Canada women prepare for Italy

Canada will face Italy this 4 March on Match Day Two of the 2011 Cyprus Women’s Cup. The two sides will meet at GSP Stadium in Nicosia, Cyprus. The match kicks off at 17.00 local (17.00 ET / 14.00 PT).



Canada won 1:0 over Scotland on the opening day while Italy lost 0:2 against Scotland. England’s Kelly Smith made her 100th appearance. On Match Day Two, England plays Scotland and Canada faces Italy. Group play concludes on 7 March when Italy faces Scotland and two-time champion Canada faces one-time champion England.



In Group B, Netherlands opened with a 4:1 win over New Zealand, led by a pair of goals scored by Manon Melis. France won 2:0 over Switzerland. In Group C, Lee Sea Eun’s hat trick led Korea Republic to a 3:1 win over Northern Ireland. Russia and Mexico, meanwhile, ended in a 0:0 draw.



In the Canada match, central defender Emily Zurrer scored her first goal with the national team. She connected for a header on a Diana Matheson corner kick in the 70th minute.



The Friday Canada-Italy match will be the first encounter between the two nations since the 2006 Peace Queen Cup in Korea Republic. Canada has an all-time record of two wins, one draw and three losses against Italy. This will be Canadian coach Carolina Morace’s first match against her former team.



Canada, whose title sponsor is Winners and presenting sponsor is Teck, is taking part in its fourth Cyprus Women’s Cup. Canada won the title in both 2008 and 2010. The team is currently preparing for the FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany 2011.