Australia ended Canada’s FIFA Women’s World Cup campaign with a lopsided 4-0 win Monday, putting the Olympic champion Canadians to the sword.
It was not pretty, unless you were Australian. The 10th-ranked Matildas needed to win to be sure of moving on to the tournament’s knockout round and they wasted little time getting the job done.
It was one-way traffic from the get-go. And rubbing salt in the wound, Steph Catley scored on a stoppage-time penalty after video review confirmed a foul against Canada’s Jessie Fleming on the edge of the box.
A draw or win would have moved the seventh-ranked Canadians into the round of 16. But they soon found themselves with a mountain to climb before a partisan crowd announced at 27,706.
And now they go home after three games, finishing third in a tough Group B with a 1-1-1.
It’s Canada’s worst finish at the Women’s World Cup since it went winless in 2011 and finished last. It’s likely also the Canadian women’s worst game in recent years.
Christine Sinclair says World Cup exit a ‘wake-up’ call for Canada Soccer
Following Canada’s 4-0 loss to Australia and exit from the FIFA Women’s World Cup, Christine Sinclair told CBC News’ Lyndsay Duncombe that she thinks the defeat is a “wake-up call” to Canada Soccer.
And it’s another body blow for Canada Soccer in a year blighted by a bitter labour dispute.
“Football can be cruel sometimes,” Canada coach Bev Priestman told reporters. “I think the team lacked belief.
“When we went into Tokyo I’m not sure anybody thought we would win an Olympic gold medal. I did. The team did. But I’m not sure anybody (else) did. You’re coming into a very difficult group (B at the World Cup). There’s pressure. And you’ve got that target on your back. That’s new territory. And I think that’s the difference … it’s belief and pressure for me.”
Hayley Raso scored twice for the tournament co-hosts as Canada’s vaunted defence was carved open in the first half. It could have been 3-0 at the break but a third Australian goal was ruled offside.
Canadians failed to put a shot on target in a first half in which they looked rattled.
It soon got worse as Mary Fowler made it 3-0 in the 58th minute.
Christine Sinclair, centre, watches the final moments of Canada’s loss to Australia after being subbed out in the second half. (Scott Barbour/Canadian Press)
Talismanic Canadian captain Christine Sinclair, who came off the bench in last Wednesday’s 2-1 win over Ireland, returned to the starting lineup but only lasted a half. One wonders if it is the last game for the 40-year-old icon, the world’s all-time leading scorer.
“I think the reality is with Sinc, you only talk one game at a time. Could this be Christine Sinclair’s last game? That breaks my heart,” Priestman said, fighting back tears.
The Canadians knew a loss might not end their campaign, providing No. 40 Nigeria was beaten by No. 22 Ireland and the tiebreakers were in their favour.
Nigeria and Ireland played to a 0-0 draw, snuffing out that scenario.
Australia (2-1-0) wins the group with Nigeria (1-0-2) also advancing. Ireland (0-2-1) finishes fourth.
Australia’s Hayley Raso is hugged by teammate Katrina Gorry after scoring her team’s first goal against Canada. (Getty Images)
Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, better known as AAMI Park, was decked in Australian colours — with its green-coloured seats filled with fans wearing gold. It was hard to see red, although there were pockets of Canadian support.
FFA president Gianni Infantino was also in the house.
The crowd didn’t have long to wait for something to cheer about. A rapid-fire Australian attack produced a ninth-minute Raso goal that was initially ruled offside but was given the green light after video review.
Goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold started the move with a sweeping pass that found Catlin Foord near midfield, She quickly sent the ball forward to Catley, whose ensuing cross handcuffed Vanessa Gilles and the Canadian defence. The ball found its way through several bodies to Raso, who beat goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan with a low shot.
Fullback Jayde Riviere and Kadeisha Buchanan were unable to corral the Australian surge down the flank.
Raso, who is leaving Manchester City for Real Madrid, almost made it 2-0 four minutes later but a diving Sheridan made a superb one-handed save to parry the ball away.
The Matildas appeared to make it 2-0 in the 34th minute with Fowler hammering the ball into the goal after the Canadians failed to clear their lines. Australian players were literally queuing up to take the shot while Buchanan was down injured on the play.
Video review negated the goal, however, with Ellie Carpenter ruled to be offside.
Australia scored again in the 39th minute off a Kyra Cooney-Cross corner as Canada’s defence was again found wanting. Sheridan’s attempted punch went for naught and the ball bounced off Canada’s Quinn, who goes by one name, to Raso who poked it in from point-blank range.
This time it counted. And the Canadians looked shell-shocked, not for the first time at this tournament.
Coach Bev Priestman sent on Allysha Chapman, Sophie Schmidt, Cloe Lacasse and Deanne Rose to open the second half, taking off Riviere, Julia Grosso, Sinclair and Jordyn Huitema.
