Sep 4, 2009
Who would you protect? Lindsey vs. Long
I’ve seen that most of the discussion surrounding the Freedom lately has been centered on Jim Gabarra’s decision to protect Allie Long over Lori Lindsey. A lot of the discussion though, has been centered on if Lori will really leave given everything she has been through with the team and its many incarnations. So putting the desire to leave D.C. aside, let’s look at the positives and negatives for both players.
WHY PROTECT LONG?
Let’s first look at why Gabarra decided the way he did. If I am making the case for Long, the backbone of my argument is the fact that she is a young player with a ton of potential. She has some offensive versatility, having played both attacking midfielder and forward. I was once told by a North Carolina assistant that they wish they had had Allie for all 4 years of her career because the UNC staff felt she was a special talent. In her first taste of the pro level she managed to start 11 of the 18 games she played in, scoring 2 goals. This is a player who should continue to learn and grow and she gains more experience.
WHY PROTECT LINDSEY?
Now let’s look at the other side of this equation. Here is a player who has remained with the Freedom since she was traded to the team in 2003. She is a fan favorite, a face of the franchise and the living embodiment of everything professional women’s soccer has been through this decade and has managed to show she still is a top player in this country after the pro level took a 6-year hiatus. In her return to the pro ranks, Lori started 18 of 19 games, contributing 2 goals and 1 assist this season. But more than that, her work ethic and hustle earned her a callup to the latest USWNT camp, her first callup since 2004.
WHY IT SHOULDN’T BE LONG
Now let’s look at the cases against each player, and again we will start with Allie. My biggest thing against Allie has to be the fact that at times she looked like she had trouble staying engaged in the game. If Allie had played like that in Boston, she would the topic of a feud with a coach, not Amy Rodriguez. Allie has enormous potential but for whatever reason it seems like Gabarra is having a hard time tapping into it. In a league this size, how bad would it be if you lost a player with her potential in a draft only to have another coach tap into it and reap the benefits? Is it enough to turn some of you diehard fans against you for letting one of the faces of your franchise get away?
WHY IT SHOULDN’T BE LINDSEY
While Lori has persevered through a dark age in women’s soccer, she didn’t do it remaining the ripe age of 25. If the idea is to build a solid foundation for your squad would you rather have the player yet to reach 25 or closer to reaching 30. Also, the recent WNT callup is nice but what happened between 2004 and now – why did it take so long to earn another callup? Apparently we know the ceiling on Lori, a borderline WNT-capable player, but is it good enough for WPS?
WHO SHOULD HAVE BEEN PROTECTED
This question is a constant that managers of all sports face all the time. Do you really keep the potential star and hope she reaches it or do you keep the rock of your franchise who stuck by you as the team waited for another league? I really like Lori and appreciate everything she has gone through however, 9 times out of 10 a player with great potential always get the nod and I believe in this case, where not much separates each team, it should again. Unfortunately for all of her strengths I think Lori can be replaced with a player already on the roster. Whether it is Allie, Homare Sawa or possibly Sarah Huffman, I feel Lori’s role is in good hands. Not to say Allie is irreplaceable, but it is too soon to give up on that potential. Now, if we sit here a year later going into another expansion draft and Allie repeats this year’s performance – she should go – but for right now, let’s hope Gabarra can get through to Allie.
Who knows, maybe Rebecca Moros or Alex Singer will be the first player taken from the Freedom, giving Gabarra the opportunity to protect Lindsey and keep her here in D.C.?
Agree or disagree? Let me know by voting in the poll on the home page and then tell me your reasoning in the comments.
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