For the second time this season, a legend of the game is getting her flowers.
First, it was Alex Morgan. Now, Christine Sinclair gets the royal treatment in Portland with a Thorns Hall of Fame induction and jersey retirement. From her time with the Canadian national team to the birth and rebirth of U.S. women’s soccer leagues leading to the launch of the NWSL in 2013, Sinclair has seen it all.
As one of the OG NWSL players, who helped define what the league would look like, Sinclair crystalized her legacy over 12 seasons – all with Portland. In all competitions, she scored 79 goals and had 19 assists.
It’s hard to pick from a monumental career like that, but in honor of the Sinc celebration this weekend, we’re looking back at 12 of Portland’s forever No. 12’s best goals in the league.
Her stoppage time goal in the 2013 NWSL Championship not only secured Portland’s first title, but it also marked the beginning of a new era of women’s soccer. The Thorns became the very first NWSL Champions, something they’d repeat two more times – in 2017 and again in 2022 – before Sinclair retired.
But you always remember your first. With 90 minutes down, the Thorns led the Western New York Flash 1-0. Two minutes into stoppage time, Morgan teed up a pass through the Flash defense and Sinclair drove it home to the lower left corner.
After scoring two goals in the first half against the Boston Breakers on July 20, 2014, it was again Morgan who set Sinclair up to finish the job. The third goal of Sinclair’s hat trick came just moments into the second half after Morgan danced around in front of Alyssa Naeher but couldn’t get a shot off. Morgan passes to Sinclair, and with a single touch, she puts Portland up 4-3.
The best kind of chips are as follows: ice, potato, and Sinc. See proof of No. 3 – from 2015 – below.
After falling to the Flash 2-0 in October 2016, Sinclair took it upon herself to try and mount a comeback. Though the Thorns ultimately lost 4-3, she opened up scoring for Portland with a long, high ball. With a single touch she volleyed it home.
As much as Sinclair got by with help from her teammates, sometimes she got creative and assisted herself – like this 2017 game against the Spirit. She put pressure on the defender, and with her momentum, the ball popped up towards the goal. With a tap of her left foot, Sinclair gets the goal.
What a time to be alive, hearing the words Tobin Heath to Christine Sinclair is like music to the ears. This equalizing goal when Portland played Chicago in 2018 is simply electric.
Sinclair makes it look easy with another single touch goal against the Pride in 2019.
Always in the right place at the right time, this Fall Series goal against the Reign in 2020 rips off Sinclair's right foot and whizzes into the back of the net.
In the eighth minute of the 2021 Challenge Cup Final, Sinclair made herself known. With pressure on Gotham, she forced a turnover and took it home herself with a clean shot from just outside the box.
In a 2022 match against Angel City, the Thorns took an early 1-0 lead, but when Hina Sugita forced a turnover just minutes later, Sinclair didn't miss her chance to double the lead.
There is nothing like a rivalry, and there is nothing like the Cascadia Rivalry. As the minutes wound down in this June 2023 match, the Thorns were up 1-0, but in these intense games, you can’t be too safe. Morgan Weaver took the ball down to the line and crossed it into Seattle’s box, where Sinclair drove it home with a single touch.
In 2024, the Orlando Pride were cruising through the regular season on their way to the championship. The team was in the middle of a 24-match undefeated streak and seemed impenetrable.
Leave it to Sinclair to be part of history in what would be her second to last home game in Providence Park. Less than 10 minutes into the second half, Sinclair doubled Portland’s lead with a shot from just outside the 18.
If the past is any indication, fans can expect the home crowd to be out in full force to celebrate No. 12. You can watch the Thorns host Bay FC on Saturday, October 4 at 10 p.m. ET on ION.
