Lots of Mal hate in this thread. Sounds like someone with an axe to grind

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:another example of a young player falling in love with the fame and out of love with the game that got them to the fame.

Fame? I don’t think so.

100 % the fame. She is dating a big time MLB player with the Braves. She has used off her good looks for a few endorsement ads. etc. Her sister is married to another pro athlete so they almost fall into the "Jersey/cleat Chaser category.

Except, I follow celebrity culture pretty closely and have never heard of her. Sounds like an E-lister. She's no Mia Hamm.

She's just a young athlete who sacrificed everything to become the best she can.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:another example of a young player falling in love with the fame and out of love with the game that got them to the fame.

Fame? I don’t think so.

100 % the fame. She is dating a big time MLB player with the Braves. She has used off her good looks for a few endorsement ads. etc. Her sister is married to another pro athlete so they almost fall into the "Jersey/cleat Chaser category.

Except, I follow celebrity culture pretty closely and have never heard of her. Sounds like an E-lister. She's no Mia Hamm.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You just be quite the hater to turn this into a criticism of the Spirit.
The trade of Pugh shows that Spirit is more concerned about winning i/o appearances. Quite simply, Pugh has underperformed both in NWSL and at the WNT, which is why she was traded, and was not selected for an Olympic team spot. The Spirit got a lot for a player that was overrated and would be leaving the club in a year anyway in the expansion. All in all, a great piece of business for the Spirit, and one that will result in better soccer and better results for their fans.

Pugh was a teenager when she came to Spirit. They had a responsibility to develop her if they were going to draft her as a kid the same would they should have felt a responsibility to develop the players that went to the Spirit academy. But Pugh did not seem to progress at all at Spirit. If she reaches her potential at Sky Blue we will always wonder what went wrong at Spirit, if she doesn't then maybe it was her attitude that was the problem and not the Spirit. It's not really a question of whether trading her away now was a good decision, the question is why they failed to help her progress.

Facts. She gave up a lot to join them. It was obvious something was wrong, and Spirit should have made more of an investment in her. Makes you wonder if she wouldn't have gotten better development in college. And if so, then that speaks volumes. I hope Sky Blue clean turn it around.

Who has actually prospered at the Spirit? Rose? Just one ? They are a very disappointing team.

That's on point. It is a poor organization.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You just be quite the hater to turn this into a criticism of the Spirit.
The trade of Pugh shows that Spirit is more concerned about winning i/o appearances. Quite simply, Pugh has underperformed both in NWSL and at the WNT, which is why she was traded, and was not selected for an Olympic team spot. The Spirit got a lot for a player that was overrated and would be leaving the club in a year anyway in the expansion. All in all, a great piece of business for the Spirit, and one that will result in better soccer and better results for their fans.

Pugh was a teenager when she came to Spirit. They had a responsibility to develop her if they were going to draft her as a kid the same would they should have felt a responsibility to develop the players that went to the Spirit academy. But Pugh did not seem to progress at all at Spirit. If she reaches her potential at Sky Blue we will always wonder what went wrong at Spirit, if she doesn't then maybe it was her attitude that was the problem and not the Spirit. It's not really a question of whether trading her away now was a good decision, the question is why they failed to help her progress.

Facts. She gave up a lot to join them. It was obvious something was wrong, and Spirit should have made more of an investment in her. Makes you wonder if she wouldn't have gotten better development in college. And if so, then that speaks volumes. I hope Sky Blue clean turn it around.

Who has actually prospered at the Spirit? Rose? Just one ? They are a very disappointing team.

Rose is pretty good. Andi Sullivan also just made Olympic roster after not making World Cup roster. So does Spirit get credit for “developing” her?

This is a silly debate, as the reality is that there are a lot of factors behind the development of Pugh, Sullivan and Lavelle, and whether they made the World Cup or Olympic roster. Spirit coaches and organization are one of many factors and cannot be solely blamed or credited for the failures or successes of these players.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You just be quite the hater to turn this into a criticism of the Spirit.
The trade of Pugh shows that Spirit is more concerned about winning i/o appearances. Quite simply, Pugh has underperformed both in NWSL and at the WNT, which is why she was traded, and was not selected for an Olympic team spot. The Spirit got a lot for a player that was overrated and would be leaving the club in a year anyway in the expansion. All in all, a great piece of business for the Spirit, and one that will result in better soccer and better results for their fans.

