The Canadian men’s soccer team dealt with the chaos their coach predicted could happen and came away with a 2-1 away win over Jamaica Saturday in a CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal match at Independence Park in Kingston.
Stephen Eustaquio broke a 1-1 draw with a goal late in the second half to give the men their first win in Jamaica in 35 years.
“We wanted to come out of here with a result,” said interim coach Mauro Biello. “So, the first phase, mission accomplished for us.
“It was a competitive game. We knew coming in here it would be a very difficult with the quality of players on their team.”
Jonathan David scored the other goal for Canada. Shamar Nicholson tied the game for Jamaica in the 56th minute on a disputed goal.
Biello told a news conference prior to the game that “how we manage the chaos” would be a factor in determining the match’s outcome.
The game was originally scheduled for Friday night but was postponed until Saturday due to heavy rain. It was 28 C at kickoff at 10:30 a.m. local time with humidity around 78 per cent. The pitch appeared heavy and sticky, affecting the way the ball moved.
Canada, ranked 45th in the world, didn’t fold when the No. 55 Reggae Boyz tied the game on a questionable goal.
“Credit Canada to fight through it,” said Biello, the former assistant coach who earned his first victory since being put in charge after John Herdman left to take over Toronto FC. “It was very difficult, hard conditions. Very hot.
“It was really good character from the group.”
The second game in the two-match, aggregate series will be Tuesday at Toronto’s BMO Field.
The winner of the series moves on to the CONCACAF Nations League finals next March, as well as securing their ticket to Copa America as guest teams at the South American championship.
WATCH | Canada tops Jamaica in CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal play:
Eustaquio lifts Canada over Jamaica in opening leg of CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal
54 minutes ago
Duration 1:11
Featured VideoThe Canadian men’s soccer team claims a 2-1 away win over Jamaica in the opening match of their CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal series. Stephen Eustaquio scores the game-winning goal in the 85th minute. The teams will wrap up the two-game, aggregate series on Tuesday in Toronto.
Fullback Richie Laryea set up the winning goal, showing his speed with a nice run down the side. He passed the ball back into the box and Eustaquio made no mistake.
Forward Cyle Larin did the work on David’s goal in first-half extra time. Larin took a long ball into the Jamaican zone, made a pretty spin to get away from two defenders, then sent a pass across the front of the net that David tapped home for his 26th international goal.
Nicholson tied the game when he got behind a surprised Canadian defence on a quick pass from Daniel Johnson and beat goalkeeper Milan Borjan. The offside flag went up but the goal was ruled good after video review.
Canadian players argued the whistle had not blown to start play but referee Tori Penso let the play stand.
“They took a quick free kick and were able to catch us,” said Biello.
“Sometimes in those moments you have to be a little more focused. Credit to the team to fight through it and come back and score a great second goal.”
Canada’s record playing in Jamaica improved to 2-6-5.
Biello said the experience Canada gained during the gruelling qualification process before the 2022 World Cup helped the team deal with the anxiety created by the long wait Friday night before the game was postponed, then refocusing for a morning match.
“You asked for their experience to come through in these moments,” he said. “That’s what we saw from the team. It’s not easy here and we’re very happy to have got the win here.”
Canada had a couple of early scoring chances in the match.
In the eighth minute, David sneaked behind the Jamaican defence and fired a shot that goaltender Andre Blake stopped. Late in the half, Larin had a good chance from distance, blasting a ball that a diving Blake got a hand on.
Jamaica’s Leon Bailey had two good looks in the first half. In the 15th minute, he fired a ball that just missed the far corner of the net. Later, he hit the crossbar off a corner kick from Bobby De Cordova-Reid.
WATCH | Biello wants to lead Canada into World Cup:
CANMNT interim head coach hoping to coach team at 2026 World Cup
2 months ago
Duration 1:28
Featured VideoCBC Sports’ Devin Heroux speaks to CANMNT interim head coach Mauro Biello about what he hopes he can bring to the job.
The Jamaican side suffered a blow when forward Michail Antonio, who plays for West Ham United, left the match early in the first half with an injury.
Canada, Mexico, the U.S. and Costa Rica were given byes into the final eight of the competition, based on the March 2023 CONCACAF rankings.
Panama, Jamaica, Honduras and Trinidad and Tobago advanced through a qualifying round in the September and October international windows.
The quarterfinal losers have a chance to join them, via a single-match elimination play-in in March that will decide the two remaining slots for CONCACAF entries.
Canada now has a quick turnaround before the home game in Toronto.
“They are very good players on that team,” Biello said about Jamaica. “We know they can change the play at any moment.
“We know we have to get the job done, play our way on our home field. We are halfway there.”
TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced cookie brand Oreo as the team’s helmet sponsor for the upcoming NHL season.
The new helmet will debut Sunday when Toronto opens its 2024-25 pre-season against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Arena.
The Oreo logo replaces Canadian restaurant chain Pizza Pizza, which was the Leafs’ helmet sponsor last season.
Previously, social media platform TikTok sponsored Toronto starting in the 2021-22 regular season when the league began allowing teams to sell advertising space on helmets.
The Oreo cookie consists of two chocolate biscuits around a white icing filling and is often dipped in milk.
