Opinion | U.S. continues to push Canada to greater heights — and rights — but a berth in Paris Olympics will have to wait

CONCACAF W Championship glory was not Canada’s, but a place at the 2023 FIFA World Cup was. A spot at the 2024 Olympics wasn’t, but it might still be. And by the end, other more significant and lasting targets were back on the front burner. All on a Monday night in Monterrey.

Bev Priestman’s Olympic champions were out to add continental gold to the collection at Estadio BBVA but instead watched their oldest rivals pick up first prize and with it a place in Paris thanks to Alex Morgan’s second-half penalty, the only thing that beat an inspired Kailen Sheridan in Canada’s goal.

One year after Tokyo and one year out from next summer’s FIFA Women’s World Cup, Monday’s meeting of North America’s powerhouses had narratives woven in and out of it. Some, like the revenge mission, reached a conclusion. Revenge was indeed American. But other stories are far from finished. The efforts of Christine Sinclair and the rest of Canadian national team players to hold their own federation to account, for one.

The noisy neighbours to the south, the U.S. has been the bar for as long as anyone cared to remember. But on a sweltering evening in Kashima last August that bar was suddenly cleared. For the first time in 20 years of a rivalry that according to naked numbers wasn’t much of a rivalry at all, Canada came out on top.

And if it sounds absurdly obvious to say that Canada could not have claimed gold had they not beaten the U.S., what that victory meant for the belief and journey of Priestman’s team not just to an Olympic final which went the absolute distance but far beyond Tokyo is impossible to overstate.

In soaring to clear that American bar and then claiming gold, the Canadians found themselves in a new, rarefied air. Pretty quickly, some things looked clearer than ever from up there.

While it was the Canadian men’s team under John Herdman who first went public with protests against how Canada Soccer has been running the sport here, namely very badly, Priestman’s side had already been pushing for a lot of what their male counterparts’ strike in June brought into the public light. Pay equity, the development of a women’s professional league in Canada, a fairer share of prize funds, a raising of the standards across the board, so much of it had been broached.

The irony was that on almost all of those fronts, here were the U.S. women, again the standard for Canada — one on-field bar overcome, another off-field one to measure themselves by. The historic progress not simply achieved but fought so fiercely for by Megan Rapinoe, Morgan and Co. was revolutionary, too. Along the way, they had dragged their own federation, U.S. Soccer, forward with fresh voices and vision, too.

In the wake of brilliant reporting by TSN’s Rick Westhead last week alleging further serious transparency and governance issues at Canada Soccer, both national teams here issued a clarion call for changes. The joint statement requesting a government investigation of Canada Soccer and its controversial marketing and sponsorship deal with an entity called Canada Soccer Business, was initially disseminated from Sinclair’s Twitter account, which said a lot.

The call was rebroadcast when U.S. striker Morgan megaphoned it out to her near four million Twitter followers. Competitive rivals but sisters in arms when it comes to culture-shifting, clearly. “I stand with the Canada Women’s players. They deserve so so so much better,” Morgan said in the tweet. “This ain’t it @CanadaSoccerEN.”

Sure ain’t. Not close. And the national federation have continued to show precious little sense they’ve grasped that fact. New General Secretary Earl Cochrane, who is not so new at all, his confirmation in the role preceding the players’ statement by just three hours last Wednesday, had flown out to Monterrey for Monday’s final with fresh talks with players due very soon.

One thing Canada Soccer can do well is a hype video. Monday’s pre-match effort was voiced by Sinclair herself. Over images from last summer’s heritage moments in Japan, the captain charted a new course. “After reaching the top of the world for the first time in our history, there is no finish line here,” Sinclair said. “Only a hunger for more.”

The mood music ramped up again, sights were set on next year’s World Cup, Sinclair describing it as the Everest that she and teammates very much intend to scale. “No team will stand more together … it’s simply the DNA of this squad,” she added. “Welcome to our next chapter. And it all starts here.”

Canada had barely got themselves started when the first American warning arrived in Monterrey. Mallory Pugh stung Sheridan’s palms within 40 seconds, lashing a shot to the near post. It set the tone for a hectic night for the netminder.

Back home her predecessor was just wishing she could watch. “In what world is a game between the reigning World Cup Champions and the Olympic Champions not live on TV,” Steph Labbe, the hero of Tokyo, asked on Twitter. The game was in fact live on One Soccer, the niche subscription platform established in the wake of Canada Soccer handing the keys to the kingdom over to CSB. Labbe may be retired but is still dealing with the impacts of her old federation’s flawed decisions.

The new No. 1 would stay busy as Vlatko Andonovski’s retooled U.S. side looked to turn the page on Kashima. Nichelle Prince had a deflected effort shave the crossbar on 16 minutes but it was a rare break in the American onslaught. An incredible goal-line stand from Sheridan right before the break somehow kept Canada level.

Cochrane appeared briefly on the broadcast at the interval to confirm talks would take place Tuesday followed by a catchword salad of “aligning visions and stakeholders.”

Priestman’s halftime words provided more clarity it seemed as Canada’s shape improved after the break but on the hour, the U.S. ramped things up again. When substitute Allysha Chapman was caught the wrong side of Rose Lavelle, the veteran conceded a penalty that was slightly harsh but mostly justified. Morgan stepped up to ultimately decide things.

Canada went down fighting with Julia Grosso testing Alyssa Naeher and Jordyn Huitema unable to guide a header on target.

“This group chucked everything at it right to the very end. Chucked the kitchen sink,” Priestman said as U.S. players went up to collect familiar gold. “We’ve just gotta hold our heads high and build towards the World Cup. We’ve got to push forward and use the hurt to keep driving.”

There were positives to take. The primary objective going to Mexico had been securing a World Cup berth. Done. Grosso enjoyed a very impressive tournament and Sheridan looks ultra comfortable as No.1 now. But plenty to work on, too.

Her players have their own to-do list. In Monterrey the U.S. reset the on-field bar but the other is just as important now. Change is what they want and Sinclair said it best: “there is no finish line here.”

SHARE: