2016 Portland Thorns FC season

The Thorns began their season at Providence Park as they faced off against expansion team Orlando Pride in the latter's inaugural match. Former Thorn Steph Catley was able to strike first for Orlando in the 12th minute. Portland would soon respond with goals from Dagný Brynjarsdóttir in the 25th minute and Linsey Horan in the 81st minute. Both goals would be assisted by captain Tobin Heath. Thorns FC would win their home opener 2–1.

For their last match in April, the Thorns traveled to Kansas City where they would receive a 1–1 draw. Shea Groom was able to strike first with a goal in the 30th minute; however, Lindsey Horan was able to level for the Thorns in the 78th minute, again assisted by Tobin Heath.

Position at the end of April

The Thorns began their month of May continuing their 4-game road spell against the Boston Breakers where Dagný Brynjarsdóttir scored the lone goal and Tobin Heath continued her assist streak to 4 in a row. The Thorns would end up winning 1–0.

The Thorns traveled to D.C. to take on the Washington Spirit. The team would end up drawing 0–0 with Tobin Heath acquiring two yellow cards, thus suspending her for the next match against local rivals Seattle Reign FC.

The Thorns finished their 4 away matches in Seattle as they faced off against Reign FC. Nadia Nadim would score her first of the season with an assist by Meg Morris; however, Seattle would respond within 3 minutes by a goal from Beverly Yanez, equalizing at 1-1. Both teams would settle for the draw.

In the first of a two-game home stand, the Thorns secured a 3–1 win over the then-first-place Washington Spirit. In their last game of the month, missing 6 starters due to USWNT call-ups, the Thorns played Seattle to a 0–0 draw.

Position at the end of May

The Thorns began June with a two-game road trip, first holding on for a 1–1 draw with Chicago Red Stars and then prevailing 2–0 over Western New York Flash. French international Amandine Henry made her first appearance as a Thorn as a second-half substitute in that game.

The Thorns played a crucial match against Chicago Red Stars to determine who would remain in first place. The Thorns prevailed with a 2–0 win with goals from Christine Sinclair and Nadia Nadim with an assist from Henry, who also started for the first time for the club.

Continuing their unbeaten streak (11 games without a loss from the beginning of the season to the end of June), the Thorns traveled to Florida to take on Orlando Pride. The Thorns would win it 2–1, with goals from Dagný Brynjarsdóttir and Lindsey Horan.

Position at the end of June

The Thorns opened July play without 6 starters due to USWNT and CanWNT Olympics preparations for a home game against Sky Blue. Amandine Henry would join the French national team after the game. The starting lineup included players who previously had seen limited professional minutes or even earning her first start. Sky Blue scored first and the Thorns came back to win 2–1 with goals from Dagný and Nadim to extend their season-opening unbeaten streak to 12 games.

For their second match for the month, the Thorns took on FC Kansas City at home. Now without 7 starting players and using their new amateur players (via a rule that allowed a team to bring in non-paid players when national players go on duty), the Thorns would suffer their first loss of the season, falling 2–1 with the only Thorns goal scorer being Kat Williamson, who was assisted by Dagný Brynjarsdóttir.

The Thorns then went on the road and continuing the stretch without their Olympians, this time also without Dagný as well, lost 3–0 to the 9th-place Houston Dash.

In their last game of both July and before the league-wide Olympics break, the Thorns hosted Seattle Reign at Providence Park. Playing their first 5-4-1 formation of the season, Mana Shim passed to Nadia Nadim who headed home the game's only goal and the Thorns remained in 1st place.

Position at the end of July

Due to the Olympic Games in Brazil, NWSL did not schedule games most of the month. The Thorns traveled to Seattle at the end of the month and fell 3–1 to the Reign.

Position at the end of August

The Thorns started off their final month in NWSL League play on a busy week with 3 matches in 7 days. The team, fully reunited after the Olympics, hosted Boston Breakers where the Thorns took a dominating 5–1 victory, keeping them in the race for the NWSL Shield.

Continuing their busy week, Portland Thorns took on Houston Dash. In the 19th minute, Portland fans and team members learned from a message on the big screen that they had clinched a playoff berth with Seattle Reign's loss to Washington Spirit. The Thorns started off strong with a brace from Allie Long in the 26th and 71st minute, both goals assisted by Tobin Heath. Christine Sinclair would finish up by scoring in the 90th minute and shutting out Houston 3–0, giving goalkeeper Michelle Betos 4 clean sheets for the season so far.