Fittingly, the Leafs wear the Dairy Farmers of Ontario’s “Milk” logo on their jerseys.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
MacKenzie Weegar wasn’t bitter or upset as he watched friends live out their dreams.
The Calgary Flames defenceman just hopes to experience the same feeling one day. He also knows the road leading to that moment, if it does arrive, will likely be long and winding — much like his own path.
A seventh-round pick by the Florida Panthers at the 2013 NHL draft, Weegar climbed the ranks to become an important piece of a roster that captured the Presidents’ Trophy as the league’s top regular-season club in 2021-22.
Two months later following a second-round playoff exit, he was traded to the Flames along with Jonathan Huberdeau for Matthew Tkachuk. And less than two years after that, the Panthers were hoisting the Stanley Cup.
“Happy for the city and for the team,” Weegar said of Florida’s June victory over the Edmonton Oilers. “There was no bad taste in my mouth.”
His sole focus, he insists, is squarely on eventually getting the Flames to the same spot. The landscape, however, has changed drastically since Weegar committed to Calgary on an eight-year, US$50-million contract extension in October 2022.
Weegar has watched a list that includes goaltender Jacob Markstrom, defencemen Chris Tanev, Noah Hanifin and Nikita Zadorov and forwards Elias Lindholm and Andrew Mangiapane shipped out of town since the start of last season — largely for picks, prospects and young players as part of a rebuild.
Despite that exodus, he remains committed to the Calgary project steered by general manager Craig Conroy.
“It’s easy to get out of all whack when you see guys trying to leave or wanting new contracts,” the 30-year-old from Ottawa said at last week’s NHL/NHLPA player media tour in Las Vegas. “I just focus on where I am and where I want to be, and that’s Calgary.
“I believe in this team. The city has taken me in right away. I feel like I owe it to them to stick around and grind through these years and get a Stanley Cup.”
The hard-nosed blueliner certainly knows what it is to grind.
After winning the Memorial Cup alongside Nathan MacKinnon with the Halifax Mooseheads in 2013, Weegar toiled in the ECHL and American Hockey League for three seasons before making his NHL debut late in the 2016-17 campaign with the Panthers.
He would spend the next five years in South Florida as one of the players tasked with shifting an organizational culture that had experienced little success over the previous two decades.
“There’s always going to be a piece of my heart and loyalty to that team,” Weegar said. “But now I’m in a different situation … I compete against all 32 teams, not just Florida. There’s always a chip on my shoulder every single year.”
Weegar set career highs with 20 goals — eight was the most he had ever previously registered — and 52 points in 2023-24 as part of a breakout offensive performance.
“I think my buddies cared a lot more than I did,” he said with a smile. “All I hear is, ‘fantasy, fantasy, fantasy.'”
Weegar was actually more proud of his 200 blocked shots and 194 hits as he looks to help set a new Flames’ standard alongside Huberdeau, captain Mikael Backlund, Nazem Kadri, Blake Coleman and Rasmus Andersson for a franchise expected to have its new arena in time for the 2027-28 season.
“You have to build that culture and that belief in the locker room,” said Weegar, who pointed to 22-year-old centre Connor Zary as a player set to pop. “Those young guys are going to have to come into their own and be consistent every night … they’re the next generation.”
Weegar, however, isn’t punting on 2024-25. He pointed to the NHL’s parity and the fact a couple of teams surprise every season.
It’s the same approach that took him from the ECHL a decade ago to hockey’s premier pre-season event inside a swanky hotel on Sin City’s famed strip, where he stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the game’s best.
“From the outside — media and even friends and family — the expectations are probably a bit lower,” Weegar said of Calgary’s outlook. “But there’s no reason to think that we can’t make playoffs and we can’t be a good team (with) that underdog mentality.
“You never know.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept 17, 2024.
Jose Maria Celestino da Costa was named vice-president and head of soccer operations while Marianne Brooks was appointed vice-president of partnerships, Kelly Shouldice as vice-president of brand and content and Joyce Sou as vice-president of finance and business operations.
The new six-team women’s pro league is set to kick off in April.
“Their unique expertise and leadership are crucial as we lay the foundation for not just a successful league in Canada, but one that stands among the top sports leagues in the world,” NSL president Christina Litz said in a statement. “By investing in top-tier talent and infrastructure, the Northern Super League is committed to creating a league that will elevate the game and set new standards for women’s professional soccer globally.”
Da Costa will oversee all on-field matters, including officiating. His resume includes stints with Estoril Praia, a men’s first-division team in Portugal, and the Portuguese Soccer Federation, where he helped develop the Portuguese women’s league.
Brooks spent a decade with Canucks Sports & Entertainment, working in “partnership sales and retention efforts” for the Vancouver Canucks, Vancouver Warriors, and Rogers Arena. Most recently, she served as senior director of account management at StellarAlgo, a software company that helps pro sports teams connect with their fans
Shouldice has worked for Corus Entertainment, the Canadian Football League, and most recently as vice-president of Content and Communications at True North Sports & Entertainment, where she managed original content as well as business and hockey communications.
Sou, who was involved in the league’s initial launch, will oversee financial planning, analysis and the league’s expansion strategy in her new role.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
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