Canada still perfect at Women's World Cup qualifier
Semifinal vs. Costa Rica is last remaining obstacle for Canadian women
Two roads diverged in Mexico, and Canada decided to take the one less travelled by — and that could make all the difference.
Candace Chapman marked her 75th national soccer team appearance by scoring in the first half of Canada's 3-0 win over Mexico at the CONCACAF Women's World Cup qualifying tournament Tuesday night in Cancun.
Josee Belanger and Jonelle Filigno also scored for the Canadians, who have outscored their opponents 12-0 and improved their tournament record to 3-0.
Canada now faces Costa Rica while Mexico meets the United States in Friday's semifinal matches.
The victory not only allowed Canada to win Group A ahead of Mexico, but it also means the Canadians' semifinal opponent will be the Central Americans, who they have faced only a handful of times over the years.
Had Mexico won, it would have finished first in Group A, and Canada would have been forced to play the heavily favoured United States in the semifinals — a team the Canadians have defeated just three times (with four draws) in their last 47 competitive matches.
The CONCACAF tournament finalists automatically qualify for next year's FIFA World Cup in Germany, while the third-place team will meet Italy in a two-game playoff. At No. 13 in the current FIFA world rankings, Canada was keen to avoid the U.S. (ranked No. 1) and instead play Costa Rica (No. 47) in order to have a better shot at automatic World Cup qualification.
Canada is attempting to qualify for its fifth consecutive World Cup.
Goalie errors
"It was not easy to win this match in a stadium full of support and enthusiasm for the home team," said Canadian coach Carolina Morace. "I think we prepared very well as a team and we attacked Mexico. The players were fantastic."
Canada dominated proceedings right from the opening kickoff and capitalized on a pair of mistakes by Mexico's 16-year-old goalkeeper, Cecilia Santiago, to take a 2-0 lead into halftime
Santiago bobbled a corner kick floated into her box in the 20th minute, and the ball eventually fell to Chapman, who slammed it home. In first-half injury, Santiago made an unconvincing punch clearance, allowing Belanger to chip the ball into the back of the net.
Canada didn't let up in the second half and put the game away in the 66th minute when Belanger delivered a perfect cross into the box for Filigno to nod past Santiago. The goal was Filigno's third of the tournament.
On top of making an offensive contribution, Chapman marshalled a tight Canadian defence that totally handcuffed Mexico's star striker Maribel Dominguez. Canadian goalkeeper Karina LeBlanc was a spectator for most of the match, and was never asked to make a serious save thanks to the brilliant performance of her defence.
Canadian captain Christine Sinclair was kept off the score sheet after notching four goals in Canada's 8-0 win over Guyana on Sunday. But Belanger and Filigno picked up the slack, proving that Canada doesn't always need to rely on Sinclair for goals.
"The players have grown lots," said Morace. "They showed they want to win, they don't want to give up and they fight until the end of the match. It is not easy to score three goals against Mexico."