‘One game isn’t enough’: Utah Royals seek consistency against North Carolina after defensive reset

SANDY — One swallow does not make a summer, and one clean sheet doesn’t mean all of the Utah Royals’ defensive questions are answered. 

But they did just produce their most complete defensive performance of the season in a 1-0 victory over the Orlando Pride, and that clean sheet was earned.

The Royals didn’t allow Orlando a single shot on target despite facing six different attacking players over the course of the match, including the NWSL’s leading goal scorer Barbra Banda. It was an emphatic response that came after conceding eight goals in the previous three contests.

Now comes the next challenge.

Carrying it into Saturday night’s road match against the North Carolina Courage.

“We’re a team that really gets their confidence with the defense part,” defender Ana Tejada said after training Tuesday. “Not conceding shots on goal, being able to press and having that consistency helped us gain that confidence.”

Head coach Jimmy Coenraets said the turnaround wasn’t accidental.

“We did a whole week of defending,” Coenraets said. “Not just because we played Orlando, but because we felt we were conceding goals too easily.”

The coaching staff originally intended to spend last week working on attacking concepts before changing course.

“I think the mistake we made as a staff was expecting that we were able to just pick it up where we left it (at the midseason break), knowing that we changed 50% of the back line,” Coenraets said. “We said, ‘Let’s just go back to the basics of box defending and defending overall. Let’s make sure we don’t concede goals, and we’ll always find a way to score goals.'”

The shutout wasn’t the gratifying part for Coenraets.

It was a defense that adjusted throughout the evening.

“I think it’s quite remarkable that they put six different attackers on the pitch over the full game and you still don’t concede,” Coenraets said. “They kept trying different ways of scoring a goal and we, from a defensive point of view, each and every time kept finding the solutions, finding the answers.”

For Coenraets, that’s evidence a newly assembled back line is beginning to understand each other.

“People need connections,” he said. “They need to be together on the pitch, and they need understanding from each other.”

Tejada echoed that sentiment after returning to the starting lineup.

“I was excited to help the team again, however that looked,” she said. “I was lucky enough to start the game and fight for the three points, and we got them.”

Miyabi extension rewards growing chemistry

The Royals also announced Tuesday that defender Miyabi had signed a contract extension through the 2028 NWSL season.

Fans might immediately talk about her admittedly impressive résumé.

Before arriving in Utah, Miyabi won a WE League title, was named the league’s Most Valuable Player and Best XI, and represented Japan at both the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup and the 2024 Olympic Games.

Coenraets, however, didn’t mention any of those accomplishments when discussing the extension.

Instead, he pointed to a single sequence from the Orlando match. Miyabi received the ball deep in her own half and broke Orlando’s press by dribbling all the way to the offensive third, turning defense into attack before delivering a dangerous cross.

“Miyabi has shown that she can do the whole wing,” Coenraets said. “She really showed it this week when she went from a goalkeeper build all the way to delivering a cross by just carrying the ball throughout the three zones. I think that’s the type of player Miyabi can be.”

For Coenraets, the extension isn’t about finding another Janni Thomsen. It’s about recognizing what makes Miyabi unique and maximizing her impact.

“The power of this team lies within recognizing what Miyabi can do for us, recognizing what Cameron can do for us, more than trying to replace someone else,” he said. “They’re not the same players.”

Sustaining the standard

North Carolina, coming off back-to-back losses to Bay FC and Washington Spirit, will present a new challenge. The Courage will try to use their home crowd to halt a two-game skid before it becomes something more. The Royals know exactly how dangerous that can be after doing the same against Orlando last weekend.

The Courage have scored 21 goals this season, led by Ashley Sanchez (9 goals, 1 assist) and Manaka Matsukobu (5 goals, 4 assists). But they have also conceded 20, creating what Coenraets expects will be an open match.

“I think it’ll be an open game,” he said. “I think it’ll be a game with quite some space in between the lines.”

For Tejada, however, the objective is simple.

“Just the three points,” she said. “Have consistency throughout the 90 minutes and hopefully get the three points.”

Defensively throttling the offensive juggernaut that is the Orlando Pride was a statement of intent. Against North Carolina, the Royals have an opportunity to show it wasn’t an exception, but a standard they’re capable of sustaining.

Match Information:

Who: Utah Royals at North Carolina Courage

When: Saturday, July 25; 5:45 p.m. MT 

Where: WakeMed Soccer Park; Cary, North Carolina 

Watch: ION