Referee Kevin Stott was bad, but the Portland Timbers were worse, and Orlando City demolished them 2-0 on a beautiful Sunday afternoon at Providence Park.

The Timbers' performance ranged from anemic frustration to mindless blundering. Orlando was slick and clean, dominating possession with confident interplay and looking like a team celebrating their fifth anniversary, not one just beginning their maiden MLS season.

The Timbers got crushed. Plain and simple. Outworked, outplayed, and out-coached by the league's new darling Kaká, old favorite Donovan Ricketts, and a supporting cast chock full of young talent. Orlando was, by far, the best team Portland has seen in 2015 thus far. They'll go as far as they want to this year. As for Portland? The picture is much less clear.

The 2-0 defeat was the Timbers' first multi-goal home loss since last summer against Seattle, and only the second in the Caleb Porter era. This kind of defeat, at Providence Park, is rare. The Timbers have been disappointing and disappointed plenty in the last year and change, but they've almost never been played off their own field. They were just one rung above that against Orlando.

Portland was out of ideas offensively as Orlando took the game by the scruff of its neck in the first half and were well worth their opening goal off the turning chest of number one draft pick Kyle Larin. For a team that has only been together a handful of months, the Lions were mighty impressive. Orlando has committed themselves to playing an attractive brand of soccer, and they're delivering. Funny thing is, in 2013, the Timbers were the same way.

Portland laid an egg. They didn't execute their game plan. It started when Porter whiffed on starting George Fochive over Jack Jewsbury. Although Fochive's play didn't dictate that he be dropped, this was a Jewsbury game. The Timbers needed his experience and tactical nous, as well as his calm and presence on the ball. Fochive worked hard, but was pulled out of position constantly and couldn't get his foot on the ball. By the time Porter made the adjustment at halftime, the Timbers were in deep trouble.

It could have been worse. Diego Chara should have been sent off bringing down Kevin Molino, who was through on goal at the end of the first half. The game was physical, and referee Stott poured gasoline on the situation by failing utterly and completely to perform his job competently. Things settled down in the second half, and the Timbers had the opportunity to get themselves back into the game with better team shape, the introduction of an increasingly dangerous Dairon Asprilla for Rodney Wallace, and Orlando ceding possession and trying to see out their lead.

But Portland just didn't have the players to break Orlando down. Darlington Nagbe put in a herculean effort, but he had no help. The fact that Nagbe, the most unselfish, deferential player in the league, was almost exclusively looking to score solo goals spoke to that fact.

Their brightest moment of the match—Nagbe setting up Asprilla for an open smash from the side of the box—was negated by a splendid save from Donovan Ricketts. The big Jamaican 'keeper saved the Timbers countless times from 2012 through the last year. This time, he all but turned out the lights. Just moments later, Kaka chipped through Carlos Rivas, who Adam Larsen Kwarasey brought down for a penalty.

There was always an element of self-destruction with the Timbers in this match. It started with loose cannon Alvas Powell picking up a stupid yellow card in the first half after not getting a call, continued with Fanendo Adi's understandably searing frustration at being manhandled by Aurelien Collin, and finally, most fatally, with Diego Chara and Gaston Fernandez wiping out Kwarasey's penalty save on Kaka by so obviously encroaching that even Stott couldn't miss it.

Kaka, of course, wouldn't do the Kenny Cooper and miss again in front of the Timbers Army, and the match was won for Orlando. It was excruciatingly, don't-know-whether-to-laugh-or-cry dumb from Chara and Fernandez. The Timbers played a weak match mentally. Orlando beat them badly, but they didn't do themselves any favors.

Porter called it a "head scratcher." On one hand, that was true. With the Army bouncing, in a lather early over the return of Ricketts—who got a terrific ovation and a loving "dodgy keeper"—Portland came out flat and stayed flat until the 55th minute. On the other hand, Orlando had more talent in the game than the Timbers. Kaka was terrific, and his team followed his lead. Collin is an all star-caliber player. So is Brek Shea, and his opposite fullback Rafael Ramos was excellent as well. Orlando has played some really good soccer this year, and they always appeared to be on the verge of a breakout game. It came against the Timbers.

It helped that Portland was poor. Powell's final ball was abysmal. Jorge Villafaña looked slow. Liam Ridgewell was consistently beaten in the air and on the ground, and Wallace has to be looking over his shoulder at Asprilla and wondering if he starts next weekend at Yankee Stadium. Maxi Urruti was pedestrian, and because of injuries, Porter continues to have very few options tactically off the bench. Right now, the Timbers just have to grit their teeth and try to gut out results until Diego Valeri comes back in May.

The truth is that there might not be a next gear for the Timbers right now. This match exposed the fact that this slow up-and-down start might just be a product of Portland being a very mediocre team until their injured players return. The win last weekend over FC Dallas certainly looks less impressive after Dallas was pasted 4-0 at home by Colorado on Friday. Portland better get well at NYCFC next weekend, because after that it's showtime in Cascadia, with Seattle away and Vancouver at home.

Yes, Stott was bad. So bad that it's unclear why he even wants to continue refereeing, aside from the fact that it's amazing that he continues to get assignments. But it's worth saying that he got the penalty right, and he got the encroachment call right. It's also worth saying that he didn't decide the game.

Ricketts turned in his best Orlando City performance, a clean sheet and a win on his first and last return to Providence Park. He actually looked a hell of a lot better than Portland's current 'keeper. The Timbers got handily beat. At home. It was an unfamiliar and empty feeling. Now, Portland has to dig in and respond. Because regardless of injuries and refereeing, this current Timbers team can do much better. In fact, they have to.