LANGFORD, B.C. — Nichelle Prince scored twice as Canada thumped an experimental Australia lineup 5-0 Friday in Christine Sinclair’s penultimate international game.
The 10th-ranked Canadians had their way with the 11th-ranked Matildas on a wet night. Cloe Lacasse, Simi Awujo and Adriana Leon also scored for Canada, which led 2-0 at the half.
Canada coach Bev Priestman liked plenty of what she saw but said she still wants more consistency and a bit more killer instinct.
“We’ve got to put our foot on the throttle more often,” she said.
Sinclair, the world’s all-time leading scorer with 190 goals, came on in the 63rd minute for her 330th cap with Canada up 5-0.
The 40-year-old from Burnaby, B.C., was honoured before the game with her two nieces presenting her with a commemorative jersey. There was also a presentation marking B.C. designating Dec. 12 Christine Sinclair Day.
Sinclair will call time on her international career against the same opposition Tuesday in her backyard before a crowd of 41,000-plus at B.C. Place Stadium, which is being renamed Christine Sinclair Place for the night.
A gala celebration in Sinclair’s honour, complete with a performance by Dallas Smith, is planned the next night at the same venue.
Canada dominated from the get-go and went ahead in the 10th minute when Prince dispossessed captain Clare Polkinghorne in the Australian penalty box and beat goalkeeper Teagan Micah with a low shot to the corner.
Prince, Leon and Vanessa Gilles had good scoring chances as the first half wore on. Prince made it 2-0 in the 42nd minute, redirecting a low Ashley Lawrence cross for her 16th goal for Canada.
It could have been 5-0 by halftime. Jordyn Huitema came on for Prince at the break.
Lacasse made it 3-0 in the 49th, pilfering the ball from an Australian defender and steaming into the penalty box before beating Micah with a low shot.
Awujo added to the lead six minutes later with a left-footed shot from just outside the penalty box. It was a first Canadian goal for the 20-year-old University of Southern California midfielder, in her eighth Canada game.
Leon made it 5-0 in the 62nd minute with a header — her 31st goal for Canada — as the Australian defence was carved open again.
Sophie Schmidt, who is also bowing out Tuesday, came on late in the game for her 225th cap. Sinclair had a chance in the 71st minute but Micah got to the ball just before she did.
Australian coach Tony Gustavsson brought on more experienced players late in the game, with the outcome already decided.
“We were willing to risk a result,” said Gustavsson. “Not that we wanted to lose but we were willing to look at players tonight and it cost us.”
It was the first meeting of the two teams since co-host Australia ended Canada’s World Cup with a humbling 4-0 win July 31 in Melbourne. That defeat consigned Canada to third place in Group B and a trip home while Australia went on to finish fourth.
Gustavsson said prior to the Langford game that he was using it to see new talent in camp.
“It’s maybe not about winning a game but winning a player,” he said.
Australia will be fielding “two completely different lineups” in the Canada series, he added.
Gustavsson was true to his word. His starting 11 Friday featured none of the starters from the World Cup game with Canada although it did feature seven of the subs from the Melbourne meeting. Defender Charlie Rule and midfielder Sarah Hunter made their debuts for the Matildas.
Canada fielded six starters from the Melbourne meeting in its starting lineup.
Friday’s game was played at a sold-out Starlight Stadium, home to the CPL’s Pacific FC and Rugby Canada, some 15 kilometres west of Vancouver. The attendance was announced at 6,102, a record for a soccer game at the venue.
It was a damp seven degrees Celsius, feeling like five degrees at game time. The rain started minutes before the evening kickoff.
Midfielder Jessie Fleming continued as Canada captain, leading out a starting lineup with a combined 676 caps. Fleming, Kadeisha Buchanan, Lawrence and Leon accounted for 486 of those.
Kailen Sheridan was a late replacement in the Canadian goal, with Sabrina D’Angelo feeling unwell.
Both teams were missing players through injury.
Canada was without forward Evelyne Viens, midfielders Julia Grosso, Emma Regan and Desiree Scott and forward Deanne Rose. Forward Janine Beckie is in camp but still rehabbing a knee injury.
The Matildas were missing captain/star forward Sam Kerr, goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold, defender Charlotte Grant and forward Holly McNamara.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 1, 2023.
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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.
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.
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — No. 1 Texas will start Arch Manning at quarterback Saturday against Louisiana-Monroe while regular starter Quinn Ewers continues to recover from a strained muscle in his abdomen, coach Steve Sarkisian said Thursday.
It will be the first career start for Manning, a second year freshman. He relieved Ewers in the second quarter last week against UTSA, and passed for four touchdowns and ran for another in a 56-7 Texas victory.
Manning is the son of Cooper Manning, the grandson of former NFL quarterback Archie Manning, and the nephew of Super Bowl-winning QBs Peyton and Eli Manning.
Ewers missed several games over the previous two seasons with shoulder and sternum injuries.
The Longhorns are No. 1 for the first time since 2008 and Saturday’s matchup with the Warhawks is Texas’ last game before the program starts its first SEC schedule against Mississippi State on Sept. 28.
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