Latest / Into the Channel ⚽️ A Podcast Primarily About Women's Football / ITC After Dark ✨ 2025 NWSL Team Draft

Transcript

ITC After Dark ✨ 2025 NWSL Team Draft · Into the Channel ⚽️ A Podcast Primarily About Women's Football

• 0:03
  OK, welcome to Into the Channel podcast premiered by Women's
• 0:08
  football. I am your host Dean of de Sespos
• 0:10
  and as always I'm joined by my Co host Mr. Grant Angle.
• 0:14
  What is up man? I'm feeling all right, buddy.
• 0:16
  We have found another way to execute a draft of some kind in
• 0:21
  a sport that now that the NWSL has abolished the draft, a sport
• 0:25
  that has no drafts, that doesn't deter us.
• 0:28
  Nothing's going to stop us from drafting things.
• 0:30
  No drafts except one, the ITC pick, your favorite pick, a team
• 0:35
  to track all season draft. Very excited to get into this
• 0:38
  with you. A little bit about the
• 0:39
  machinations here. I mean, I feel like, you know,
• 0:42
  my guy Grant Seattle, he covers the rain.
• 0:45
  I'm here in Orlando. I cover the pride.
• 0:47
  Those mechanics seem to have worked for us, I think pretty
• 0:50
  well as a show. I think we got a pretty good to
• 0:52
  grasp of like kind of what's going on in the league through
• 0:54
  that type of coverage. So we're going to extend it out
• 0:57
  a little bit and we're going to go through all 14 teams at the
• 1:01
  end of this draft. I'll have 7, my guy will have 7.
• 1:04
  And you know, season kicks off here in a few weeks.
• 1:07
  We'll, we'll be able to kind of like have a better handle of
• 1:09
  like what's going on in the league with each of us in the
• 1:12
  driver's seat for, for our 7. Squads, I like it.
• 1:15
  I, I figure last year before we did our season preview, we just
• 1:19
  kind of split the map in like this weird kind of diagonal
• 1:23
  half. And you know, as much as I like
• 1:25
  chronological order as much as I like alphabetical order, we
• 1:28
  don't have to do like a geographical line like that.
• 1:32
  We should pick the teams we like.
• 1:33
  This is going to be much more exciting.
• 1:35
  And like I said, we're two dudes hosting a podcast.
• 1:38
  Why wouldn't we do a draft? Let's go right With that said,
• 1:42
  well, actually, let's get through some of the formalities.
• 1:46
  I'm going to keep Rock with my Orlando Pride.
• 1:48
  I assume you're going to stick with your Seattle rain.
• 1:52
  So with that said, the draft starts at 3.
• 1:54
  How are we deciding who? I'm going to enjoy this
• 1:58
  delicious C Pine Brewing Company Citra IPA brewed in brewed in
• 2:05
  beautiful Seattle, WA. So yeah, I think you're right.
• 2:09
  We're drafting 12 teams. I got AI got a rock with the
• 2:12
  with the home team that I cover. Not as a fan, sounds great.
• 2:17
  Not as a fan, but as an objective journalist.
• 2:20
  That's obviously how we do things here.
• 2:21
  This is a journalism outfit. How about you just do the
• 2:24
  honours? How about you take the first
• 2:26
  pick? I think you let me get the 1st
• 2:28
  pick in the ITC best 11 draft so I believe it's your turn.
• 2:32
  All right, so I'm going to go a little off the board here and
• 2:36
  there could be some ulterior motives, you know, there,
• 2:39
  There's some rumblings, you know, and I know Soccer Donna
• 2:42
  might have had a post about this maybe last week that I could be
• 2:45
  taking my talents back to the Bay Area potentially.
• 2:48
  No, nothing set in stone yet, but that that could be what it
• 2:51
  is. I'll be heartbroken to kind of
• 2:53
  like be so far away from from my Orlando Pride, but such is life.
• 2:57
  So with my pick, my first pick, the third pick in the ITC, pick
• 3:01
  a team draft, give me Bay FC. So I might be living there.
• 3:07
  They made the playoffs. They've got tons of attackers.
• 3:11
  They're exciting their second season.
• 3:13
  I love their ownership group. CTX, you already know.
