Julie Johnston is probably the favorite to win NWSL Defender of the Year and for good reason. She does a lot more than just protect the goal, get clear-outs and defend the Chicago Red Stars zone. She gets it out to the Chicago attack and gets an assist here and there.
Last week she beautifully set up Press on a header for the Red Stars only goal, coming in the 90′.
The Red Stars’ profile is rising substantially, as the team has been drawn over-capacity crowds in its home matches since the World Cup ended in early July. The World Cup trophy itself made an appearance last Sunday at Toyota Park as the Red Stars tied Golden Ball winner Carli Lloyd and the Houston Dash 1-1 to close out the NWSL season. The game drew close to 6,000 fans which more than triple the Red Stars average attendance in 2014.
Meanwhile, the players like Press and Julie Johnston, are becoming celebrities. Sunday’s NWSL semifinal game (full match preview and score prediction at this link) will feature the USWNT’s two best defenders, in Chicago’s Johnston and KC’s Becky Sauerbrunn. Kansas City overall has the best defense in the league.
Women’s soccer in the United States has only seen one summer on par with 2015. Obviously, it’s 1999, the last time the U.S. Women’s National Team won the World Cup, and ignited an explosion of interest in the game. We recently had an exclusive with Julie Johnston, and during that interview she said that Julie Foudy, a current ESPN Analyst, was her favorite member of the ’99 team.
The two Julies joined forces for a new series on ESPNW. Here’s the link.
Here’s the promotional blurb from ESPN PR
Julie Johnston ’s World Cup performance was nine months in the making: a rigorous training regimen, ambitious goals and working out with Carli Lloyd transformed her from benchwarmer to indispensable defender. Voices of the Future is a five-part digital series hosted by espnW’s Julie Foudy, who will take a dive deep into the lives of young accomplished athletes.
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and writes The Sports Bank.net, which is part of the FOX Sports Engage Network. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes to the Chicago Tribune RedEye edition. He also appears regularly on numerous talk radio stations all across the country. Catch him Tuesdays on KOZN 1620 the Zone.
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