The Portland Timbers finally lost on Sunday. Well, not finally. Before they were defeated by the Philadelphia Union 3-0 yesterday, they had already lost three times before. But before that loss, they had done something remarkable: They earned points when they had absolutely no right to do so.
With limited players available before the June break, the Timbers accumulated six points in two matches, beating both the San Jose Earthquakes and LA Galaxy by multiple goals. It was a remarkable turnaround for a team that was missing anywhere between seven and eight key players for these past three matches.