It was another wild offseason for the NWSL, with the league saying goodbye to the Breakers (RIP) and hello to our new friends in Utah, the Royals.

The North Carolina Courage will also feature some new faces this year.

The biggest headline broke Jan. 16, when the Courage acquired the rights to U.S. Women’s National Team forward Crystal Dunn and a international roster spot.

That’s huge! But wait, what did they have to give up?

Spoiler alert — a lot.

The Courage traded national team defender Taylor Smith and NWSL Rookie of the Year Ashley Hatch to the Washington Spirit. The Courage lost one of the best defenders in the league and a young promising forward, but gained one of the best strikers in the world to be paired with a talented Lynn Williams. The international spot was key in order to keep our core group of players from last year.

The Courage also drafted a outstanding class that shows lots of promise: forward Frannie Crouse, midfielder Becca Rasmussen, defender and Cary native Morgan Reid, defender Carlin Hudson, and defender Ryan Williams. It will be interesting to see who the clubs keeps and who will be let go.

With the Boston Breakers folding this year, the NWSL held a dispersal draft for the remaining players on the roster. The Courage drafted defenders Julie King and Allysha Chapman with the ninth and 10th picks, respectively. Both are outstanding players and should make the final roster.

After the massive trade weeks before, you can tell the Courage were strategic in who they drafted in the dispersal and college drafts, grabbing five defensive players to try to fill the hole of Taylor Smith. The Courage also brought back key players in midfielders McCall Zerboni and Denise O’Sullivan, and defender Meredith Speck.

The NC Courage also recently released its preseason schedule. Keep an eye out for the match against the Spirit in Richmond March 17, as that game just got a whole lot more interesting.

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