The San Diego Wave will look to continue its win streak against an opponent it knows is different from the rest. Saturday, the Wave heads to Los Angeles to play Angel City FC, its Southern California neighbor and rival.
Is the rivalry between these two teams new?
Yes.
Is the Wave missing several key starters, namely Alex Morgan?
Also yes.
But the environment and ramifications of the game are something familiar to many of the players and staff.
“We know we are probably going to have 20-22,000 fans against us, which is great for the women's game and great for this derby-type game,” San Diego Wave manager Casey Stoney remarked Thursday morning.
Stoney is not new to the high intensity and expectations of rivalry games. Before coaching the Wave, she managed Manchester United and played for Arsenal.
“You talk about those derbies [in England], they have got a lot of history,” Stoney said. “This is a new derby, but we want to make sure we give it everything we got to get a result to add to the derby and build a history between these two teams.”
Carly Telford, who will be the Wave's starting goalkeeper in absence of Kailen Sheridan, believes this could be one of the biggest rivalries in the NWSL.
“We are both brand new franchises for one so there is always going to be that who is doing it best,” Telford said. “For a rivalry that is brand new and has established itself in six months is massive so it is only going to grow and grow.”
Due to national team tournaments – namely, the CONCACAFW Championship — the Wave is missing several starters, including NWSL goals leader Alex Morgan. To the current Wave players, they still feel they are more than capable of keeping their first place position.
According to midfielder Kristen McNabb, Stoney’s culture has set up the team for success even when key players like Morgan are gone. “Casey has emphasized the next man up mentality,” McNabb said. “It doesn't matter if you don't see time for the first four months of the season, when these people leave we do not want to skip a beat.”
The two times these teams met in the Challenge Cup, it was a 1-1 draw on March 19 at Titan Stadium in Fullerton and a 4-2 win for the Wave on April 2 at Torero Stadium.
The Wave currently sit in first place in the NWSL standings, while ACFC is in sixth.
With the absence of Morgan in the No. 9 role, it will be up to players like Makenzy Doniak to score goals. Doniak started at forward against the Washington Spirit last week and scored the first goal of the game. It was her first start and second goal of the year.
Along with Doniak, other players will certainly have to step up Saturday night in Los Angeles for the Wave to see success, but Stoney knows her team is ready.
“We are very confident in our locker room and what we got available to us this weekend," she observed, "to go there and have a go and try and get a result.”