Canadian players react after Australia’s second goal in a 4-0 loss on Monday. (Scott Barbour/Canadian Press)
But it was more of the same, with Australia soon adding a third goal.
A long ball found Foord racing down the left flank and Fowler, despite the presence of six Canadian defenders in the penalty box, flicked her cross off the post into the goal.
Canada’s Adriana Leon came off in the second half for a concussion check.
Rose tested Arnold in the 66th minute — Canada’s first shot on target — but the Australian ‘keeper was up to the task. In the 76, Schmidt fired a shot high.
Olivia Smith, just 19, came on in the 77th minute for her third cap. Two minutes later, Australia came close again as Fowler’s shot hit the post.
The Matildas were looking to avoid following New Zealand, which on Sunday became the first-ever Women’s World Cup host team not to survive the first round.
Australia coach Tony Gustavsson called the game a “crossroads moment.”
Much of the pre-game talk focused on the health of Australian star forward Sam Kerr, who missed the first two matches with a calf injury. Kerr, Australia’s all-time leading scorer with 63 goals in 120 appearances prior to Monday, started on the bench but wasn’t needed.
The Canadian question-marks were Sinclair and Buchanan.
Canada captain Christine Sinclair, left, battles Australia’s Katrina Gorry for the ball. (Getty Images)
Sinclair limped off the field in last Wednesday’s 2-1 win over Ireland after an impactful 45 minutes as a substitute. Buchanan, dealing with illness, exited late in the first half of the Irish game.
Both were in the Canadian starting 11 Monday with Evelyne Viens shifting to the bench to make room for Sinclair, who was making her 326th appearance. The Canadian starters went into the game with a combined cap count of 1,103.
Australia now faces the Group D runner-up while Nigeria takes on the Group D winner in the round of 16, with both games set for Aug. 7.
No. 4 England (2-0-0) currently tops Group D with No. 13 Denmark (1-1-0) second, ahead of No. 14 China (1-1-0) on a tiebreaker. The final positions in Group D will be decided Tuesday when England takes on China in Adelaide and winless Haiti faces Denmark in Perth.
Canada’s best finish at the tournament was fourth in 2003. Four years ago in France, the Canada exited in a 1-0 loss to Sweden in the round of 16.
DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Red Wings made another investment this week in a young standout, signing Moritz Seider to a seven-year contract worth nearly $60 million.
The Red Wings announced the move with the 23-year-old German defenseman on Thursday, three days after keeping 22-year-old forward Lucas Raymond with a $64.6 million, eight-year deal.
Detroit drafted Seider with the No. 6 pick overall eight years ago and he has proven to be a great pick. He has 134 career points, the most by a defenseman drafted in 2019.
He was the NHL’s only player to have at least 200 hits and block 200-plus shots last season, when he scored a career-high nine goals and had 42 points for the second straight year.
Seider won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie in 2022 after he had a career-high 50 points.
Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman is banking on Seider, whose contract will count $8.55 million annually against the cap, and Raymond to turn a rebuilding team into a winner.
Detroit has failed to make the playoffs in eight straight seasons, the longest postseason drought in franchise history.
The Red Wings, who won four Stanley Cups from 1997 to 2008, have been reeling since their run of 25 straight postseasons ended in 2016.
Detroit was 41-32-9 last season and finished with a winning record for the first time since its last playoff appearance.
Yzerman re-signed Patrick Kane last summer and signed some free agents, including Vladimir Tarasenko to a two-year contract worth $9.5 million after he helped the Florida Panthers hoist the Cup.
Veterans Tyson Beukeboom and Karen Paquin will lead Canada at the WXV 1 women’s rugby tournament starting later this month in the Vancouver area.
WXV 1 includes the top three teams from the Women’s Six Nations (England, France and Ireland) and the top three teams from the Pacific Four Series (Canada, New Zealand, and the United States).
Third-ranked Canada faces No. 4 France, No. 7 Ireland and No. 1 England in the elite division of the three-tiered WXV tournament that runs Sept. 29 to Oct. 12 in Vancouver and Langley, B.C. No. 2 New Zealand and the eighth-ranked U.S. make up the six-team WVX 1 field.
“Our preparation time was short but efficient. This will be a strong team,” Canada coach Kevin Rouet said in a statement. “All the players have worked very hard for the last couple of weeks to prepare for WXV and we are excited for these next three matches and for the chance to play on home soil here in Vancouver against the best rugby teams in the world.
“France, Ireland and England will each challenge us in different ways but it’s another opportunity to test ourselves and another step in our journey to the Rugby World Cup next year.”
