A Team Canada Thread (again...) [R]

i was right! lol

hey-

i was right!!!

just annouced that canada will play australia in two matches in vancouver and victoria at the end of september....grrr...too bad that's sooo far away from me! lol

no TV coverage for this one...hopfully some of you guys who live in BC will be able to go to the game and let us all know how it goes!!! (and get pics! lol)

do say if you are planning on going to either of the games!

elaine

 

yipee!

ok...

this thread needs some life again!!!

as i noted before, team canada begins a week long training camp in BC today...here's the roster even has called in:

• Nicci Wright
• Karina LeBlanc
• Breanna Boyd
• Sharolta Nonen
• Isabelle Morneau
• Kara Lang
• Cindy Tye
• Andrea Neil
• Randee Hermus
• Charmaine Hooper
• Silvana Burtini
• Ashley McGhee
• Amy Walsh
• Kristina Kiss
• Brittany Timko

my thoughts and comments about players called in and those not:

• the only players from the U19 team called in are kara and timko. both are still in HS. i'm glad timko got the call up...she traveled with the team for the france tourney in the spring, and i think she had a great u19 world cup!
• only NCAA player is breanna boyd. not surprised that most of the u19-ncaa players are not at camp, as i'm sure they're getting "rest" and playing for their respective universities...sinclair at portland, andrews and mcleod at s. methodist, moscato at penn state, rustad at washington and chapman at norte dame...i think, possibly they might be in a later camp!
• glad to see both amy walsh and kristina kiss return from injury... i don't know the extent of kiss' injury, i'm glad to see that she's back!! definitely missed her last series vs. norge
• glad to see NICCI in camp! i assume she flew in from sweden...yea yea!!! i think this is her first camp in a looong while.
• missing isabelle harvey. hopefully she'll be at the next one...i'm still not sure how the coaching/playing balance thingie will work...
• GO IZZY!!!!! always happy to see her name on the roster!!

that's all i can think of now...i'm trying to find out more!!! will post if i come across anything!

oh, and i emailed sportsnet about the canada vs. australia game being on tv. i remember gerry dobson saying during the u19 telecast that they (sportsnet) would be airing the games, but i could not find it on their schedules etc. the person wrote back and said that at the moment they don't have the rights to broadcast it, but are looking into it, and it wouldn't be too big of a surprise if they did...so i'm keeping my fingers crossed! if i can't see the game in person...i wanna see it on tv!!!

i'm trying to convince my folks to let me go to the gold cup...anybody want to contribute to the 'send elo to BC' fund??? lol...i'm happily taking donations! lol

elaine

 

Re: WC Qualification

BB99-

first off, THANK YOU for posting about team canada! seems like this thread has 'dropped off' after the first one whipped out.

i love this team...i really do. i think it's made up of a bunch of great player and people who canada should find out about, and realize how good they are and could potentially be in the future...

i loved your questions, so i thought i would answer them with my own two cents:

Even Pellerued. he's from norway, and coached the norwegian women's team to a world cup title in '95 (upsetting the uswnt in the semi-finals before defeating germany in the pouring rain). he's got tons of experience, and once he was hired post-wwc'99, i was stoked, cause it meant that the CSA was investing MONEY to the program and its future. he's done great things since arriving, and you can tell by the way players talk about him that they love playing for him. i was kinda scared of Even the first few times i met him, i thought he would not like the fact that i gave the team candy (lol), but last camp he was awesome...and talked to me for a few minutes, and made me feel so much better!! a great guy. his kids are cute too! lol

YES!! ian serves as the asst. coach to the full squad, and he brings lots of knowledge and expertise to the team...plus he's always the 'extra body' during scrimmages/drills when the players come up short! seems like a great guy!

Current Stars:

Charmaine Hooper: need i say more? been around since the very beginning, and is just a superstar. the way she plays (hard-nosed) is unbelievable, and even as she's one of the older players, she's one of the fittest players. you can always count on hoops to show up with passion and fight...a type of player you always want on your team, but hate to play against.

Sharolta Nonen: stud in the backline. she's super quick, agile and athletic, and always seems to clean everything up back there. has improved leaps and bounds since first joining the team in '99...

Andrea Neil: Also one of the vets from the very beginning...i think she's comparable to julie foudy for the uswnt...does all the grunt work in the midfield and 'quarterbacks' the team...a vocal leader and awesome with her head.

Amy Walsh: played in the wusa in 2001...unfortunate she got shafted with the '4-int'l player rule'...coming back from a knee injury, but she's the team captain. a leader in the defense and i think she's one of the smartest players out there...always in the right place in the right time and does whatevery is needed of her.

