In what could have been Canada star Christine Sinclair’s last Women’s World Cup match, she and her Olympic champion teammates were knocked out of contention by Australia 4-0 in a group-stage finale Monday.
“I’m obviously still processing it,” Canada coach Bev Priestman said after the match. “Even hearing you say, ‘Could this be Christine Sinclair’s last game?’ It breaks my heart.”
Sinclair, 40, the all-time leading goal scorer in international soccer, women or men, has played in six Women’s World Cups. Canada finished fourth in her tournament debut in 2003, its best finish to date.
“Things have to change,” Sinclair said. “We don’t have a professional league. We don’t have that pathway for players to make the national team. If this isn’t a wakeup call, I don’t know what is.”
Sinclair and her teammates have been fighting for equal pay and support from Canada Soccer.
Canada hasn’t advanced out of the group stage in five of its eight Women’s World Cup appearances. It is the first reigning Olympic champion to fail to reach the knockout round in the Women’s World Cup.
“From the ecstasy of two summers ago, winning gold, to losing tonight, as painful as it is, it’s part of sport,” Sinclair said. “You have to be able to accept the losses the same way you accept the wins.”
If Sinclair had scored a goal at this tournament, she would have become the first player, female or male, to score in six World Cups. That she didn’t underscores Canada’s struggles to generate offense against Australia and in its opening 0-0 draw with Nigeria.
Despite the odds, Nigeria survives tough group to reach knockout stage
A scoreless draw on either side of an upset win over co-host Australia has Nigeria coach Randy Waldrum and his Super Falcons feeling like they’ve beaten the odds at the Women’s World Cup.
After securing a spot in the round of 16 with an unlikely second-place finish in Group B, the No. 40-ranked Nigeria squad is ready for anything.
“When I first saw the group, it was like ‘oh my gosh, this is such a difficult group,’” Waldrum recalled of the bracket containing Olympic champion Canada, tournament co-host Australia, and Ireland, a team determined to make its mark on debut.
Apart from a vast rankings disparity, Nigeria was also dealing with a pay dispute between the players and the national federation. The squad’s preparation for the tournament was curtailed because of a lack of resources and support, and Waldrum came under heavy criticism for calling it out.
Despite the difficult circumstances, the Super Falcons began the tournament with a 0-0 draw against seventh-ranked Canada. Then came the surprising 3-2 win over 10th-ranked Australia, which had only lost one of its previous 11 games.
That win put Nigeria on the verge of qualifying for the round of 16, while also sending Australia into a must-win game against Canada.
A 0-0 draw against Ireland on Monday night was enough for the team to advance behind Australia, which closed the group stage with a thumping 4-0 win over Canada. It also meant that Nigeria went through the group stage without a loss for the first time.
“We’ve done all of this with 15 practices,” Waldrum said. “I wouldn’t have dreamt that we could do that well, but I think it’s largely due that there’s talent here.”
Zambia earns first Women’s World Cup win with 3-1 victory over Costa Rica
Lushomo Mweemba scored the fastest goal at this year’s Women’s World Cup, and Barbra Banda added the 1,000th goal in tournament history, as tournament newcomer Zambia earned its first ever win with a 3-1 victory Costa Rica. The victory sent Zambia home from its first World Cup on an emotional high. Both teams had already been eliminated from the knockout stage before the match. The Copper Queens’ opening goal, the first in their history, came after just 2 minutes and 11 seconds off Avell Chitundu’s corner kick. Mweemba lofted a volley into the roof of the net over goalkeeper Daniela Solera ... Japan scored three times from lightning breaks in the first half, once in the second and defended resolutely to trounce Spain 4-0 and top Group C. Hinata Miyazawa scored twice, Riko Ueki scored once and both were instrumental in each other’s goals as Japan switched swiftly from defense to counter-attack and scored from its only three attempts on goal before halftime.