Portland Thorns’ Smith on how the wildfires have impacted the club’s training
Portland Thorns’ Sophia Smith has said the club’s training for the National Women’s Soccer League Fall Series has been ‘crazy’ due to the impact of wildfires.
Thorns’ match against OL Reign has been postponed twice due to poor visibility caused by the wildfires ravaging the US at the moment.
"With the fires happening, it's been even more crazy," she told CBS Sports. "Some of our trainings have gotten moved indoors and then it's hard to think how we might be training inside leading up to a game outside. You know, how does that transition affect players, affect our health?
"All of that comes into question. But I think at the end of the day, my team and I have just put our game faces on everyday and make the most of whatever training it is that we have -- and ultimately prepare as if we're going to have a game on the scheduled day that we're supposed to play regardless of all the things outside that we can't really control."
Smith was injured for the NWSL Challenge Cup but has said she has learnt a lot since joining the club in January.
"I was out for an injury for awhile and missed the games in the bubble, but I was still there with my team learning and observing just from a different perspective than actually physically playing in the game. So I've learned a lot this year," she added.
"It obviously wasn't what I was planning on having left college to play professionally. But this year has been crazy for everyone and I'm just glad that we found a way to get something in."
Thorns v Reign is scheduled to take place on September 30 with a kick off time of 7pm and is available to watch on Twitch.
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