Isabelle Morneau: ok, so i'm very biased when it comes to izzy, but i think she's one of team canada's "stars" she's an amazing one-on-one defender and is our stud at left back...does well in clearing the ball, and she's the player that always seems to come back to clear the ball off the line when the keeper gets beat. she has a knack for that (ok..minus that one time in the norge game in july 2002...)

Future-Rising Stars:

Christine Sinclair: what more can i say? she's a big part of team canada's success in the present and future. has a nose for the goal, and is a pure goal-scorer.

Kara Lang: at 15, she's got big things in the future for her! as she gets more and more experience, kara is gonna be a player to be reckoned with...she's the youngest player in the women's game to score an int'l goal at the senior level. bright, bright future ahead. i am sure she'll be heavily recruited by NCAA schools...
(i'm leaving out a ton...but i wanna keep this "short" lol)

for the gold cup (aka wwc'03 qualifying), the players should be selected from the various nat'l camps they'll be having in BC throughout the fall. from what i hear, there should be at least 2-3 more on top of the one currently going on. also, the friendlies vs. australia should be very impt. in determining who'll be on the team and who will not. lots of depth with the team now, including a handful of u19s

that's a good question. i think evey position there will be competition for it, no one has a "locked" position. i think one of the biggest 'competition' for a spot is in the goalkeeper situation. first off, i think there are 3-4 keepers that could play for canada. karina leblanc, nicci wright, erin mcleod and taryn swiatek. i'm not sure how swiatek's injury is, but all 4 has played with the sr. team in the past year. it should be a battle as mcleod will be pushing for a full-spot on the sr. team. i think, overall, players on the sr. team will have to step it up to keep their spots as up-and-coming u19 players are on the heels fighting for their spots. this should be AWESOME, as everyone will have to improve, and hopefully the best player will get the nod!

from what i hear, it's not a matter of us (canada) leaving her off the team. from what i know, the reason why latham is not with the team for the past year is because of her academics with nebraska, and her academic advisors telling her she needs to bring up her marks, and focus on a few things. i guess her commitment with canada was the one she had to let "go" for the time being, but i would not be surprised if she's back with the program etc. soon. i think she's a definite personality that could enhance the team greatly.

players that should be vying for spots are: erin mcleod, candace chapman, sasha andrews, carmelina moscato, kara lang. also, players like clare rustad and christine sinclair were long-time players on the sr. team before evey playing for the u19s, so i won't consider them in this same catagorey. all of the above players are great players, and should push players above them...

tough to say. i think everyone has a fair shot. nicci wright in goal might be in a tight situation, but hopefully she's gonna have an amazing camp this week to solidfy her spot on the team. isabelle harvey, not being in camp right now, could be a bad thing, as she needs to show her stuff and hopefully be evaluated and included with the team. all the other "vets" should be fair game like anyone else...

the world cup will be held in china in the fall of 2003.

same as last time around...16 teams. 4 groups of 4

i won't go into all the other regions, but for canada, it's at the gold cup which serves as the CONCACAF qualifer. the top two finishers at this tourney will get automatic berths while the third place teams has to play a home-and-away series with a team from the AFC (asia) for a spot.

VERY GOOD. not only should canada qualify at the gold cup, i think they have a very good chance of WINNING the gold cup. just based on my own 'predictions', canada and usa will finish 1-2 (either in that order, or reverse), and mexico would have to play the AFC team...

well, we've made great improvements the past few years, under Even's leadership. i can say that i think canada is definitly a top 10 team of the world, and if it plays consistently and to its potential, we can compete with any of the top teams in the world, and possible beat them.

in CONCACAF, definitely the USA. long rivarly there. i think up until nov. 2000 when the team beat USA 3-1, canada had lost 20+ games against the US (including ties). other good teams in the world include china, norway, germany etc.

i think every game should be a test. i think playing australia at the end of the month should be a good indicator at how we're doing. i think back in wwc'99, AUS and CAN could be said to be at the "same level", but hopefully since then we've improved and should hopefully win those games. the gold cup, actually, shouldn't be a "real test" until after group play, as group play we'll be matched up against smaller countries that aren't at our level yet. i remember going to CONCACAF'98 qualifying and i felt so bad for puerto rico when we beat them 21-0 etc. once it gets to 'medal rounds', that should be a good test.

yes and no. in today's toronto sun, they had a blurb about Even talking about the public cannot expect the sr. team to win games like the U19 team, and that it's two total different levels. for example, reigning olympics champs, norway didn't even qualify for the U19s, nor did china. so you cannot compare the two levels. but i think the full team can do as well as the U19s if everything comes together...

