Canada sneaks into first place with home win

Canada moved to the head of its group with a 1:0 victory over Panama in FIFA World Cup Qualifiers. A quick free kick was the difference in the second half as Canada’s all-time goals king Dwayne De Rosario scored the lone goal of the 7 September 2012 match. Canada now leads Group C in the CONCACAF 3rd Round of 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil Qualifiers.

Midway through the CONCACAF 3rd Round, it looks as though Canada, Panama and Honduras are the three teams that will fight for two spots to the CONCACAF Final Round. With a Canada 1:0 home win over Panama and a Honduras away 3:0 win over Cuba, Group C standings now feature Canada with seven points (+2 goal difference), Panama with six points (+2 goal difference), Honduras with four points (+1 goal difference), and Cuba with no points (-5 goal difference).

The Canada victory on Friday night was played in front of a terrific home crowd, with 17,586 in attendance at BMO Field in Toronto. Canada’s man of the match was captain and central defender Kevin McKenna. De Rosario’s goal in the 77th minute was scored after a quick free kick by Atiba Hutchinson.

Match Day 4 is this coming Tuesday 11 September. In Group C action, Canada will face Panama in Panama (21.00 ET / 18.00 PT) while Honduras will host Cuba (21.30 ET / 18.30 PT). The Panama-Canada match will be broadcast live on Sportsnet One and CityTV. The last two matches of the group phase will be played in October, with Canada’s home match on Friday 12 October at BMO Field in Toronto (tickets available via ticketmaster.ca).

Also on Friday 7 September in FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, other CONCACAF matches featured a Jamaica 2:1 win over USA, a Guatemala 3:1 win over Antigua and Barbuda, a Mexico 2:0 win over Costa Rica, and an El Salvador 2:2 draw with Guyana. In Group A, standings feature Jamaica with seven points, Guatemala and USA with four points each, and Antigua and Barbuda with one point. In Group B, standings feature Mexico with nine points, Costa Rica with four points, El Salvador with two points and Guyana with one point. 

READ MORE in the 2012-09-07 Match Centre (Canada v Panama)

CANMNT: Dwayne De Rosario 

CANMNT: Atiba Hutchinson