To conclude the stretch of 3 games in 8 days, the Thorns played the Western New York Flash in front of their only sold-out crowd of the year, with 21,144 announced attendance. The Thorns went ahead 3-0 only to concede 2 goals within 4 minutes late in the game, but hung on to win and clinch a home playoff match.

On Sunday September 25, the Thorns clinched the NWSL Shield with a win over Sky Blue FC and a Washington Spirit loss to the Chicago Red Stars. The Thorns hosted Western New York Flash in the semi-finals for the NWSL Playoffs, losing a physical match 4–3 in overtime.

Position at the end of the season

Updated to match played November 16, 2016
Source: 

Source: Providence Park

The 2016 primary kits are their signature red color with a "spray on" black on the ends of the sleeves. The kits remain Nike and the sponsorship with their sponsor Providence Health and Services on the front.

The 2016 secondary kits feature the same style as the first kit, however instead of red, it is white with the "spray on" black sleeve style. The kit is also Nike and shows the Providence Health and Services sponsorship.

The Thorns do not have a third kit for 2016.

All players contracted to the club during the season included.
Last updated: August 30, 2016^[5][6]

No.	Name	Nationality	Positions	Date of birth (age)	Year with Club (Year Signed)
Goalkeepers
18	Michelle Betos		GK	(1988-02-20) February 20, 1988 (age 38)	3 (2014)
24	Adrianna Franch		GK	(1990-11-12) November 12, 1990 (age 35)	1 (2016)
Defenders
2	Katherine Reynolds		RB	(1987-09-14) September 14, 1987 (age 38)	1 (2016)
4	Emily Menges		CB	(1992-07-28) July 28, 1992 (age 33)	3 (2014)
16	Emily Sonnett		CB	(1993-11-25) November 25, 1993 (age 32)	1 (2016)
25	Meghan Klingenberg		LB	(1988-08-02) August 2, 1988 (age 37)	1 (2016)
44	Meg Morris		LB / FW	(1992-05-11) May 11, 1992 (age 33)	1 (2016)
Midfielders
6	Meleana Shim		CM	(1991-09-25) September 25, 1991 (age 34)	4 (2013)
7	Lindsey Horan (NTA)		CM	(1994-05-26) May 26, 1994 (age 31)	1 (2016)
10	Allie Long		LW / CM	(1987-08-13) August 13, 1987 (age 38)	4 (2013)
11	Dagný Brynjarsdóttir		MF	(1991-08-10) August 10, 1991 (age 34)	1 (2016)
15	Kendall Johnson		MF / DF	(1991-04-24) April 24, 1991 (age 34)	2 (2015)
17	Tobin Heath (NTA)		LW	(1988-05-29) May 29, 1988 (age 37)	4 (2013)
28	Amandine Henry		CM	(1989-09-28) September 28, 1989 (age 36)	1 (2016)
30	Celeste Boureille		MF	(1994-04-20) April 20, 1994 (age 31)	1 (2016)
Forwards
9	Nadia Nadim		CF / RW	(1988-01-02) January 2, 1988 (age 38)	1 (2016)
12	Christine Sinclair		CF	(1983-06-12) June 12, 1983 (age 42)	4 (2013)
21	Hayley Raso		FW / RW	(1994-09-05) September 5, 1994 (age 31)	1 (2016)
26	Mallory Weber		FW / CB	(1994-04-04) April 4, 1994 (age 31)	1 (2016)

• (HG) = Homegrown Player
• (NTA) = National Team Allocated Player
• (Loan) = On Loan
• (AP) = Amateur Player

Source: NWSL

Squad statistics are of regular season only

Date	Player	Positions Played	Previous club	Notes	Ref
January 13, 2016	Lindsey Horan	FW	Paris Saint-Germain	U.S. Women's National Team allocation process	[7]

