There comes a point in time when any plan meets resistance. A plan may then break, even good ones. A great leader must then make a new plan or adjust the old one. That's when leaders are tested
Doric asks Edgin what his value to the group is in D&D: Honor Among Thieves.
Doric: What is it, exactly, that you bring to this?
Edgin: Me? I'm a planner. You know, I make plans.
Doric: You've already made the plan, so what value do you have now?
Edgin: If the plan fails, the existing plan, I make a new plan.
Doric: So you make plans that fail.
Edgin: No.
Primary plans, contingencies and emergencies are all part of leadership. Because nothing ever goes to the original plan. Any idea that interacts with people and/or nature will go off kilter.
The season is off kilter right now.
And because the early season was so strong, the full season need not be abandoned. Player health is a route to being better, but it's incomplete and rests on the same hope that no one else gets injured.
It was Plan A. It stinks right now.
Plan B is, maybe (I say maybe because no one has said what Plan B is), play the kids. If this is the plan it didn't work either.
It's time for a Plan C (or B, just let the fans know).
Teams around the West are making moves. Some are sending off their best talents. Others are taking on locker room blights. A few are signing big names.
There isn't time to sit still. A few trophies are now out of reach.
Seattle cannot wait. The playoffs dramatically favor home teams. That means winning another Cup is essentially down to a charge through August and the Fall towards greatness.
We know the Sounders are capable of this – another season that feels like 2026 is trying to echo it had that happen.
That midseason brought in two former World Cup players. One was a DP, possibly the best the Sounders have had. 2017 also had a pre-window swoon. Leerdam, Rodriguez, Mallace and Neagle helped dig the team out. Another early swoon in 2018 was countered by Ruidiaz and Brad Smith. The summer of '19 wasn't as bad a record – five outside signings were still made. Even the 2020 covid season brought new (but old) faces in during the summer.
Plan A used to be "see what the team needs and solve that problem."
For the past few years there's no idea what the plan is when the team's season goes sideways.
Maybe the plan is belief. Maybe that means a player is going to take a massive step forward like Simon. Maybe the plan is persistence so a player does like Doric and finds a way through the blockades.
Or maybe a leader will do like Edgin and rework the plan just enough to call it Plan C.
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Catching up on Sounder at Heart
Here's what you missed on the site this week.
Sounders
Next match: Wednesday at Toluca in the Leagues Cup at 7 pm PT on Apple TV/FS1/UniMas.
Toluca earned 67 combined points in the last full season in which they also won the Apertura final and the Concacaf Champions Cup. Their stadium is at 8700 feet in elevation.
- Five Defiance players included in Sounders’ Leagues Cup roster
- The sky is falling: Sounders drop sixth straight
- Brad Evans still believes in Brian Schmetzer
This newsletter was made possible through the support of Full Pull Wines, a boutique wines reseller that has been sponsoring us since 2011.
Reign
Next match: Sunday hosting Angel City at 6 pm PT on ESPN.
The teams are tied with 23 points each. Don't look at the goal differential though.
- Fishlock goal lifts Reign over Bay FC, 3-2
- Reign loan Purcell and Cedeño to Dallas for remainder of season
Defiance
Next match: Saturday at North Texas at 5:45 pm PT on OneFootball.
Defiance are seven points up on North Texas.
Looking back at the news
Everything else you need to know
MLS and men's soccer
- Inter Miami rues 6-game Leagues Cup ban for in-form Luis Suárez (ESPN)
- Larry Berg Tapped as Next MLS Commissioner to Replace Garber (Sportico)
- MLS investigating alleged antisemitic comments directed at Revolution's Dor Turgeman (Yahoo)
- Criticized new BC Place turf leaves Vancouver Whitecaps searching for answers: 'It's almost a different sport' (Canadian Soccer News)
- Where to next for your local MLS Next Pro team? (New York Soccer Journal) Many Next Pro teams will be moving away from their first teams.
- Gianni Infantino latest: Fifa chief calls executive meeting as criticism mounts (BBC)
NWSL and women's soccer
- NWSL set for earliest-ever start next season to accomodate World Cup (ESPN)
- Former Spokane Zephyr players say club ‘cut corners,’ undercounted hours (RANGE)
- Bay FC agree to sign USWNT winger Jenna Nighswonger from Arsenal - sources (ESPN)
- NWSL Power Rankings: Utah takes top spot as Washington tumbles down the order (ESPN) Reign up to 8th.
- Man Utd set to name Eva Olid as new head coach (New York Times)
Puget Sound and culture stuff I want you to read
- Road to 75 (American Soccer Analysis) This roster greats game is for both MLS and NWSL. I've managed to hit the mark for both MLS and NWSL here.
- Centurions (Futi) Is for MLS and EPL. My MLS best is a 92.
- Vancouver selects preferred partner for MLB expansion bid (Global News)
Not just shelter: Where to get free childcare, meals, showers and more as wildfires ravage Spokane
Eastern Washington wildfire relief
Our thoughts are with everyone in Spokane and across Eastern Washington who have been impacted by the wildfires. Looking to support the families and communities who have been displaced? Here are four donation options:
City of Spokane’s H.O.M.E. Starts Here Fund: Donations go directly to supporting services for those experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
Innovia Foundation's Wildfire Emergency Response Fund: 100% of donations go directly to support local nonprofit organizations providing food, shelter, and recovery supplies.
The Cedar Fund of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation launched a Wildfire Recovery Campaign to support communities impacted by wildfires on the Colville Indian Reservation.
Spokanimal is looking for donations to buy pet food, blankets and towels. The organization has already taken in more than 100 displaced animals at no cost.
