Canada Soccer’s Women’s National Team earned one point in their opening match of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games with a 1:1 draw with host Japan. Captain Christine Sinclair scored the opening goal in the 6′, her 187thcareer goal, in what marked her 300thinternational appearance for Canada. Japan’s Mana Iwabuchi scored the equalizer in the 84’.
Sinclair became just the fourth player in soccer history
\u200bto feature in 300 or more international “A” appearances, joining Americans
\u200bKristine Lilly (354), Christie Pearce (311) and Carli Lloyd (306) in the
\u200bexclusive group.
“We took a point from playing the host nation which I
\u200bthink is great. The team went to the very end to make sure we got that point.
\u200bThe finishers came on and I think they changed the game, so credit to them,
\u200bsaid Bev Priestman, Head Coach of Canada Soccer’s Women’s National Team. “Chile
\u200bare not an easy team to beat. We’ve got to be clinical and have the right
\u200bmindset in our next game and we’ll absolutely come away with three points.”
Canada is the only nation in the world to reach the
\u200bpodium at both London 2012 and Rio 2016 in women’s football. The team is hoping
\u200bto make history by getting back on the podium for a third consecutive time.
Canada will next face Chile on 24 July at 16.30 local
\u200b(03.30 ET / 00.30 PT), before wrapping up the group phase against Great Britain
\u200bin Kashima on 27 July at 20.00 local (07.00 ET / 04.00 PT). From 12 nations in
\u200bthree groups, the top-eight nations advance to the Olympic Quarterfinals from
\u200bwhich winners then advance to the Semifinals and then a chance to win a medal. The
\u200bWomen’s Olympic Football Tournament runs 21 July through 6 August 2021, with
\u200bthis year’s gold medal match at Tokyo’s Olympic Stadium.
“It was great to get ahead early, and I thought we played
\u200bwell to start the game. It’s a shame we couldn’t hold on to the three points,
\u200bbut we’ll take the point and move on,” said Christine Sinclair. “I thought
\u200bdefensively we did well, they didn’t create many chances at all beside the goal
\u200band the PK. We knew they’d posses the ball through large chunks of the game and
\u200bwe’d hit them on the counter-attack, which we did. We have to recover well. The
\u200btruth is we’ve been on the podium after losing our first game so anything can
\u200bhappen.”
Canada got off to a quick start. Ashley Lawrence played
\u200bNichelle Prince down the right wing in the 5’. Prince pulled the ball back into
\u200bthe box for Christine Sinclair who knocked the ball off the post and grabbed
\u200bher own rebound to fire home for Canada. Canada played well through the first
\u200bhalf with the lead, keeping the majority of possession. Prince continued to pose
\u200bproblems for Canada popping up in the 30’ to pressure the Japanese backline.
\u200bJanine Beckie found space in the same wide areas as Prince, playing a ball all
\u200bthe way through the Japanese 18-yard box in the 37’ after a well-orchestrated
\u200bswitch of play across the backline.
Early in the second half, Canada’s goalkeeper Stephanie
\u200bLabbé came together in the box with second-half substitute Mina Tanaka, staying
\u200bdown injured. While the medical staff treated Labbé, Referee Edina Alves made
\u200bher way to the VAR booth, and it was determined that Japan be given a PK for
\u200bthe foul. Labbé, shaken, stayed in the game and made the vital penalty save in
\u200bthe 54’ before being substituted off in the 58’ for Kailen Sheridan.
Canada created a few chances through the middle of the
\u200bsecond half with Prince continuing to find space and pulling the ball back into
\u200bthe box in the 71’. Sinclair played Prince in just a minute later, but the ball
\u200bwent over the bar.
In the 84’, Japan played a ball over the top and Mana
\u200bIwabuchi split Shelina Zadorsky and Kadeisha Buchanan to fire home the half
\u200bvolley past a diving Sheridan. Canada made late substitutions to work to get
\u200bthe winner and Jessie Fleming and Lawrence continued to work to provide service
\u200binto the box. In a long injury time, Lawrence and Fleming combined out right,
\u200bwith Fleming playing Lawrence down the wing. Lawrence’s ball into the box was
\u200bthere for Leon in 90’ +3 but Japanese keeper Ikeda was able to bring the cross
\u200bdown.
“I don’t ever want to see one of my teammates get hurt
\u200band have to come off the field but at the end I know I’ve got her back and
\u200bshe’s got mine,” said Kailen Sheridan. “I think we showed that we’re dominant
\u200baerially and in defence. We need to be strong for 90 minutes. We showed a lot
\u200bof teams that they need to look out for us.”
Canada’s starting XI featured Stephanie Labbé in goal, Ashley Lawrence at right back, Shelina Zadorsky and Kadeisha Buchanan at centre back, Allysha Chapman at left back, and Desiree Scott, Jessie Fleming, Quinn, Janine Beckie, Christine Sinclair and Nichelle Prince from the midfield up through to the attack. Head Coach Bev Priestman replaced Labbé with Kailen Sheridan (58’), Quinn with Deanne Rose (73’) and Sinclair and Prince with Evelyne Viens and Adriana Leon (85’).
OLYMPIC MEDAL WINNERS & CONCACAF CHAMPIONS
Canada are two-time Olympic bronze medal winners (2012
\u200band 2016) and two-time Concacaf champions (1998 and 2010). In all, Canada have
\u200bparticipated in seven consecutive editions of the FIFA Women’s World Cup™ (1995
\u200bto 2019) and three consecutive editions of the Women’s Olympic Football
\u200bTournament (2008 to 2016). At Rio 2016, Canada Soccer’s Women’s National Team
\u200bwere the first Canadian Olympic team to win back-to-back medals at a summer
\u200bOlympic Games in more than a century.
Canada Soccer’s Women’s National Youth Teams, meanwhile,
\u200bhave won four Concacaf youth titles: the 2004 and 2008 Concacaf Women’s
\u200bUnder-20 Championship, the 2010 Concacaf Women’s Under-17 Championship, and the
\u200b2014 Concacaf Girls’ Under-15 Championship. Canada have qualified for seven
\u200beditions of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup (including a silver medal at Canada
\u200b2002) and all six editions of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup (including a
\u200bfourth-place finish at Uruguay 2018).