can't say. it's a sad situation in brasil. they used to have a women's league that piggy-backed on the men's league, but the women's league "shut down" a few years ago, and there is no league there. however, they have some very talented players that should prove formiable.

what do you mean by this? at world cup? in gold cup? in world cup...you never know. not at gold cup, cause brasil will not be there...

i'm getting tired...lol...tons of players...

definitely. daniella played for the full brasil team back in '00, so i'm sure marta will be part of their future as well.

that's it from me! lol ...
elaine

 

YIPEE!!!

yeah!

the tv gods are on my side! (for once!)

i was at the sportsnet site, checking their upcoming schedule cause i didn't see the haiti vs. canada gold cup match on the schedule DennisM posted at the other thread, and saw that sportsnet will be telecasting the SEPTEMBER 26TH MATCH VS AUSTRALIA!!!!!!!

i'm so stoked!! they must have heard my pleas! lol...can't wait!

and i believe it's on LIVE too!!

it's on 11pmET/8pmPT....now i'm soo happy! if i can't be there, getta watch it on TV! yea yea!!! although that's a thursday night, and i'll have to stay up until 1am, but that's cool with me! lol

:: does happy dance :: haven't seen the team in sooo long, so it'll be super nice to see them at least on tv!!!

elaine

 

heehee...you can say that again!! i was soooo happy! i can't wait!!! cause watching the U19s play on sportsnet, i kinda missed not seeing some of the sr. players out there!! so i'm glad this game will be on the tele!!!!!

elaine

 

Re: Thanks Elaine

awww...i doubt that!! beulah is way above my league!!! i'm just a die-hard fan that might know a little bit more/likes to voice her opinion!

YES! i know who beulah is, and read her post. however, we've never corresponded with each other, although i highly respect what she has to say!!! :: bows to beulah ::

go canada! wished this camp was closer to me, cause i'm sure the team is having scrimmages etc., and would LOVE to know how those went...anyone out on the west coast in BC would like to be a "correspondent" for Go Big Red!!?? please let me know!!! gousa9@excite.com , and i can provide you with more info and know-how! lol thanks!!!

elaine

 

hey-

i signed up for premium membership...just wanted to check out my siggy! lol

elaine

 

just to add to talk about training camp...

this morning's sportsnet soccercentral did a small piece about the team training in BC...they had their reporter go, and they interviewed even, ian, brittany timko and charmaine. they showed footage of the team at practice, and it was nice to see everyone's faces again.

nothing too significant was said, but nonetheless, enjoyed the coverage!!! they also did a very lengthy feature on kara lang!

elaine

 

hey-

to give this thread some life, i thought i would share some trivial/random stuff...

wtsn is celebrating it's first birthday all this month, and in between shows during change-overs, they have these 'happy birthday wtsn' segments that are maybe 15-30 seconds in which a female athlete wishes wtsn a happy 1st birthday/anniversary....i believe all the athletes are canadian (duh...lol), and seen a wide variety off sports, from bball to golf to hockey etc....i've seen only 3 spots in which a soccer player was involved:

andrea neil, charmaine hooper and sharolta nonen. from what i piceced together, the segment with andie was most probably shot during the pre-norway match press conference on july 15th, as she's in the whirpool golf shirt and had the same 'look' and seemed to be in a hotel board room etc....as for charmaine and sharolta, not sure where there's were shot. i believe sharolta was done infront of a "backdrop", so it must have been before/after a sit-down interview of some sort...and hoops we decked out in met-rx gear, but i can't remember where she was etc. oops.

hopefully i can catch other spots w/other players! that would be neat!!!

also, i believe that the roster for players available for coach even in the aussie series will be released early next week (monday)...looking forward to these games!

elaine

 

my thoughts...

ooo...the CSA annouced something EARLY! lol..usually they give the rosters the DAY OF the camp! lol...here's the link: http://www.canadasoccer.com/eng/media/viewArtical.asp?Press_ID=899

the players are:

• Karina LeBlanc
• Leisha Alcia
• Melanie Booth
• Breanna Boyd
• Sharolta Nonen
• Isabelle Morneau
• Clare Rustad
• Cindy Tye
• Andrea Neil
• Randee Hermus
• Amy Walsh
• Kristina Kiss
• Brittany Timko
• Kara Lang
• Charmaine Hooper
• Silvana Burtini
• Ashley McGhee

my thoughts on the roster:

