Canada look to Olympic Qualifiers after elimination from the FIFA World Cup

Canada will look ahead to September’s Olympic Qualifiers after they were eliminated from the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023 in the group phase on Monday 31 July in Melbourne. Canada were eliminated following an 0:4 loss to the co-hosts Australia with goals by Hayley Raso (two), Mary Fowler and Steph Catley on their last day of Group B action.

Canada finished in third place in Group B with four points after a draw, a win and the Monday loss at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium. This marked the first time since 2011 that Canada were eliminated from the group phase and the third time they have lost to a tournament host at the FIFA World Cup. Australia won the group with six points while Nigeria finished second with five points after their Monday 0:0 draw with the Republic of Ireland.

Match centre: https://canadasoccer.com/national-team-match-past/?matchId=3348

Up next, Canada will prepare for Concacaf Olympic Qualifiers with an upcoming two-match playoff series against Jamaica scheduled for the next international window in September. Canada will play away on Friday 22 September and then back home in Toronto on Tuesday 26 September in their two-match, total goals series for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

“I think the team has to believe,” said Bev Priestman, Canada Soccer’s Women’s National Team Head Coach who was looking ahead to the Olympic Qualifiers. “They are committed, they are the most hard-working group, they are the most together group, we just at times need more belief. Once we realise that, this moment can make this team because in a year’s time we could have an Olympic Games.”

Since the Olympic Games in 2021, Canada have posted a record of 15 wins, five draws and eight losses in 28 international matches. That record included a second-place finish at the 2022 Concacaf W Championship in Mexico after Canada qualified for the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023.

Canada’s FIFA World Cup squad featured Christine Sinclair, Simi Awujo, Kadeisha Buchanan, Gabrielle Carle, Allysha Chapman, Sabrina D’Angelo, Jessie Fleming, Vanessa Gilles, Julia Grosso, Jordyn Huitema, Cloé Lacasse, Ashley Lawrence, Adriana Leon, Nichelle Prince, Lysianne Proulx, Quinn, Jayde Riviere, Deanne Rose, Sophie Schmidt, Kailen Sheridan, Olivia Smith, Evelyne Viens and Shelina Zadorsky.

Across this year’s tournament, six players made their FIFA World Cup debuts: goalkeeper Sheridan, centre back Gilles, midfielder Grosso, and forwards Lacasse, Smith and Viens. Captain Sinclair featured in her sixth career FIFA World Cup while Schmidt featured in her fifth FIFA World Cup.

CANADA SOCCER’S WOMEN’S NATIONAL TEAM
Canada are Olympic champions (Tokyo 2020), two-time bronze medal winners (2012 and 2016), and two-time Concacaf champions (1998 and 2010). In all, Canada have participated in eight consecutive editions of the FIFA Women’s World Cup™ (1995 to 2003) and four consecutive editions of the Women’s Olympic Football Tournament (2008 to 2021). At Tokyo 2020, Canada Soccer’s Women’s National Team became the first Canadian team to win three consecutive medals at the Summer Olympic Games and just the third nation in the world to win three medals in women’s soccer.

Canada Soccer’s Women’s National Youth Teams, meanwhile, have won four Concacaf youth titles: the 2004 and 2008 Concacaf Women’s Under-20 Championship, the 2010 Concacaf Women’s Under-17 Championship, and the 2014 Concacaf Girls’ Under-15 Championship. Canada have qualified for eight editions of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup (including a silver medal at Canada 2002) and all seven editions of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup (including a fourth-place finish at Uruguay 2018).

CAN 0 : 4 AUS
2023-07-31 Melbourne, Australia
Melbourne Rectangular Stadium att.27,706
Referee / Arbitre : Stéphanie Frappart (Manuela Nucolosi, Elodie Coppola, Tess Olofsson)

Goals / Buts
AUS 9′ Hayley Raso (right foot / pied droit) 1-0 (interception)
AUS 39′ Hayley Raso (left foot / pied gauche) 2-0 (rebound / rébonde)
AUS 58′ Mary Fowler (right foot / pied droit) 3-0 (a. Caitlin Foord)
AUS 90’+4 Stephanie Catley (PK left foot / pied gauche) 4-0 

CANADA –  1 GK Kailen Sheridan; 8 Jayde Riviere (2 Allysha Chapman HT), 3 Kadeisha Buchanan, 14 Vanessa Gilles, 10 Ashley Lawrence, 5 Quinn (23 Olivia Smith 77′), 7 Julia Grosso (13 Sophie Schmidt HT), 17 Jessie Fleming, 9 Adriana Leon (11 Evelyne Viens 64′), 9 Jordyn Huitema (6 Deanne Rose HT), 12 Christine Sinclair (20 Cloé Lacasse HT). Coach / Entraîneure Bev Priestman. Unused substitutes / substituts non utilisés: 18 GK Sabrina D’Angelo, 22 GK Lysianne Proulx; 4 Shelina Zadorsky, 15 Nichelle Prince, 16 Gabrielle Carle, 21 Simi Awujo.

Performance of the Match / Performance du match:
Jessie Fleming