Summary
Quinn are one of those midfielders who do not get the same media attention of other big soccer stars, yet play an important role in keeping their team connected on the pitch. While they do not make spectacular goals or assists, they keep the ball moving, show for their teammates, help dictate the tempo and overall act as the glue that keeps the team connected. They provide stability to the team and enable the star players to shine. At least, that’s what the eye-test told me while watching the Reign play. I wanted to verify my eye-test intuition, so I used StatsBomb data and Python to produce a brief, qualitative study of Quinn’s passing patterns from the NWSL 2022 season.
Quinn’s passing patterns
Quinn are a midfielder playing for the NWSL club OL Reign and for the Canadian Women’s National Team. They typically occupy the middle third, box-to-box zone. They rarely make or receive passes in their own or the opponent’s penalty area. Within the middle third, however, they are mobile, making passes from a variety of locations spanning the width of the pitch. Many of the passes are short and medium length, directed diagonally, side-to-side. Longer passes are rare, as are straight, vertical passes. This makes Quinn a connector between teammates and a ball circulator in the midddle third, facilitating the team’s progression up the pitch while maintaining possession.
Quinn’s passing network
Quinn receives most of their passes from the 4-player defensive line consisting of Huerta, Cook, Hiatt,and Barnes. In turn Quinn passes to these same players while the team builds up, facilitating switching the field and offering teammates an option to triangulate. Figure 2 shows Quinn’s passing network, restricted to their most frequent passing partners, for the 2022 NWSL season. Quinn are connected to all 4 defenders, but more so with the outside backs Barnes and Huerta, probably because of OL Reign’s “outside-inside-outside” build-up. As the team progresses up the pitch, Quinn passes to attacking midfielders Fishlock and Labelle, who typically complete the midfield triad with Quinn in OL Reign’s 4-3-3. Attackers - like Angelina and Rapinoe, receive the ball from Quinn less frequently, an indication that Quinn moves the ball to more creative, attacking midfielders who can create chances rather than create chances directly. It’s very interesting how the players in Quinn’ s passing network are also well-connected with each other, as demonstrated by the large number of triangles in the network.. This shows that, while Quinn plays an important role in connecting their teammates to each other, the team is not relying solely on Quinn to move the ball upfield. This, together with their mobility in the middle of the pitch, makes Quinn a supportive connector for their teammates.
Post-script from 2025
In January 2025 Quinn’s contract with the Reign expired and the club released them. I have a soft spot for central midfielders who supprt their team in ways that are not always flashy and do not make the headlines, but are fundamental to the team’s game-after-game success. They are the glue that keeps the team connected on the pitch! Although I was only an occasional follower of the Reign back in 2022/23, I’ve always admired Quinn as one of those players. I wish Quinn all the best in their next adventure in the NWSL and with Canada.