Gotham defender Tierna Davidson was “really excited” to hear Sunday’s semifinal match against the Kansas City Current was officially sold out.
She had no doubt Gotham fans would show up in droves to support the team, regardless of where they played. But even amid the anticipation for Sunday — Gotham’s biggest game of the season — there was some degree of disappointment.
Earlier this week, the match was moved to Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island because of subpar field conditions at Gotham’s usual home, Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, N.J.
Sunday’s venue seats just 5,000 spectators — less than half of Gotham’s average attendance this season.
“Obviously, it’s not the ideal scenario,” goalie Ann-Katrin Berger told The Post this week. “We would have loved to have more supporters around to help us, especially because we put ourselves in that position.”
Gotham, looking to win their third title in four years, earned home-field advantage through the semifinals — the final will be played in Washington — after finishing at the top of the standings.
Players imagined what that electric playoff atmosphere would look and feel like. Their supporters cheering from the stands and the pounding of Cloud 9’s drums echoing through Sports Illustrated Stadium.
Yet one of the few things they couldn’t control — the condition of the playing surface at their home venue, where MLS’s Red Bulls are the primary tenant — took that opportunity away.
“We worked very hard for a home playoff berth, and that’s something that comes with home-field advantage and a lot of different positives,” Davidson said, “and we were hoping that that would be the case for us at Sports Illustrated, but unfortunately, it’s not.”
Concerns about uneven patches and the overall safety of the playing surface at the stadium had grown louder over the past two weeks. The field was so deteriorated after hosting a USA Rugby doubleheader just days before Gotham’s regular-season finale that the NWSL club was fined $10,000, according to ESPN.
After Gotham’s quarterfinal win over the Seattle Reign, members of both organizations expressed frustration with the sandy and uneven field.
“We want to put our best foot forward,” Davidson said. “We want to have a good game, and we don’t want the field to be a contributing factor to the inability to play how we want to play. So it’s something that we’re disappointed by, but we’re happy that the club was able to mobilize and make a move so that we can have a venue that allows the quality of soccer to be what it should be.”
Though fan support can sometimes swing momentum in tough situations, Berger thinks the better field conditions are just as important.
“Especially because obviously Kansas has their strength in attack with their speed in front,” she said, “it will be more beneficial for us, for our playing style, to play on a good pitch.”
The move to Icahn Stadium may disrupt Gotham’s game-day routine because it means a longer commute. But Davidson doesn’t think it’ll have a big impact.
“Trying to keep it as consistent as possible,” she said, “to make sure that we’re not changing too much because you don’t want to do that in playoff games.”