• 3:16
  Yeah, ITC, you know, Hall of Famer, you know, she she's in
• 3:19
  the building. And I think they're that their
• 3:21
  team on the absolute upswing. Couldn't agree more.
• 3:23
  Fantastic pick. I think I understand why you
• 3:26
  said they're off the board a little bit.
• 3:28
  I cannot wait for us to do the the the season preview with just
• 3:33
  us. Now, obviously we are the
• 3:34
  Galaxy's only women's football podcast hosted by two Bros who
• 3:38
  did a way too early season preview with the great
• 3:40
  broadcaster Mike Watts. But we still need to do a proper
• 3:45
  preview where we include more spicy takes and predictions
• 3:50
  because once again, as I said, we're two dudes hosting a
• 3:53
  podcast. So we have to do predictions.
• 3:55
  I mean, what are we crazy? Like we have to do this.
• 3:58
  So okay, great pick by you. Let's move this thing along
• 4:01
  because I mean, we still, we're dividing these so we can do
• 4:05
  deeper dives in research. So this is just us kind of
• 4:09
  picking our teams and letting you guys know.
• 4:11
  You mentioned CTX, the ITC Hall of Famer, like now she can give
• 4:16
  you ideas for what to look for with Bay FC.
• 4:19
  And this goes for everybody in the comments.
• 4:21
  Let us know if we pick your team.
• 4:23
  We know we have pals who are fans of every squad in the
• 4:26
  league. Once one of us selects your
• 4:28
  team, tell us who we should lookout for.
• 4:30
  What storyline should we be watching out for?
• 4:32
  I think that'll help us with the prep, help us deliver a better
• 4:35
  show. And now we're just kind of, not
• 4:37
  to sound lazy, like we're outsourcing things.
• 4:39
  We're not a radio show taking phone calls.
• 4:41
  We're not we're not talking to Dan on the mobile in Hialeah.
• 4:45
  That's OK. We're just, we're just making
• 4:49
  sure that we that we are involving the community.
• 4:53
  So with my first pick in the draft, give me the Washington
• 4:57
  spirit. Nice.
• 4:58
  Nice. Yeah.
• 5:00
  Very, very creative of you to just take the second best
• 5:03
  evening. Like, no, I mean, tons going on
• 5:05
  with the Spirit. What?
• 5:06
  Well, why'd you pick the Spirit? Croy Bethune, Hal Hirschfeld,
• 5:09
  Lacey Santos, Trinity Rodman, Ole SAR.
• 5:13
  Yes, they are the the second best team in the league I
• 5:16
  believe. I think they're going to
• 5:17
  challenge for a trophy or two this season and I want to dive
• 5:21
  in and and see what else I can find.
• 5:23
  Love it. Yeah, you know, Geraldo's too.
• 5:25
  Definitely. Of course, with a full season,
• 5:27
  could be really excited to see what happens there.
• 5:29
  I'm going to stick with, you know, I mentioned CTX as a great
• 5:33
  friend of the pod. I'm going to stick with the
• 5:35
  friend of the Pod theme. Give me the Houston Dash.
• 5:38
  Shout out to extra Friends of the Pod at Wosso reader at Mr.
• 5:44
  GOOG. Still trying to figure out if
• 5:45
  those are the same person. It is possible that there's two
• 5:48
  more than one Houston Dash fan on the Internet.
• 5:51
  Give me the Houston Dash. I'm leading the charge with
• 5:53
  regard to the Yasmine Ryan fan club.
• 5:55
  We're recording this before she believes.
• 5:57
  So there's a chance that Yasmine explodes and this feels more
• 6:01
  like a no brainer, you know, pick in terms of the 5th in the
• 6:03
  draft. But I love Houston.
• 6:05
  I think they're exciting. I also think that they're a
• 6:07
  little bit of a mess, a little bit interesting from franchise
• 6:10
  standpoint. So that's always fun to kind of
• 6:11
  cover. But give me Houston.
• 6:13
  I want them in my squad. All right, this is a great pick.
• 6:18
  I had them lower on my big board, but they were they were
• 6:21
  6th on my big board. So I mean, I I didn't have them.
• 6:25
  I didn't have them way down there because I think they're
• 6:27
  absolutely an intriguing team, had a good offseason despite
• 6:30
  losing Tarsiane. I think they, like you mentioned
• 6:33
  the right, the Yasmine Ryan acquisition, they made some very
• 6:36
  interesting moves for a team that finished bottom of the
• 6:38
  table and didn't have the draft to rely on.
