Our home opener. The whole league was put together so quick and our GM Gavin Wilkinson and owner Merritt Paulson just put in so much effort to get this team together and the home opener just showed how much work they put in. Seeing 16,000 fans standing up and yelling and all wearing red and white encapsulated everything that I wanted to do as a little girl. Playing in front of that kind of crowd, I felt completely at home – even though I’d only moved there a few weeks earlier.
BMA: What was your reaction when you found out the NWSL was being formed?
AM: Not having a professional women’s league folded really hurt the sport in the U.S. – not only with fans not being able to watch, but also with the players on the national team having to make the decision of having to go abroad or retire. The fact that Sunil Gulati from U.S. Soccer and the group of owners were talking and super involved before the league started was great. I heard talks about it and I was really excited. I wanted to support it right away and I’m just so thankful that it worked out. It is a starting point for what is to come in the future. The owners, coaches, players and fans have really stepped up to support this league and taken on the roles they need to in order to support the league.
BMA: Who’s the toughest defender in the league?
AM: I’m glad Rachel Buehler’s on my team because she is a bulldozer and she can bruise. On the other teams there are two players that come to mind. Christie Rampone [on Sky Blue FC] is a great defender. She’s very athletic and has so much experience. And Becky Sauerbrunn from FC Kansas City is really smart as a defender. She reads the play so well that it’s hard to beat her.
BMA: What was it like going to the ESPYs?
AM: It was good to see such a big turnout from women’s soccer and women’s sports in general – like Brittney Griner and Abby [Wambach], Sydney Leroux and Crystal Dunn, who’s still in college. It was a really cool experience. I was backstage with Colin Kapernick and Michael Phelps to practice reading off the teleprompter before we went out to present an award. It was kind of cool to be backstage and get to know them and see what goes on behind the scenes.
BMA: You had a special date for the ESPYs. What was your mom’s reaction when you asked her to go with you?
AM: I have to give credit to Sydney Leroux because she’s the one who asked me if I wanted to take my mom because she was taking her mom. Our moms are good friends and it worked out really well. They were both really excited about spending the night with their daughters. We took them to get their hair and makeup done and we looked for dresses a couple days before. It was really fun to get ready with my mom and have a mother-daughter day because we don’t get the chance to do that much anymore.
BMA:‘Sabotage Season,’ the second book you’ve written for your series The Kicks, comes out on Sept. 3. What’s it been like writing the books?
AM: Writing the series has been an amazing journey and I’ve worked closely with the publishers at Simon & Schuster. There was such a great reception to the first one. I’ve seen a lot of girls with my books out at the Thorns games and national team games. It’s interesting to see how many similarities I have with Devin, because I did bring a lot to the character of what it was like for me when I was young and growing up.
I’m excited to put the second one out in September and have girls get the chance to read it and get their book signed.
BMA: You’re also going to be hosting a soccer camp in Pomona, Calif. on Jan. 4-5, 2014. What are you hoping to pass on to the girls who attend?
AM: This is going to be my first camp. It’s a little overwhelming for someone who’s never done this before, but I’m excited to be doing something like this and my dad is helping me out with it a lot. There’s a lot of young girls I’ve met that have wanted me to do a camp so this is the perfect opportunity for them to come out, learn and have a little bit of fun and for me to share my experience with them.
BMA: What’s the best goal you’ve scored?
AM: The goal against Canada at the Olympics was the most important goal of my career. I have a few other favorites, but if there was one that I really enjoyed for its importance and timing that would definitely be the goal by far. It was almost a surreal moment. We had to score and then we actually did I almost couldn’t believe it. We believed in each other and when it went in the back of the net I was like, “What just happened?” It was a moment I’ll always remember so vividly for the rest of my life. I wanted to pinch myself.
BMA: Do you ever reflect on how far you’ve come in such a short period of time?
AM: Sometimes I take a step back and reflect on the past couple of years. I always think of my friends and family because they help keep me grounded. Thinking of three or four years ago, I was dreaming about being on the national team or making the roster for a cup. Now being on the U.S. team and playing in the NWSL, it’s a pretty cool journey.
The Diamond Bar, Calif. native was one of just three players in the league with eight goals and five assists on the year to help guide her team to a 38-point regular season.
Morgan hasn’t played since Aug. 7 when she suffered a minor sprain of the medial collateral ligament (MCL) in her left knee.
She has returned to training, but continues to be listed as day-to-day while she works with the hope of making it back to the field for the NWSL Playoffs - and Morgan traveled with the Thorns to Kansas City ahead of Portland’s semifinal matchup with FC Kansas City live on FOX Sports 2 on Saturday, Aug. 24 at 2 p.m. ET.
The NWSL’s Ben Meyer-Abbott caught up with the U.S. international before her injury to find out more about her in this week’s NWSL Player Q & A.
BMA: How are you enjoying Portland?