Date	Player	Positions Played	Previous club	Fee/notes	Ref
November 2, 2015	Meghan Klingenberg	DF	Orlando Pride	Part of trade for Alex Morgan and Kaylyn Kyle.	[8]
December 10, 2015	Adrianna Franch	GK	Orlando Pride	Part of trade for Steph Catley.	[9]
January 19, 2016	Nadia Nadim	FW	Sky Blue FC	Traded for the second overall pick in 2016 and a 2017 first and conditional fourth-round pick.	[10]
February 2, 2016	Katherine Reynolds	DF	Washington Spirit	Traded for Alyssa Kleiner.	[11]
March 16, 2016	Amandine Henry	MF	Olympique Lyonnais		[12]
April 15, 2016	Celeste Boureille	MF			[13]
April 16, 2016	Hayley Raso	FW	Washington Spirit	Signed off waivers.	[13]
April 27, 2016	Meg Morris	DF / FW	Sky Blue FC		[14]
July 1, 2016	Jennifer Skogerboe	DF	FC Slovácko		[15]

Date	Player	Positions Played	Destination club	Fee/notes	Ref
September 24, 2015	Michelle Betos	GK	Sydney FC	Will return for the start of the 2016 season.	[16]
October 6, 2015	Steph Catley	DF	Melbourne City FC	Was set to return for the start of the 2016 season. Traded.	[17]
October 6, 2015	Kendall Johnson	DF	Western Sydney Wanderers	Will return for the start of the 2016 season.	[17]
October 6, 2015	Clare Polkinghorne	DF	Brisbane Roar	Will return for the start of the 2016 season.	[17]
October 6, 2015	Lianne Sanderson	MF	Apollon Limassol	Was set to return for the start of the 2016 season. Selected in Expansion Draft.	[17]
October 6, 2015	Mana Shim	MF	Iga Football Club Kunoichi	Will return for the start of the 2016 season.	[17]

Date	Player	Positions Played	Destination club	Fee/notes	Ref
October 21, 2015	Genoveva Añonma	FW	N/A	Waived.	[18]
October 26, 2015	Alex Morgan	FW	Orlando Pride	Part of trade for first Expansion Draft selection, first round College Draft selection, and international roster spot.	[19]
October 26, 2015	Kaylyn Kyle	MF	Orlando Pride	Part of trade for first Expansion Draft selection, first round College Draft selection, and international roster spot.	[19]
November 2, 2015	Lianne Sanderson	MF	Orlando Pride	Selected in Expansion Draft.	[20]
December 10, 2015	Steph Catley	DF	Orlando Pride	Part of trade for Adrianna Franch.	[21]
February 2, 2016	Alyssa Kleiner	DF	Washington Spirit	Traded for Katherine Reynolds.	[22]
February 8, 2016	Rhian Wilkinson	DF	N/A	No longer allocated. Released.	[23]
March 24, 2016	Jodie Taylor	FW	Arsenal Ladies		[24]
August 30, 2016	McKenzie Berryhill	DF	Orlando Pride	Waived. Claimed off waivers by Pride.	[25][26]

Stage (Round Pick)	Player	Positions Played	Previous club	Notes	Ref
1 (1)	Emily Sonnett	DF	Virginia Cavaliers		[27]
3 (21)	McKenzie Berryhill	DF	Arizona State Sun Devils		[27]

The draft was held on January 15, 2016.

Ten Thorns players have been called up to play for their national teams during this season.

Team	Players
United States	Meghan Klingenberg, Tobin Heath, Emily Sonnett, Lindsey Horan, Allie Long
Canada	Christine Sinclair
Iceland	Dagný Brynjarsdóttir
Denmark	Nadia Nadim
France	Amandine Henry