• 6:41
  They knew they had to take some big swings and I think they did
• 6:44
  that so great call by you with my second pick.
• 6:47
  I'm going to stay in that Mid-Atlantic.
• 6:51
  I guess Washington, DC is kind of like Mid-Atlantic.
• 6:53
  I don't know I'm not really good at geography and I don't know if
• 6:56
  Cary, NC is on the is near the coast or near the water or I
• 7:00
  don't know if they're inside, but give me the North Carolina
• 7:03
  courage. Speaking of teams similar to the
• 7:05
  Houston dash that lost a great Brazilian player.
• 7:08
  They lose Keteline, but they made some other very interesting
• 7:11
  acquisitions. Obviously they pick up Jaden
• 7:13
  Shaw. I'm going to be tracking them
• 7:15
  all year very closely. I'll take the courage.
• 7:17
  Love it, Great pick. They were on my short list.
• 7:20
  They were right around this spot in my big board, maybe a little
• 7:24
  higher. I got a little excited to trying
• 7:26
  to give give our friends some shout outs here, but that's all
• 7:29
  right. I'm excited with who I ended up
• 7:31
  with and I think I'm make up for it here with my pick.
• 7:34
  This team, I got to see them in person from the press box in the
• 7:38
  semifinals of last year's and the BSL playoffs definitely
• 7:42
  outperformed my expectations. The Kansas City Current, they've
• 7:46
  got the MVP of the league. They're loaded.
• 7:49
  I just think that this team kind of has a little bit of
• 7:52
  unfinished business feel to them.
• 7:54
  They were shot out of a cannon the beginning of last year.
• 7:57
  And I think there's a chance that they kind of are able to
• 8:00
  recreate some of that magic. And if they can stay healthy,
• 8:02
  big if. But if they can stay healthy,
• 8:04
  they're just going to be a nightmare for every other, every
• 8:07
  defence in the league gear. Give me the Kansas City Current.
• 8:09
  Yeah. Fantastic pick.
• 8:10
  They were next on my big board. They're going to challenge for
• 8:13
  the they're going to challenge for both trophies this year.
• 8:16
  I don't think there's any any doubt about that.
• 8:18
  Great move by you. All right, I think I'm going to
• 8:21
  do, I don't know if you're going to expect this one, but they are
• 8:25
  next to my big board. And if there's one thing I must
• 8:27
  be loyal to, it is the big board.
• 8:30
  I'm going to take the Utah Royals.
• 8:32
  Oh, because I hate this. I don't want to do this anymore.
• 8:36
  I don't want to do this anymore. Oh, I hate you.
• 8:40
  The draft is working out great. I.
• 8:43
  Think you're going to win a draft?
• 8:45
  Yeah, it's about time I got one. Yeah, man.
• 8:49
  I mean, you know, this is this, this could be the Sentinor leap
• 8:52
  year. I'm, I'm extremely interested to
• 8:55
  see that, You know, they extend the contracts of Mandy McGlynn
• 8:58
  and Paige Monahan. I just feel like they got a lot
• 9:01
  going for them. And yeah, I'm, I'm excited to
• 9:03
  see them play, which I got to tell you the first time I've you
• 9:07
  know what? I I won't say this.
• 9:08
  Let me backtrack. I was going to say it's the
• 9:10
  first time I've ever been excited to see a Utah sports
• 9:13
  team play. That would be a lie because even
• 9:16
  though I do not care for the Utah Jazz, your boy has watched
• 9:20
  so many Utah versus BYU, Utah State versus Utah, BYU versus
• 9:27
  Utah State, every college football machination of all
• 9:31
  those schools in Utah. I have watched so many of those
• 9:34
  games over my lifetime, which is, yeah, probably probably says
• 9:37
  something about me that I don't want to reveal, really.
• 9:41
  But yeah, long winded rant aside, I'm taking the Royals.
• 9:44
  I like it, yeah. Shout out to Rick Bajaris and
• 9:46
  Keith Van Horn, couple Utah legends.
• 9:49
  Let's go. All right, I'm gonna I'm gonna
• 9:54
  scroll through my texts here. I'm gonna send a message a yo
• 9:58
  you up message to one of my old flings here.