AM: I’ve been able to get around and explore a little bit. One thing I really enjoy doing is checking out all the new restaurants. There are so many amazing restaurants and so many different type of restaurants in the city. Everyone here is so nice. I’ve been feeling so welcomed ever since I moved here.
BMA: Did you know you were going to get the level of support you’ve gotten from the fans in Portland?
AM: Portland’s a huge soccer city, but I had no idea it would be as big as it and that we’d have such a great atmosphere every single game. We just had three games in a week at home and the numbers have been really great. The fans not only come in large numbers, but they’ve been on their feet the whole game and it’s really great to play in front of them and have that extra little bit of motivation when we’re playing at home.
BMA: What’s been your favorite moment of the NWSL season so far?
AM: Our home opener. The whole league was put together so quick and our GM Gavin Wilkinson and owner Merritt Paulson just put in so much effort to get this team together and the home opener just showed how much work they put in. Seeing 16,000 fans standing up and yelling and all wearing red and white encapsulated everything that I wanted to do as a little girl. Playing in front of that kind of crowd, I felt completely at home – even though I’d only moved there a few weeks earlier.
BMA: What was your reaction when you found out the NWSL was being formed?
AM: Not having a professional women’s league folded really hurt the sport in the U.S. – not only with fans not being able to watch, but also with the players on the national team having to make the decision of having to go abroad or retire. The fact that Sunil Gulati from U.S. Soccer and the group of owners were talking and super involved before the league started was great. I heard talks about it and I was really excited. I wanted to support it right away and I’m just so thankful that it worked out. It is a starting point for what is to come in the future. The owners, coaches, players and fans have really stepped up to support this league and taken on the roles they need to in order to support the league.
BMA: Who’s the toughest defender in the league?
AM: I’m glad Rachel Buehler’s on my team because she is a bulldozer and she can bruise. On the other teams there are two players that come to mind. Christie Rampone [on Sky Blue FC] is a great defender. She’s very athletic and has so much experience. And Becky Sauerbrunn from FC Kansas City is really smart as a defender. She reads the play so well that it’s hard to beat her.
BMA: What was it like going to the ESPYs?
AM: It was good to see such a big turnout from women’s soccer and women’s sports in general – like Brittney Griner and Abby [Wambach], Sydney Leroux and Crystal Dunn, who’s still in college. It was a really cool experience. I was backstage with Colin Kapernick and Michael Phelps to practice reading off the teleprompter before we went out to present an award. It was kind of cool to be backstage and get to know them and see what goes on behind the scenes.
BMA: You had a special date for the ESPYs. What was your mom’s reaction when you asked her to go with you?
AM: I have to give credit to Sydney Leroux because she’s the one who asked me if I wanted to take my mom because she was taking her mom. Our moms are good friends and it worked out really well. They were both really excited about spending the night with their daughters. We took them to get their hair and makeup done and we looked for dresses a couple days before. It was really fun to get ready with my mom and have a mother-daughter day because we don’t get the chance to do that much anymore.
BMA:‘Sabotage Season,’ the second book you’ve written for your series The Kicks, comes out on Sept. 3. What’s it been like writing the books?
AM: Writing the series has been an amazing journey and I’ve worked closely with the publishers at Simon & Schuster. There was such a great reception to the first one. I’ve seen a lot of girls with my books out at the Thorns games and national team games. It’s interesting to see how many similarities I have with Devin, because I did bring a lot to the character of what it was like for me when I was young and growing up.
I’m excited to put the second one out in September and have girls get the chance to read it and get their book signed.
BMA: You’re also going to be hosting a soccer camp in Pomona, Calif. on Jan. 4-5, 2014. What are you hoping to pass on to the girls who attend?
AM: This is going to be my first camp. It’s a little overwhelming for someone who’s never done this before, but I’m excited to be doing something like this and my dad is helping me out with it a lot. There’s a lot of young girls I’ve met that have wanted me to do a camp so this is the perfect opportunity for them to come out, learn and have a little bit of fun and for me to share my experience with them.
BMA: What’s the best goal you’ve scored?
AM: The goal against Canada at the Olympics was the most important goal of my career. I have a few other favorites, but if there was one that I really enjoyed for its importance and timing that would definitely be the goal by far. It was almost a surreal moment. We had to score and then we actually did I almost couldn’t believe it. We believed in each other and when it went in the back of the net I was like, “What just happened?” It was a moment I’ll always remember so vividly for the rest of my life. I wanted to pinch myself.
BMA: Do you ever reflect on how far you’ve come in such a short period of time?
AM: Sometimes I take a step back and reflect on the past couple of years. I always think of my friends and family because they help keep me grounded. Thinking of three or four years ago, I was dreaming about being on the national team or making the roster for a cup. Now being on the U.S. team and playing in the NWSL, it’s a pretty cool journey.
here's the link to the story:
11 Questions: Alex Morgan
~ MKM
Graphic courtesy of David.
