Gotham FC places rookie Jordynn Dudley on SEI list, ending her first year

On Monday, NJ/NY Gotham FC placed rookie Jordynn Dudley on the Season-Ending Injury (SEI) list after suffering a foot fracture in training earlier in the month. Dudley suffered the injury in the lead-up to the club's last match before the current international break.

"We’re disappointed for Jordynn after the outstanding rookie season she has had,” said Yael Averbuch West, the president of soccer operations for Gotham FC. “She made an impact all over the field and played an important role in our push for the NWSL Shield and strong finish to the 2026 campaign. We’ll support Jordynn throughout her recovery and do everything we can to help her return healthy for next season.”

The forward had been a contender for the Rookie of the Year with five goals and three assists in 26 games in all competitions in 2026. Dudley had recently scored her first brace as a professional player in the team's gritty 2-1 victory on the road over the North Carolina Courage. She also became a regular with the USWNT U-23 side, receiving multiple call-ups throughout the year.

A brutal international break for Gotham FC

It has been a particularly brutal time for Gotham FC on the injury front in recent weeks. In addition to Dudley's recent injury, Jaedyn Shaw was withdrawn from the U-23 camp with an injury, and Bruninha suffered a torn ACL in a recent game with Brazil.

Luckily, Shaw's injury seems to be pretty minor, and she may not miss any time. Bruninha's injury, especially when combined with Dudley's injury, really complicates Gotham's situation on the right side of the pitch.

The expectation moving forward with an injury to Dudley would be that Midge Purce would move up to the forward line with Mandy Freeman and Bruninha in a platoon role at right-back, as seen against Angel City FC.

However, the Bruninha injury complicates this as it makes Gotham's right-back depth much thinner. This probably means Purce will end up sticking at right-back to preserve some level of depth at the position, with new signing Olivia Wingate seemingly now in line to become the new starting right-winger.

While Wingate has the ability and the club clearly believes in her upside, given that they decided to acquire her at the roster freeze deadline, she did not play at all in 2025 and has only played five minutes so far this season. Hence, whether she will play well is unknown.

When it comes to right-back depth behind Purce and Freeman, players like Taryn Torres, Andrea Kitahata, and Talia Sommer have played full-back at times this season, with Torres having the most experience, as she made cameos there in 2024 and 2025. There is also another new signing, Leila Ouahabi, who, despite being left-footed and a natural left-back, does have the ability to play on the right in a pinch if need be.

In terms of a left -field choice, maybe this is how Savannah McCaskill finds her way back into the starting lineup after losing her starting midfield spot to Denise O'Sullivan. McCaskill is a versatile player whose combative style and strong enough attacking sense may see her as a decent enough full-back if push comes to shove.

No matter what, how Gotham FC decides to fill this role could be crucial to them securing their first-ever NWSL Shield and their third NWSL Championship win in four years.

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