• 10:01
  Give me racing Louisville with the 9th pick of the draft.
• 10:05
  You know, a little bit of an off year kind of stuck in neutral a
• 10:08
  little bit. They've got good players.
• 10:11
  It seemed like they were always all another team that was kind
• 10:14
  of battling injuries they never had like their full, their full
• 10:16
  assortment of talent. Yep.
• 10:20
  I just like their vibe. I like the way they play.
• 10:22
  They've got a culture of like really going for it.
• 10:24
  I just, I don't know, I like watching them.
• 10:26
  I like the way they play. And I think for me, my draft
• 10:28
  strategy is let me stack my side with teams that I like watch
• 10:32
  playing. Sure, Louisville firmly in that
• 10:35
  camp. They're my next pick.
• 10:37
  OK, they were. I'm not going to lie to you.
• 10:40
  I wonder if there might be a weird bias that I have and I'm
• 10:45
  not, I'm not just trying, I'm not trying to kneecap what
• 10:48
  you're doing because I obviously trust your, your football acumen
• 10:50
  here literally last on my big board.
• 10:54
  So, so you educate me. I could be a damn, I could be a
• 10:58
  damn fool. We'll see how it goes.
• 10:59
  You are right though, they do have a lot of good players.
• 11:01
  They, they, they keep themselves in games.
• 11:04
  So I'll be interested to watch them play as well.
• 11:06
  So I got to stay true to the board, even though I am.
• 11:09
  I am so caught in between. I'm so caught in between 7:00
• 11:13
  and 8:00 that I'm kind of annoyed with myself.
• 11:15
  But I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna take the Portland
• 11:18
  Thorns. Oh, they still have.
• 11:20
  So Sophie Smith, Sophie Wilson. Pardon me.
• 11:23
  This is the. Regulations on nuptials.
• 11:26
  Exactly. We call that a call.
• 11:28
  Back in a podcast you later. Exactly.
• 11:31
  Whoever watched the last episode where we were congratulating
• 11:33
  many players on many nuptials, which, you know, good for them.
• 11:36
  It was just it was just a by the third time I did it, I was like,
• 11:39
  wow, I really have to do this, this many times.
• 11:42
  I. Don't nuptialize.
• 11:44
  It but yeah, so. Yeah, exactly.
• 11:45
  So Jess Fleming, Hina Sujita, Sam Coffee, the first year post
• 11:52
  the legend, Christine Sinclair. Interested to see there's some
• 11:55
  kind of leadership vacuum. I would doubt it because of
• 11:58
  those other players that I named.
• 11:59
  But, you know, they were just, they were so hot and cold last
• 12:02
  year. And we know that they are a
• 12:04
  dominant winning franchise. I'm eager to see how they're
• 12:07
  going to bounce back. I like it.
• 12:09
  Good pick. I wasn't going to take Portland.
• 12:12
  There's just something about, I don't know, I don't really like
• 12:14
  watching their games. Something I don't know if the
• 12:16
  like color scheme or the camera. And I'm a I'm like a brand guy,
• 12:19
  a vibes guy and just some some of the other games that doesn't
• 12:21
  quite feel right. Even though our guy Mike Watts
• 12:23
  said that that was a great environment.
• 12:24
  I'm I'm sure being in the building would feel different.
• 12:26
  Looks like something about the telecast.
• 12:28
  Just just not for your guy. I'm going to take things back to
• 12:31
  the Midwest, give me 1/3 of triple espresso and the Chicago
• 12:36
  Stars, Chicago Stars FC. We're still, we're still trying
• 12:39
  to figure that out, but give me Chicago.
• 12:41
  I like Swanson. Hopefully Sam Sobbs back.
• 12:44
  Lauren Donaldson. You already know there's a
• 12:45
  culture there. I don't know.
• 12:47
  We're late in the draft, so we're really taking Flyers here.
• 12:49
  And I like, I mean, the reality is I like watching Chicago play,
• 12:53
  especially when Swanson's on the pitch.
• 12:55
  So I'm very, very happy to get them this late in the draft.
• 12:58
  Great pick. They were.
• 12:59
  That was literally the other team that I was debating.
• 13:02
  It was between Portland and Chicago.
