by Tiffany Weimer
Over the weekend, Americans Danielle Johnson and Jessica McDonald finished their season in Australia on an unfortunate note with a 3-1 loss in the Grand Final to Sydney FC. Johnson played a full 90 minutes while McDonald came out in the 72nd minute. The players are now looking to join teams back in the states as mentioned in my previous post.
As per this article, Mexico Women’s National Team player Alina Garciamendez, who was recently allocated to the Washington Spirit in NWSL, is on trial with Frankfurt FFC in Germany. If she decides to stay there (and they decide they like her of course) she will miss the first part of the season like a few others who have chosen to play abroad this spring.
Joining Garciamendez during the Frankfurt trial is former Ottawa Fury forward, Canadian Mallory Outerbridge. Outerbridge was the 2011 W-League MVP after she scored 17 goals for the Fury.
Another Mexico Women’s National Team player choosing to finish her season abroad before joining the NWSL is Teresa Noyola, who will see out her contract with BeNe League side Ado Den Haag in the Netherlands before joining the NWSL Seattle Reign.
Signings
Former UCLA Bruin goalkeeper Ashley Thompson has re-signed with Norwegian Division 1 team Medkila IL.
“I chose to go back because I had great chemistry with the team and I fit right in as soon as I arrived,” said Thompson. “So it wasn’t a hard decision, just more about agreeing to terms. I’m looking forward to getting back with the girls and fighting for the top spot and potential promotion.”
As an interesting side note, Thompson’s team could potentially promoted to the Toppserien before the start of the 2013 season. Kattem, the team that beat Medkila in a playoff for the final Toppserien spot last year, pulled their team out of the top league this past weekend. Speculated reasons for the self-orchestrated demotion by the team are poor organization and many of the top players defecting from the squad. The Norwegian Football Federation said that they will look closely at the situation before making any decisions.
It is finally official that former Boston Breaker midfielder Amanda DaCosta has signed with Liverpool LFC in the FAWSL. DaCosta, who joins USWNT defender Whitney Engen in the squad, is looking forward to the experience.
“Having the opportunity to play for a club such as Liverpool is really humbling,” said DaCosta. “The club has such a tremendous history that I am grateful to now be a part of. The culture in England revolves around football, and that was one of the biggest things that made me decide to play overseas. It is never easy leaving the people I care about at home, but it is also so exciting to get to meet amazing new people and experience a different life. I am eager to start the season with my new teammates here in Liverpool.”