In their first appearance ever on such a grand stage, Canada beat Argentina 2-1 Wednesday evening in the first competitive event of the Beijing Games.
Goals by Candace Chapman (Ajax) in the 27th minute and Kara Lang (Oakville) in the 71st gave Canada a comfortable margin and allowed the Canadians to withstand an 85th minute counter by Argentina’s Ludmila Manicler before about 20,000 fans in the 60,000-seat Tianjin Olympic Stadium.
“There was just the perfect speed on the ball,” Chapman said in a press release, referring to her goal. “I said, you know what, I’m just going to go for it and keep it low to the ground. It was extremely important to have three points under our belt and to have a game under our belt.”
It was Chapman’s fifth career goal for the full national team. Last September in Hangzhou, China, she scored Canada’s first goal in the FIFA Women’s World Cup China 2007.
“The team was very pumped up and ready to play, but it was mixed with emotions,” said coach Even Pellerud. “The team settled down after the first goal and then we dominated clearly. Overall, we would have preferred a higher-skilled game, but Argentina preferred to keep the tempo down.”
Appearing in the Olympics for the first time ever, Canada controlled the play for almost the entire game and was full value for the win.
The game was played in stifling heat, with temperatures of about 35 C at kickoff; strength-sapping humidity and under a cloud of grey, polluted, stagnant air that’s been the trademark of the run-up to the Games.
The first goal was set up by a huge blast from Christine Sinclair that was just deflected wide of the post to give Canada a corner.
After Rhian Wilkinson’s corner was deflected back towards half, Chapman stepped into a right-footed shot from about 35 metres and hit nothing but the back of the net for her fifth goal with the national team.
The clinching goal was brilliant, with Wilkinson taking a free kick from about 30 metres that Lang headed on spectacularly from about 15 metres out in the 71st minute.
Canada had a huge size advantage over the Argentines and used it often. The backline of Chapman, Emily Zurrer, Martine Franko and Wilkinson simply over-powered the Argentine attack and Canada won nearly every ball in the air up front.
The win is huge boost for Canada’s hopes of qualifying for the quarter-finals of the 12-country tournament. There are three four-team pools in the tournament with the top two in each pool qualifying for the quarter-finals along with the two best third-place teams.
Canada faces China here on Saturday and completes its first-round on Tuesday in Beijing against Sweden.
The victory did not come without a cost, though; Melissa Tancredi, a key forward and Canada’s most physical presence on the front line, left after just 41 minutes with an apparent left ankle injury. She was knocked down in the penalty area in front of the Argentina goal in about the 19th minute, left the pitch for a few minutes to have the ankle treated and returned. But the injury became too much to handle about 10 minutes later and she left the game for good.
-- Torstar news services