• 13:04
  Yeah, I'm with you. Anytime Mal Swanson plays must
• 13:07
  see TV for me. One of the best players in the
• 13:09
  League, One of the best players in the world in my view.
• 13:11
  All right, Chicago, Portland, Little espresso for you, little
• 13:13
  little for me. And I think we'll ever be happy.
• 13:16
  There you go. And I gotta say, I'm a little
• 13:19
  surprised that this club fell this far down the draft.
• 13:23
  But with some of the players who went out the door this
• 13:26
  offseason, I think that may have played or that may have figured
• 13:30
  into both of our minds. But they are next on my big
• 13:33
  board. And like I said, I honor the big
• 13:35
  board. Give me the Bats, Gotham FC.
• 13:38
  Good pick. They were way down my list, I
• 13:40
  think. Yeah.
• 13:41
  I mean, I'm a vibes guy, as, as mentioned many times over.
• 13:45
  I still think that something something going on Gotham.
• 13:49
  I mean, Lin Biendolo continues to drop some bread crumbs here
• 13:52
  for, you know, journalists types like to like kind of really pick
• 13:54
  up on and really kind of chew on a little bit.
• 13:57
  And I I didn't want the Gotham vibes anywhere near my squad.
• 14:01
  I was I was glad to be able to save Jenna Nishwanga, you know,
• 14:05
  from from anything, any of the shenanigans going on there.
• 14:07
  Now she's over at Arsenal. Shout out to the to my Gooners,
• 14:10
  of course. All right, last pick here.
• 14:12
  I think you already know where I'm going.
• 14:15
  I'm a vibes guy, so I'm going to avoid one team and I'm going to
• 14:20
  go instead with the team that Vanessa and Shield spurned,
• 14:24
  Angel City FC. You know, I'm going to be, well,
• 14:27
  it's looking the way things are trending.
• 14:29
  I'm going to be a West Coast guy up for plenty of NWSL after
• 14:32
  dark. Give me Angel City.
• 14:34
  I like that squad. So some interesting offseason
• 14:37
  moves here. Obviously, June Endo may be
• 14:39
  coming back from injury. Yeah, they picked up Katie's
• 14:41
  album last year toward the end of the season, a trade for savvy
• 14:45
  king Julie Dufour. They brought in Thompson
• 14:47
  sisters, Sydney LaRue, a lot of pieces there.
• 14:50
  They weren't able to kind of put it all together last season.
• 14:53
  But I like the team. I do enjoy watching them.
• 14:56
  They do get great crowds. The vibes definitely check out.
• 14:59
  And it could be, you know, that that your boys fit, you know, in
• 15:02
  full West Coast mindset this time next month or maybe the
• 15:05
  following month. We'll see.
• 15:06
  So I think that the timing, the time zones workout give me Angel
• 15:09
  City FC to kind of round out my big seven-year.
• 15:13
  Yeah, it's a good pick. It'll be interesting to see how
• 15:16
  the Thompson sisters, I mean, both of them were in really
• 15:19
  great form, especially toward the end of the year.
• 15:21
  So, yeah, exciting things to look forward to.
• 15:23
  You already know what time it is with June Endo.
• 15:25
  I look forward to her return. They signed her in the
• 15:27
  offseason. They extended her contract
• 15:29
  through 2027, so they obviously don't want to let her go
• 15:32
  anywhere. Yeah.
• 15:33
  And then like we alluded to Vanessa, Jill's loan is over I
• 15:39
  think in June. So I don't know what's going to
• 15:41
  happen there. I mean, if if Leon wins the
• 15:43
  Champions League on the strength of, you know, Vanessa, Jill in
• 15:48
  that back line with with Wendy Renar and maybe some Tarsiani
• 15:51
  minutes. Do you just say, OK, thanks for
• 15:53
  the memories Vanessa and then let her go back?
• 15:56
  Or do you or do you petition Angel City and say we would like
• 15:59
  to purchase this players contract long term?
• 16:02
  It'll be interesting to see how that decision goes.
• 16:06
  OK, that leaves me with San Diego Wave, your pal Jonas
• 16:10
  Adoval. Look, sorry, buddy.
• 16:13
  They got Caitlin Sheridan, one of our one of our favorite
• 16:16
  keepers in the world. Obviously, you have the
• 16:18
  retirement of the legend Alex Morgan.
• 16:22
  They still got Kenza. Dolly.