Pugh was a teenager when she came to Spirit. They had a responsibility to develop her if they were going to draft her as a kid the same would they should have felt a responsibility to develop the players that went to the Spirit academy. But Pugh did not seem to progress at all at Spirit. If she reaches her potential at Sky Blue we will always wonder what went wrong at Spirit, if she doesn't then maybe it was her attitude that was the problem and not the Spirit. It's not really a question of whether trading her away now was a good decision, the question is why they failed to help her progress.

Facts. She gave up a lot to join them. It was obvious something was wrong, and Spirit should have made more of an investment in her. Makes you wonder if she wouldn't have gotten better development in college. And if so, then that speaks volumes. I hope Sky Blue clean turn it around.

In develop in college? No she had every opportunity here and on the national team to develop. College actually resists the number of hours you can play/train. She has okay speed and technical skills but lacks creativity and vision. There is a big difference between the national youth team/travel soccer vs college vs the pros.

Normally I would agree with you, but WNT is not year round development and Spirit obviously dropped the ball. She probably should have done what Dunn, Lloyd, and Horan did and go overseas. That's what they used to do anyways, but USSF requires WNT players to participate in the NWSL.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You just be quite the hater to turn this into a criticism of the Spirit.
The trade of Pugh shows that Spirit is more concerned about winning i/o appearances. Quite simply, Pugh has underperformed both in NWSL and at the WNT, which is why she was traded, and was not selected for an Olympic team spot. The Spirit got a lot for a player that was overrated and would be leaving the club in a year anyway in the expansion. All in all, a great piece of business for the Spirit, and one that will result in better soccer and better results for their fans.

Pugh was a teenager when she came to Spirit. They had a responsibility to develop her if they were going to draft her as a kid the same would they should have felt a responsibility to develop the players that went to the Spirit academy. But Pugh did not seem to progress at all at Spirit. If she reaches her potential at Sky Blue we will always wonder what went wrong at Spirit, if she doesn't then maybe it was her attitude that was the problem and not the Spirit. It's not really a question of whether trading her away now was a good decision, the question is why they failed to help her progress.

Facts. She gave up a lot to join them. It was obvious something was wrong, and Spirit should have made more of an investment in her. Makes you wonder if she wouldn't have gotten better development in college. And if so, then that speaks volumes. I hope Sky Blue clean turn it around.

In develop in college? No she had every opportunity here and on the national team to develop. College actually resists the number of hours you can play/train. She has okay speed and technical skills but lacks creativity and vision. There is a big difference between the national youth team/travel soccer vs college vs the pros.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You just be quite the hater to turn this into a criticism of the Spirit.
The trade of Pugh shows that Spirit is more concerned about winning i/o appearances. Quite simply, Pugh has underperformed both in NWSL and at the WNT, which is why she was traded, and was not selected for an Olympic team spot. The Spirit got a lot for a player that was overrated and would be leaving the club in a year anyway in the expansion. All in all, a great piece of business for the Spirit, and one that will result in better soccer and better results for their fans.

Pugh was a teenager when she came to Spirit. They had a responsibility to develop her if they were going to draft her as a kid the same would they should have felt a responsibility to develop the players that went to the Spirit academy. But Pugh did not seem to progress at all at Spirit. If she reaches her potential at Sky Blue we will always wonder what went wrong at Spirit, if she doesn't then maybe it was her attitude that was the problem and not the Spirit. It's not really a question of whether trading her away now was a good decision, the question is why they failed to help her progress.

Facts. She gave up a lot to join them. It was obvious something was wrong, and Spirit should have made more of an investment in her. Makes you wonder if she wouldn't have gotten better development in college. And if so, then that speaks volumes. I hope Sky Blue clean turn it around.

