Confidence surging as Kansas City Current open regular-season slate in Oregon Saturday
Last weekend, after beating the Chicago Red Stars 2-1 to complete the group-stage portion of the NWSL Challenge Cup tournament, Kansas Current players walked slowly around Children’s Mercy Park, thanking their fans for their support.
As they rounded one corner of the field, smiling, waving and clapping, they could glance up at a video board proudly proclaiming them “Central Division Champions.”
The Challenge Cup is technically a preseason tournament, but don’t tell the Current that. They finished group play with a record of 4-1-1, countering injuries to two marquee offseason acquisitions and with stellar play from several rookie draft picks.
Quite a showing, indeed, but now comes the long haul — and it starts with a bang. The Current kick off their regular-season slate on Saturday in Portland, which consistently delivers visiting teams one of the league’s most boisterous and challenging playing environments.
But the Current will line up against the Thorns (3-1-2) on Saturday sporting a new confidence, and why not? There’s a different feel around the club in its second season of operation.
“There’s a bit of a bite in the core group,” said Current captain Desiree Scott. “We wanted to set the record straight that with proper structure, proper training and a belief in ourselves that we were better than we showed last season I think that fire is there, for sure.”
The Current won a measly three games in 2021 between the NWSL regular season and Challenge Cup. Reasons for that are plenty, starting with the fact that much of the inaugural squad had to move to KC and begin play in a hurry once a franchise was awarded to new owners Angie and Chris Long and Brittany Matthews in December 2020.
They played under a temporary name, with a temporary logo, on a field meant for baseball. Little about 2021 was ideal, and the results on the field weren’t what anyone had hoped for, either.
The Current have a bit of a chip on their shoulder this season, and thus far it has served them well.
“I think we have something to prove,” Scott said. “We want people to come to Kansas City and make it hard for them to get points and take points off us. We want to win more games, we want to be a contender. It’s just been a mindset shift for us to come in with a clean slate and just put in the work.”
Reaching the semifinals of this year’s Challenge Cup — the Current play host to the North Carolina Courage on Wednesday — has provided validation that persevering through the adversity has been worth it.
“Last season we were down in the dumps a little bit,” Scott said. “Not too many wins. So to come out here and win the Central Division and find ways to get the job done against top opposition who posed a challenge to us last year, I think it’s great.”
The Current will find another measuring stick and chance for more validation in Portland on Saturday.
“I live for those games with that kind of pressure,” Scott said. “Portland’s a great team, a quality squad. So what a great way to start the season off. It’s going to demand the best of us.”
This story was originally published April 29, 2022 at 7:59 PM with the headline "Confidence surging as Kansas City Current open regular-season slate in Oregon Saturday."