No.	Pos.	Name	NWSL				NWSL Playoffs				Total
			Apps	Goals			Apps	Goals			Apps	Goals
2	DF	Katherine Reynolds	17 (2)	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	17 (2)	0	1	0
4	DF	Emily Menges	19	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	19	0	1	0
5	DF	Kat Williamson	4 (1)	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	4 (1)	1	0	0
6	MF	Meleana Shim	9 (5)	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	9 (5)	0	1	0
7	MF	Lindsey Horan	14	4	4	0	0	0	0	0	14	4	4	0
9	FW	Nadia Nadim	19	9	4	0	0	0	0	0	19	9	4	0
10	MF	Allie Long	14	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	14	4	0	0
11	MF	Dagný Brynjarsdóttir	12 (4)	5	1	0	0	0	0	0	12 (4)	5	1	0
12	FW	Christine Sinclair	9 (1)	6	0	0	0	0	0	0	9 (1)	6	0	0
15	MF	Kendall Johnson	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
16	DF	Emily Sonnett	14	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	14	0	2	0
17	MF	Tobin Heath	12 (1)	1	2	1	0	0	0	0	12 (1)	1	2	1
18	GK	Michelle Betos	13	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	13	0	1	0
21	FW	Hayley Raso	6 (13)	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	6 (13)	0	3	0
22	DF	Jennifer Skogerboe	2 (1)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2 (1)	0	0	0
24	GK	Adrianna Franch	6	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	6	0	0	0
25	DF	Meghan Klingenberg	13	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	13	0	1	0
26	FW	Mallory Weber	7 (6)	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	7 (6)	0	1	0
27	MF	Maureen Fitzgerald	2 (1)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2 (1)	0	0	0
28	MF	Amandine Henry	7 (1)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	7 (1)	0	0	0
29	FW	Shade Pratt	1 (4)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1 (4)	0	0	0
30	MF	Celeste Boureille	5 (1)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5 (1)	0	0	0
32	DF	Samantha Lofton	0 (3)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0 (3)	0	0	0
44	MF	Meg Morris	3 (4)	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	3 (4)	1	2	0
Players who were transferred/waived from the club during active season or on loan
20	DF	McKenzie Berryhill	2 (3)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2 (3)	0	0	0

No.	Player	NWSL				NWSL Playoffs				Total
		MIN	GA	GAA	SV	MIN	GA	GAA	SV	MIN	GA	GAA	SV
18	Michelle Betos	1170	15	1.15	48	0	0	0.00	0	1170	15	1.15	48
24	Adrianna Franch	540	3	0.50	19	0	0	0.00	0	540	3	0.50	19
	TOTALS	1620	16	0.89	65	0	0	0.00	0	1710	18	0.95	67

As of September 11, 2016.

Visual	Most recent starters	Players who have started
Formation: 4-2-3-1 Betos Reynolds Sonnett Menges Klingenberg Long Henry Nadim Horan Heath Sinclair(c)	No. Pos. Nat. Name MS Notes 18 GK Michelle Betos 13 11 RB Katherine Reynolds 17 16 CB Emily Sonnett 14 4 CB Emily Menges 19 25 LB Meghan Klingenberg 13 10 DM Allie Long 14 28 DM Amandine Henry 7 9 RW Nadia Nadim 19 7 CM Lindsey Horan 14 17 LW Tobin Heath 12 12 CF Christine Sinclair (c) 9	No. Pos. Nat. Name MS Notes 24 GK Adrianna Franch 6 5 LB Kat Williamson 3 44 RB Meg Morris 3 22 RB Jennifer Skogerboe 2 LB McKenzie Berryhill 2 6 DM Meleana Shim 9 11 AM Dagný Brynjarsdóttir 12 30 CM Celeste Boureille 5 29 AM Shade Pratt 1 26 AM Mallory Weber 7 27 CM Maureen Fitzgerald 2 21 RW Hayley Raso 6

The list is sorted by shirt number when total goals are equal.

Rnk	Pos	No.	Player	NWSL	NWSL Playoffs	Total
1	F	9	Nadia Nadim	9	0	9
2	F	12	Christine Sinclair	6	0	6
3	MF	11	Dagný Brynjarsdóttir	5	0	5
4	MF	7	Lindsey Horan	4	0	4
	MF	10	Allie Long	4	0	4
6	DF	5	Kat Williamson	1	0	1
	MF	17	Tobin Heath	1	0	1
	DF	44	Meg Morris	1	0	1
Own goals				1	0	1
Total				32	0	32

The list is sorted by shirt number when total assists are equal.

Rnk	Pos	No.	Player	NWSL	NWSL Playoffs	Total
1	MF	17	Tobin Heath	9	0	9
2	FW	9	Nadia Nadim	2	0	2
	MF	10	Allie Long	2	0	2
	FW	12	Christine Sinclair	2	0	2
5	MF	6	Meleana Shim	1	0	1
	MF	11	Dagný Brynjarsdóttir	1	0	1
	FW	21	Hayley Raso	1	0	1
	MF	28	Amandine Henry	1	0	1
	MF	44	Meg Morris	1	0	1
TOTALS				20	0	20

The list is sorted by shirt number when total appearances are equal.

Rnk	No.	Player	NWSL	NWSL Playoffs	Total
1	18	Michelle Betos	4	0	4
	24	Adrianna Franch	3	0	3
TOTALS			7	0	7