After two entertaining home draws to begin the season, the Portland Timbers go on the road for the first time in 2015 for a Saturday afternoon tilt with Sporting Kansas City (5:30 PM, TV on ROOT Sports, Radio on 750 AM the Game.)

With Kansas City's move to the Western Conference effective this year, this matchup grows in magnitude. Both teams are looking for their first victory of the year, with the Timbers and Caleb Porter still confident but especially ready to expel their March woes.

It should be a competitive contest with plenty of pomp and circumstance in the raucous Sporting Park.

The History

Sporting Kansas City and the Timbers have played some very entertaining games throughout their MLS history, with upsets and road wins punctuating the team's meetings.

Portland's last trip to Sporting Park in April 2013 resulted in a see-saw 3-2 win for the Timbers that was a landmark win in establishing Caleb Porter and Portland's credentials as a true contender for the first time two years ago. That was also an eventful trip in that it marked a return to the long-time home of Jack Jewsbury and Michael Harrington, and in the aftermath, a Timbers player was accused of sexual assault in a Kansas City hotel.

SKC got pay-back last July when they won in Portland without Matt Besler and Graham Zusi in a game in which they only named five players to their bench. Also notable in this series was Darlington Nagbe's goal of the year in 2011.

These games have typically popped because of the terrific atmospheres at both stadiums and two evenly matched teams on the field. These two teams will develop more history and animosity now that they're in the same conference and will be seeing each other at least three times a year.

The Tactics

The Timbers have a couple areas of concern after their first few games, but because of injuries, zero flexibility off the bench.

Dairon Asprilla has struggled, but there's no replacement for him with Gaston Fernandez's early performances ranging from meandering to worthless. Porter and the Timbers remain satisfied and confident even though the narrative turned slightly against them after the LA game, and we should see the same starting eleven as we saw against the Galaxy.

Sporting are still fine-tuning their team after a semi-rebuild this offseason. Portland mostly battled LA's suave possession style with counter-attacks and direct play, but Sporting will want to play somewhat direct themselves with pace and less panache or patience than the Galaxy.

Fanendo Adi is finally getting a matchup against a smaller center-back in the suddenly-shaky Matt Besler, and the Timbers will fancy their chances against a KC defense that had a rough time in Dallas last weekend.

The Lineup

12 - Kwarasey
19 - Villafaña
7 - Borchers
24 - Ridgewell (C)
2 - Powell
13 - Jewsbury
21 - Chara
22 - Wallace
6 - Nagbe
11 - Asprilla
9 - Adi

The Pick

The Timbers have been better than their two points would suggest early this season. They're isn't a pervasive desperateness or frustration around the team after the start this year that there was after the two home draws that opened last season, and I'll take Portland 2-1 in this game for their first March win of the Caleb Porter era.