Sam Coffey was drafted in 2021 by the Portland Thorns. She was the 12th pick overall from Penn State University and an attacking midfielder. In a class where Emily Fox and Trinity Rodman were selected with the first two picks, Coffey has become the absolute steal of the 2021 draft.
At the time, former head coach Mark Parsons praised Coffey’s ability to pass and score and her skill in the final third. At the draft, he described her as a “difference-maker, can pass and shoot.”
If you look at the modern game, can dribble, who can twist and turn,” he said. “We’ve lacked some of that, you know, the last couple of years.”
He also believed Coffey was pro-ready—despite the fact that she chose to take advantage of an extra COVID-19 season Penn State before joining the Thorns in 2022. “That dynamic ability was key bringing in Sam, who’s going to have an immediate impact,” Parsons said. “This is someone who can be a difference maker in the final third.”
After Angela Salem’s retirement after the Thorns’ 2021 campaign and Lindsey Horan’s loan to OL, Portland was looking at a possible rebuild in midfield heading into the 2022 season.
Thorns general manager Karina LeBlanc and then-head coach Rhian Wilkinson put on a roster-building masterclass. Enter rookie Sam Coffey and NWSL newcomer Hina Sugita. Wilkinson was brilliant to see that Coffey had a chance to be a world-class No. 6 for her squad.
Brilliant Rookie Season
In Coffey’s first season, she was named to the NWSL Best XI first team, earned four caps for the USWNT, was nominated for rookie of the year, and was crucial all season in Portland’s NWSL championship run.
The Rose City Review recently spent some time talking to Coffey about her 2022:
On keys to her immediate success at her new position and how much support she received throughout last season.
Coffey: “There were a lot of keys. One of [the] biggest ones for me is the belief of the people around me and the support of the people around me. When you’re a [No.] 6 on a team like this, they make my job a lot easier. They were so encouraging and helpful—and still are—in my development and learning of this role.
“I can’t even put into words what that feels like, and how comforting [it is] to know that I’m looking from my left to my right and seeing the class all around me. I think just having a real growth mindset with it; I’m not going to get it perfect, I’m still learning.
“I am still learning. It’s not going to be this constant uphill progression. Rhian used to always encourage me to get a PhD in this position, and I love that language, like a student. I’m just trying to learn about it every day, get better at it every day. I’m not going to have it all, all the time.
“There are going to be areas I need to improve, there are going to be bumps, just like this month has presented. Definitely a bump in the road, but I am so confident that it’ll serve and help me, make me a better player, better person, better competitor, and I’m just really excited to experience that.”
The Bump in the Road
USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski’s roster for the 2023 SheBelieves Cup somehow managed to omit Sam Coffey from that list. Andonovski has said that he believes Coffey should be considered an NWSL MVP candidate. She was arguably the best defensive midfielder in the NWSL in 2022 and should have been a lock for the Women’s World Cup in Australia/New Zealand.
On the omission from the 2023 SheBelieves Cup and doing everything she can to make the WWC roster.
Coffey: “Obviously, I am disappointed not to be in camp, but I think this presents a really good opportunity for me to fine-tune areas of my game. Even seeing me out here with Vytas [Assistant Coach and former Portland Timber Defender], working on different areas of my game that need some refinement, like aerial challenges, 50/50 balls, being more aggressive. So, I think, I’m really viewing this time as an opportunity to address those things, but like you said it’s my dream to go.
“I want to serve and be on that team. I want to be there, and I believe I’m good enough to be there. I don’t think I need to do anything differently. I’m going to continue and try grow and be my best self. But I think taking this time reflecting and fine-tuning different areas of my game [to the] best of my ability is a good place to start. I just want to continue to be who I am, be authentic to me, just continue to grow during this process.”
If there’s extra motivation for her.
Coffey: “Yeah, I’d say I already have intense fire burning without a setback like that. Of course, it’s all motivation, all fuel for me. Again, I think it does give me an opportunity to even mentally, physically, spiritually reflect and address things that I need time to address and to watch those games. Obviously, cheer the team on, but watch it tactically, watch it from a perspective of how I can improve and how I can just stay locked in and focus on what the group’s doing.
“I would say of course it does light a fire, but I want this more than anything. I’m going to do whatever it takes to get there.”
2023: The Year of Sam Coffey on the USWNT
Whether everyone likes it or not, Coffey should make the World Cup team in 2023. It would be colossal failure to have her wait until 2027.
Coffey is the best distributor in the USWNT pool, and it’s not close. She is an elite quarterback at the position and is able to keep control of the ball with her dribbling, quick thinking, turns, and world-class ability to read her opponent’s defense.
Andi Sullivan is the only other true No. 6 on the USWNT roster and is a very fine option. Still, Sullivan and Coffey are two completely different players, and it’s great to have as options depending on the matchup. Having these two players rotate at the World Cup would be the best case scenario for the USWNT.
As Andonovski continues to experiment with Taylor Kornieck at the No. 6 just months before the WWC, it’s obviously there’s not enough time for her to master a new position. It’s also very apparent that the role is not where she is most effective on the pitch.
“I don’t see her in that light for us,” San Diego Wave head coach Casey Stoney said when asked about Kornieck’s role with the national team. “I think we’d be taking away her strengths if she played as an isolated six.”
That brings us back to Coffey, who is one of the most naturally gifted No. 6s. In most cycles, she would be a lock for the USWNT—and probable starter.
Still, she’ll look to start the NWSL season off blazing hot and force Andonovski’s hand in her favor.
With a year of league play under her belt, Coffey will be trying to pad the stat sheet this season—adding to her two assists and one goal in 2022. She has already taken most of the set pieces for the club, and has continually improved.
“I think she’ll keep growing,” Thorns head coach Mike Norris said. “She’s young. She’s got the hunger and desire.”
Coffey rarely makes any mistakes, has a field vision that is utterly remarkable, and picks out difficult passes with ease. Expect her to be even sharper, more dangerous, and more influential for the Thorns in 2023—from defense and distribution to playmaking as a passer and scorer.
It’ll be a tough game for anyone trying to defend against Coffey in the NWSL this season—and hopefully we’ll be able to say the same about players going up against her on the international stage.