Who has actually prospered at the Spirit? Rose? Just one ? They are a very disappointing team.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You just be quite the hater to turn this into a criticism of the Spirit.
The trade of Pugh shows that Spirit is more concerned about winning i/o appearances. Quite simply, Pugh has underperformed both in NWSL and at the WNT, which is why she was traded, and was not selected for an Olympic team spot. The Spirit got a lot for a player that was overrated and would be leaving the club in a year anyway in the expansion. All in all, a great piece of business for the Spirit, and one that will result in better soccer and better results for their fans.

Pugh was a teenager when she came to Spirit. They had a responsibility to develop her if they were going to draft her as a kid the same would they should have felt a responsibility to develop the players that went to the Spirit academy. But Pugh did not seem to progress at all at Spirit. If she reaches her potential at Sky Blue we will always wonder what went wrong at Spirit, if she doesn't then maybe it was her attitude that was the problem and not the Spirit. It's not really a question of whether trading her away now was a good decision, the question is why they failed to help her progress.

Facts. She gave up a lot to join them. It was obvious something was wrong, and Spirit should have made more of an investment in her. Makes you wonder if she wouldn't have gotten better development in college. And if so, then that speaks volumes. I hope Sky Blue clean turn it around.

she was just never that good.

Sometimes it is the player’s fault not the club’s. Sometimes it is just the way the person matures. Maybe there is no one to blame here and it just is what it is.

I will say that I watched the Spirit play a few times and was struck by their lack of imagination with the ball. Lots of side to side, safe play and little risk taking. 65% of their passes were sideways or backwards. That usually leads to no pressure on the other team and lots of 0-0 ties and one goal games. This is reflected in their record. Also, Pugh only played in 9 of 24 games (and Lavelle 6 of 24), so the experiment never really had a chance ...

Anonymous wrote:You just be quite the hater to turn this into a criticism of the Spirit.
The trade of Pugh shows that Spirit is more concerned about winning i/o appearances. Quite simply, Pugh has underperformed both in NWSL and at the WNT, which is why she was traded, and was not selected for an Olympic team spot. The Spirit got a lot for a player that was overrated and would be leaving the club in a year anyway in the expansion. All in all, a great piece of business for the Spirit, and one that will result in better soccer and better results for their fans.

Pugh was a teenager when she came to Spirit. They had a responsibility to develop her if they were going to draft her as a kid the same would they should have felt a responsibility to develop the players that went to the Spirit academy. But Pugh did not seem to progress at all at Spirit. If she reaches her potential at Sky Blue we will always wonder what went wrong at Spirit, if she doesn't then maybe it was her attitude that was the problem and not the Spirit. It's not really a question of whether trading her away now was a good decision, the question is why they failed to help her progress.

Anonymous wrote:You just be quite the hater to turn this into a criticism of the Spirit.
The trade of Pugh shows that Spirit is more concerned about winning i/o appearances. Quite simply, Pugh has underperformed both in NWSL and at the WNT, which is why she was traded, and was not selected for an Olympic team spot. The Spirit got a lot for a player that was overrated and would be leaving the club in a year anyway in the expansion. All in all, a great piece of business for the Spirit, and one that will result in better soccer and better results for their fans.

They have failed continually in multiple ways. Pointing it out is just stating the facts. I also feel bad for her because she has so much potential. Leaving Spirit is good for her. She used to have a lot of potential but has withered in Spirit's training environment. And that's why there was a mass exodus of WNT players to Europe a few back.

Anonymous wrote:You just be quite the hater to turn this into a criticism of the Spirit.
The trade of Pugh shows that Spirit is more concerned about winning i/o appearances. Quite simply, Pugh has underperformed both in NWSL and at the WNT, which is why she was traded, and was not selected for an Olympic team spot. The Spirit got a lot for a player that was overrated and would be leaving the club in a year anyway in the expansion. All in all, a great piece of business for the Spirit, and one that will result in better soccer and better results for their fans.

Very true

You just be quite the hater to turn this into a criticism of the Spirit.
The trade of Pugh shows that Spirit is more concerned about winning i/o appearances. Quite simply, Pugh has underperformed both in NWSL and at the WNT, which is why she was traded, and was not selected for an Olympic team spot. The Spirit got a lot for a player that was overrated and would be leaving the club in a year anyway in the expansion. All in all, a great piece of business for the Spirit, and one that will result in better soccer and better results for their fans.