• 16:24
  What? We got Oscarini.
• 16:26
  Yeah, we have Delphine Cascarino.
• 16:28
  So you know what? I can talk myself into this.
• 16:30
  If this is going to be the last pick of the draft, I think I
• 16:33
  can. I can live with that.
• 16:35
  But to be completely honest with you, at the same time, I mean, I
• 16:38
  I was trying to avoid ending up with this team, but here we are.
• 16:41
  What can you do? What can you do?
• 16:45
  All right, let's let's do a quick recap here.
• 16:48
  So my guys got Seattle rain, Washington spirit, North
• 16:52
  Carolina courage, Utah Royals, Portland Thorns, Gotham FC, San
• 16:56
  Diego wave. Some heavy hitters on your side
• 16:58
  of the line. So props to you for putting
• 17:00
  together a nice draft here I went a little bit more vibe
• 17:03
  heavy. I've got the defending champion,
• 17:05
  Orlando Pride, Bay FC, Houston Dash, Kansas City, Current
• 17:09
  Racing, Louisville, Chicago Stars FC and Angel City FC as my
• 17:13
  7:00 very, very excited to get into the season.
• 17:17
  And now and now I've got I've got some structure to my
• 17:20
  homework. I'm, I'm kind of like ready to
• 17:21
  dive in here. I hear you.
• 17:23
  I'm I think it, I think it worked out well.
• 17:25
  I won't complain too much about the fact that you know when you
• 17:30
  start with the double winners and I start with a historically
• 17:36
  great team, but the team that finished 13th in the 14 team
• 17:40
  table, that's a nice little advantage for you.
• 17:42
  But hey, you know what? That's why home field advantage
• 17:45
  exists. And you had it, my Goodman.
• 17:47
  Here we go, cranking up the excuse machine.
• 17:49
  It's all good. I feel like I won.
• 17:52
  I feel like I, I feel pretty good about this draft, though.
• 17:55
  But yeah, you know, let's let's run a blue sky poll so I can
• 17:59
  ultimately somehow lose that one too.
• 18:02
  I love it. Let's go.
• 18:03
  Can't wait to fire that one up. All right, man, I think we did
• 18:06
  it. This is one of the episode.
• 18:08
  Kind of like a NWSL team draft After Dark episode of Into the
• 18:12
  Channel. Anything else you want to hit
• 18:14
  before we get out of? Here, I think we did it, my
• 18:15
  Goodman. Excellent.
• 18:16
  There's been an episode of Into the Channel.
• 18:18
  Thank you. Thank you for hanging out if you
• 18:20
  enjoyed the show or love one suppose much as your boys do
• 18:23
  like if you like to make sure you are kicking it with us each
• 18:26
  and every single week. Subscribe follow you to Spotify,
• 18:28
  Apple podcast, wherever you like to watch or listen.
• 18:30
  Leave us a review over your favorite podcast app links all
• 18:33
  of our socials in the show notes of this episode.
• 18:35
  All of our socials except for X slash Twitter.
• 18:37
  We want to hear from you. We love hearing from you and a
• 18:39
  big thank you to my coast as well.
• 18:41
  Mr. Grant Engel, always my first pick in the draft.
• 18:44
  I appreciate you bro. Likewise, buddy, thank you for
• 18:47
  for going through this exercise with me and like, and like we
• 18:49
  said in the beginning of the episode, for all our pals who
• 18:52
  support these different clubs all over the United States of
• 18:54
  America, some of whom are outside of the United States of
• 18:57
  America. One of us have one of your
• 18:58
  squads. Let us know who we should think
• 19:00
  about, who we should talk about during the previews.
• 19:02
  And if you want to even give us some of your picks for I, I
• 19:05
  mean, you know, your boys. We're going to pick player
• 19:07
  awards. We're going to pick the coach of
• 19:09
  the year award. We're going to pick who we
• 19:10
  think's going to make the playoffs, who's going to win the
• 19:12
  shield, who's going to win the NWSL championship.
• 19:14
  We obviously got to hear your scorching hot takes as well.
• 19:18
  So thank you for rocking with us.
• 19:20
  We will see you next time, we'll see you for the next episode,
• 19:23
  we'll see you for the NSL preview down the road, and then
• 19:26
  we'll talk to you very soon.