• i am not surprised that leisha got the call up. during training camp in preparations for the norge game, she, cindy walsh and janine willis (all who play for the inferno) were at most of the practices etc. i have a feeling that coach had to call in leisha b/c the 3 other keepers are not avaliable for this game. nicci is back in sweden with her club team, and has games with them. both erin and sasha are not on this roster, most probably b/c of school commitments with SMU, and i would assume that taryn is still recovering from her injury...but, this gives an awesome opportunity for leisha, as maybe she'll even get her first cap in one of these upcoming games!!
• the only NCAAers missing are sincy, chapy, carm, erin and sasha. the PR says that coach is still working on the release of sincy from portland, and i looked at their schedule, and i think there could be a conflict and she might only be able to play in one of the aussie matches. she has a game w/portland vs. UNC on the 28th, and that should be big game in which i think they would want her! but maybe she could be released for the game on the 26th...
• glad to see the u19s in there, timko, lang and now melanie booth. i believe booth has int'l experience already, in either the algarve cup or the trip to france...and i'm sure she'll gain some valueable experience!! she was a rock in the defense during the u19wc, and she took it pretty hard when they lost b/c she was unable to clear the eventual game winner.
• isabelle harvey is still M.I.A., and from what i heard, i think she's gonna concentrate on coaching this fall, and might not be "taking part" in the gold cup etc. i don't know what to think of this, b/c i really do believe that isa should be at these camps/games, and is a vital part of the team. why she took on the gig as a head coach during such a busy and important period with team canada is beyond me, as i remember her saying to me in the summer that she wouldn't be head coach b/c of her commitments with team canada. however, i also hear that she would still like to be part of the team for the world cup/olympics etc....i just hope that her not being avaliable this fall won't hinder her chances, as lots of younger players are comming up, and she needs to get a spot!!!
• i'm really looking forward to seeing amy walsh play again. this should be her first game since the spring with team canada, and i really missed her presence during the norge game. glad to see her back!!! kristina kiss too! i still can't figure out where kiss is going to school...or if she is...but that's another vent...lol
• as always, glad to see IZZY on the roster! (it's always nice, b/c one time last year when they were gonna have the games vs china in saskatchewan, i was freaking out cause izzy's name wasn't part of that...lol)

looking forward to these games VERY MUCH!!! go canada!

elaine

 

Re: Nicci Wright

hey there bloddthirsty! thanks for the post! i'll try to answer your question as best as i can!

first off, i feel really bad that i haven't resumed my Nicci in Sweden Updates since the last thread went kaput. i will resume it asap.

here's what i know about how nicci is doing in sweden:

firstly, she just returned to sweden tuesday, and had missed one game for alviks while she was in team canada training camp last week. her team currently sits in 11th place with a 3-13-2 record. they lost their game today vs. the number one team in the league. they have scores from the games at the league site (link below), but they only list the scores and goal scorers. they do not list the players that played etc. (at least, not to my understanding of swedish...lol)

as for nicci personally, i can't seem to find any reports about how she's doing in sweden, but i know that she's definitely the #1 keeper for alviks, and playing all the games. from what i know, her team is a very young team, and a several key players have injuries, and therefore they haven't performed too well as a whole.

i will try to find out more info for you, and post it here.

links: (all in swedish, though)
http://www.alviksik.com/damlaget/ <-- her team
http://www.svenskfotboll.se/Table.asp?TournamentId=3298 <-- league site.
http://www.alviksik.com/gallery/ <-- for pics of nicci in action...all 'damer' games

there's a swedish/english translator online somewhere, but i don't have the bookmark to it on this computer.

the team's next game is on the 29th vs. Landvetter IF. nicci is not part of the canadian roster for the aussie games b/c of her club commitments with alviks.

i hope this helps...i think i'm just running around in a circle, but i will try to find out more info soon!

elaine

 

hey ray! (i looked up your name from the CSLA site! lol)

thanks for posting here, and sharing stuff about isa!! it's great to hear she's doing a good job w/the teams at CSLA!!!

please do keep us updated on how things are going w/the golden eagles! i keep a 'tracker' on my team canada site with the bare essentials (http://gobigred.sinfree.net) since isa coaches there!!

i'm keeping my fingers crossed that she'll continue to play w/canada...i still think she's at the top of her game, and would be a shame if she ended her career now!!!

if you get a chance, please do tell her that elaine from toronto says 'hi!'...she'll definitely know who i am, and that i hoped she enjoyed the chocolate! lol

thanks again for your post!!!

elaine

 

Re: Re: Re: Re: isabelle harvey's status??

lol. i can so see isa doing that! lol

we're a very violent type up here in canada lol...haha...who was she referring to when she wanted to kill 'them'? lol

thanks again!

elaine