Beukeboom serves as captain in the injury absence of Sophie de Goede. The 33-year-old from Uxbridge, Ont., earned her Canadian-record 68th international cap in Canada’s first-ever victory over New Zealand in May at the Pacific Four Series.
Twenty three of the 30 Canadian players selected for WXV 1 were part of that Pacific Four Series squad.
Rouet’s roster includes the uncapped Asia Hogan-Rochester, Caroline Crossley and Rori Wood.
Hogan-Rochester and Crossley were part of the Canadian team that won rugby sevens silver at the Paris Olympics, along with WXV teammates Fancy Bermudez, Olivia Apps, Alysha Corrigan and Taylor Perry. Wood is a veteran of five seasons at UBC.
The 37-year-old Paquin, who has 38 caps for Canada including the 2014 Rugby World Cup, returns to the team for the first time since the 2021 World Cup.
Canada opens the tournament Sept. 29 against France at B.C. Place Stadium in Vancouver before facing Ireland on Oct. 5 at Willoughby Stadium at Langley Events Centre, and England on Oct. 12 at B.C. Place.
The second-tier WXV 2 and third-tier WXV 3 are slated to run Sept. 27 to Oct. 12, in South Africa and Dubai, respectively.
WXV 2 features Australia, Italy, Japan, Scotland, South Africa and Wales while WXV 3 is made up of Fiji, Hong Kong, Madagascar, the Netherlands, Samoa and Spain.
The tournament has 2025 World Cup qualification implications, although Canada, New Zealand and France, like host England, had already qualified by reaching the semifinals of the last tournament.
Ireland, South Africa, the U.S., Japan, Fiji and Brazil have also booked their ticket, with the final six berths going to the highest-finishing WXV teams who have not yet qualified through regional tournaments.
Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team WXV 1 Squad
Forwards
Alexandria Ellis, Ottawa, Stade Français Paris (France); Brittany Kassil, Guelph, Ont., Guelph Goats; Caroline Crossley, Victoria, Castaway Wanderers; Courtney Holtkamp, Rimbey, Alta., Red Deer Titans Rugby; DaLeaka Menin, Vulcan, Alta., Exeter Chiefs (England); Emily Tuttosi, Souris, Man., Exeter Chiefs (England); Fabiola Forteza, Quebec City, Stade Bordelais (France); Gabrielle Senft, Regina, Saracens (England); Gillian Boag, Calgary, Gloucester-Hartpury (England); Julia Omokhuale, Calgary, Leicester Tigers (England); Karen Paquin, Quebec City, Club de rugby de Quebec; Laetitia Royer, Loretteville, Que., ASM Romagnat (France); McKinley Hunt, King City, Ont., Saracens (England); Pamphinette Buisa, Gatineau, Que., Ottawa Irish; Rori Wood, Sooke, B.C., College Rifles RFC; Sara Cline, Edmonton, Leprechaun Tigers; Tyson Beukeboom, Uxbridge, Ont., Ealing Trailfinders (England);
Backs
Alexandra Tessier, Sainte-Clotilde-de-Horton, Que., Exeter Chiefs (England); Alysha Corrigan, Charlottetown, P.E.I., CRFC; Asia Hogan-Rochester, Toronto, Toronto Nomads; Claire Gallagher, Caledon, Ont., Leicester Tigers (England); Fancy Bermudez, Edmonton, Saracens (England); Julia Schell, Uxbridge, Ont., Ealing Trailfinders (England); Justine Pelletier, Rivière-du-Loup, Que, Stade Bordelais (France); Mahalia Robinson, Fulford, Que., Town of Mount Royal RFC; Olivia Apps, Lindsay, Ont., Lindsay RFC; Paige Farries, Red Deer, Alta., Saracens (England); Sara Kaljuvee, Ajax, Ont., Westshore RFC; Shoshanah Seumanutafa, White Rock, B.C., Counties Manukau (New Zealand); Taylor Perry, Oakville, Ont., Exeter Chiefs (England).
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18, 2024.
PENTICTON, B.C. – Vancouver Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko says he’s been working his way back from a rare lower-body muscle injury since being sidelined in last season’s playoffs.
The 28-year-old all star says the rehabilitation process has been frustrating, but he has made good progress in recent weeks and is confident he’ll be able to return to playing.
He says he and his medical team have spent the last few months talking to specialists around the world, and have not found a single other hockey player who has dealt with the same injury.
Demko missed several weeks of the last season with a knee ailment and played just one game in Vancouver’s playoff run last spring before going down with the current injury.
He was not on the ice with his teammates as the Canucks started training camp in Penticton, B.C., on Thursday, but skated on his own before the sessions began.
Demko posted a 35-14-2 record with a .918 percentage, a 2.45 goals-against average and five shutouts for Vancouver last season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
