Canadian women do us proud
BY JAMES ROSS - FAN FUEL BLOGGER
First off, sincere congratulations to the Canadian Women's Olympic Soccer team for qualifying for London in 2012.
It's nice that one of our national teams gives us so much to cheer for and to be proud of.
Canada started the tournament under the direction of new head coach, Englishman John Herdman, who had led our women to a gold medal at the Pan American games in 2011. That triumph had helped erase the pain of an early exit that Canada's women had suffered at the previous World Cup.
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In the first match, Canada overpowered Haiti 6-0, with our marquee player Christine Sinclair leading the way with four goals and an assist. Canada followed that with a 2-0 win over Cuba, with Herdman making eight roster changes for the match to accommodate playing three matches over a five day period. Sinclair scored and set up another before being subbed at half time to lead Canada to their second straight victory.
Canada ended its group phase with a convincing 5-1 win over Costa Rica. Sinclair again lead the way with another brace as well as an assist, alongside goals from Sophie Schmidt and Kaylyn Kyle (and a Costa Rican own goal) to power Canada into a key semifinal matchup with a strong Mexican team.
Canada seemed charged by the electric atmosphere in Vancouver, and it paid off with another excellent performance, with Canada ending up 3-1 winners and clinching a berth in the 2012 Olympics in London. First half goals from Sinclair and Melissa Tancredi put Canada in the driver's seat, but a 67th minute strike by Mexico put Canada to the test, but another fine finish by Sinclair clinched it for Canada.
The tournament finale was a bit sobering for our women, as powerhouse (and number one ranked) USA defeated us 4-0. But I hardly think one should dwell upon that. We'd done the key thing by qualifying, and may have the chance to give the USA, Sweden, China and Brazil (who would be amongst the pre-tournament favourites) a tough time this summer.
The camaraderie on the team really does seem to be outstanding, and when you've got the brilliant Christine Sinclair leading you, anything is possible. So, a hearty round of congratulations to out women's Olympic soccer team, and may they leave London this summer with a medal.
And one final note...
R.I.P. Norma Marie Ross November 29, 1930-January 17th 2012.
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