Canada closes European camp from Poland

Canada’s men’s national team concluded its 2009 schedule on Wednesday in Bydgoszcz, Poland. Canada finished the season with a record of four wins, one draw and three losses following an 0:1 loss to Poland.



“It was important for us to get the opportunity to be together and play some games,” said head coach Stephen Hart. “Overall, I think it is important for us to see each other, to work together and to see how the players are progressing.”



On this trip, Canada faced FYR Macedonia on 14 November in Strumica (an 0:3 loss) and Poland on 18 November in Bydgoszcz (an 0:1 loss).



“It shows that you can’t just step in and play international soccer whenever you want,” said Hart. “We were facing teams that just a few weeks ago were trying to qualify through FIFA World Cup™ Qualifiers. To match them physically and technically was difficult as they had such a good understanding of each other.”



All 18 Canadian players saw action during this camp. In fact, 17 of the 18 players started in at least one game while newcomer Jonathan Beaulieu-Bourgault got to make his international debut as a substitute against FYR Macedonia.



Veteran Paul Stalteri, meanwhile, moved into second place on Canada’s all-time list for international appearances (79, just three back of Randy Samuel). Stalteri served as captain in the game against FYR Macedonia while Polish-born Canadian Tomasz Radzinski served as captain in the game against Poland.