Toronto Star Referrer

Olympic champs get back to work

Canadian women dominate first match since Tokyo and make progress on safety,

DARREN DESAULNIERS

OTTAWA—It had been over 29 months since the Canadian women’s soccer team last played on home soil.

The Olympic champs made their long-awaited return a victorious one Saturday, kicking off their gold-medal celebration tour in style with a 5-1 win over New Zealand at TD Place. The friendly was the first for the sixth-ranked Canadian women since they beat Sweden in the Tokyo final on Aug. 6.

NEXT: TUESDAY VS. NEW ZEALAND

“I think even before the game started it was very special for all the fans that turned up. They made it a memorable (day) for the group,” said Canada head coach Bev Priestman. “I think that spurred the group on, and they went and did something special ... To score five goals against a top-25 team, that was important and a step forward for us toward the World Cup.”

Jessie Fleming opened the scoring on a penalty kick in the 12th minute and Christine Sinclair made it 2-0 in the 41st. Nichelle Prince and Adriana Leon, with a pair, rounded out the Canadian scoring.

“It’s great to be back home, and some of us were joking that we couldn’t remember that last time we played at home,” Sinclair said. “To be able to celebrate this gold medal with the fans, it’s obviously a special moment and something to celebrate. And to see the little kids in the stands, it’s pretty special.”

Prince scored in the 58th minute. New Zealand’s Ria Percival struck back from the penalty spot in the 71st minute, before Leon tallied in the 75th and again in the 82nd.

It was the first game for the national side on home soil since May 18, 2019, when they beat Mexico 3-0 at BMO Field in a warm-up for the World Cup in France. They played 29 straight away games before returning to meet the 23rd-ranked Football Ferns.

The teams will play again Tuesday in Montreal. The 2023 World Cup will be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand.

Shortly before kickoff, Canada Soccer released a statement saying it would meet three demands by the Canadian Women’s National Team Players’ Association, which called on the national body to commit to build a safe environment for athletes and apologize to those who have been “victimized and abused while playing the sport they love.”

The players also asked for a “transparent, independent review” at a mutually agreed time, of the investigation into allegations against Bob Birarda during the time he was employed by Canada Soccer — “to understand fully what occurred and to develop recommendations and best practices to better protect athletes.”

Birarda, former coach for the Vancouver Whitecaps and Canada Soccer’s women’s teams, was charged last December with sexual offences involving four people. He was dismissed by both the Whitecaps and Canada Soccer in 2008. The B.C. Prosecution Service said Birarda was facing six counts of sexual exploitation, two counts of sexual assault and one count of child luring.

More than a dozen women who played for the Whitecaps and were part of Canada’s under-20 talent pool around 2008 have come forward to allege Birarda acted inappropriately with members of the team. None of the allegations have been proven in court.

SPORTS

en-ca

2021-10-24T07:00:00.0000000Z

2021-10-24T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://thestarepaper.pressreader.com/article/282333978111896

Toronto Star Newspapers Limited