Falk, Henderson Ready to Contribute to Expansion Philadelphia Independence
Todd, Brown | isiphotos.net
by Dan Lauletta – Special to womensprosoccer.com
As the rock of the Los Angeles Sol’s near impenetrable defense, Allison Falk started every match for which she was healthy. As the backup goalkeeper, Val Henderson saw game action only once when starter Karina LeBlanc had National Team duty. That gave the duo very different outlooks about the trade that sent them from the West Coast to Philadelphia, where they will help anchor the defensive efforts of the expansion Independence.
“It was a little bit of a surprise,” said Falk who added that she was given a heads-up a few days before the trade that something was in the works.
“I think this will ultimately be the best thing for me,” said Henderson, who posted a clean sheet in her only WPS appearance. “I was really excited to know that I was going somewhere—for a new team especially—where I could really establish myself.”
That doesn’t mean Falk is not excited to go to Philadelphia or that Henderson was clamoring for her ticket out of Southern California.
Falk, 22, is well-connected in the Philadelphia area and has already helped boost season ticket sales by two.
“My aunt and uncle are just so thrilled and so excited that I’m on the East Coast and that they can come watch all my games and be a bigger part of that than they were last season,” she said. Falk also has family in Connecticut and her grandmother lives in Boston.
Henderson, 23, is elated at the prospect of being a starter, but would not necessarily have minded remaining LeBlanc’s understudy.
“There are still a lot of positives to being a backup for (the Sol),” she said just before walking into Drake Stadium where she watched her alma mater UCLA route Boise State in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. “It’s great to actually get game experience myself which I’m hoping to do in Philadelphia. It’s also a little bit bittersweet because I did really enjoy my last year in L.A.”
Of the two, Falk, who was at Stanford’s tournament matches on the weekend, not only saw more playing time, but wound up with her fingerprints on the two most significant matches played last season. In the Inaugural Match she scored the first goal in WPS history; in the WPS Championship presented by MedImmune, she was given a straight red card for denying an obvious goal scoring opportunity. Both included a touch of controversy, one part fun, one part not.
“I think so,” Falk said when asked if she actually put a head on the Aya Miyama free kick that caromed into the goal following a collision with Freedom goalkeeper Briana Scurry. “I just kind of went up and tried to head it. If I did touch it, it went off like the side of me. I definitely didn’t head it off the front of my forehead.”
Asked if she was surprised the ball went in the goal, Falk answered, “Yeah, I was surprised.” It was her only goal of the season. After the match, Scurry suggested that Falk never touched the ball.
In the Championship, 21 weeks later, Falk was caught up field on a Sky Blue FC counter and got her legs tangled up with Natasha Kai’s in an effort to run her down. Kai went down and referee Kari Seitz pulled out the red card. Many observers felt that Stephanie Cox was a trailing defender on the play, negating the idea that Falk was the last defender back. For her part, Falk—who has watched replays of the play—never thought there was a foul, let alone a bookable offense.
“I don’t remember really touching Natasha Kai,” she said. “I think it was one of those things that just kind of happened. The referee saw what she thought she saw and made the call that she thought was correct in the moment. It was disappointing, but sometimes that’s just the way soccer goes. The team did so well to play their hearts out to try to get that goal back.”
In order to acquire Falk and Henderson, the Independence parted ways with their two first round picks in the 2010 draft, a potential risk in a draft loaded with talent. Originally slated to draft 2nd and 11th they swapped the 2nd pick for the 5th in a deal to acquire former No. 1 draft pick Amy Rodriguez from the Boston Breakers and packaged the 5th and 11th to the Sol for Falk and Henderson.
“To bring that kind of experience now, I think that was just something that we couldn’t turn away from,” Independence head coach Paul Riley said. “I just thought it was a great deal.”
Falk and Henderson are friends as well as teammates and Falk believes her friend will be an excellent starting goalkeeper in WPS.
“Val is such a hard worker. She and Karina were always competitive in practice and pushing each other. I think she’ll do so well. She has great, great communication skills.”
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