The defending Olympic-champion Canadian women’s soccer team — which has inspired a generation of female players to take up the sport — will play Nigeria on April 11 at Starlight Stadium in Langford, and on April 8 at sa国际传媒 Place in Vancouver as part of their gold-medal celebration tour.
Midfielder Ashley Roberts of Victoria, a member of the sa国际传媒 U-17 team, was part of the announcement Wednesday at the sa国际传媒 Sports Hall of Fame in Vancouver. “This is so cool and I’m excited to watch the national team live with my friends,” she said.
Roberts was at the announcement to represent sa国际传媒’s new wave of players, while goalkeeper Stephanie Labbé represented the veterans. Roberts said her favourite moment from sa国际传媒’s gold-medal game against Sweden last summer in the Tokyo Olympics was Labbé’s final save in the shootout that assured victory.
sa国际传媒 is currently preparing for the eight-nation 2022 CONCACAF Championship from July 4-18 in Monterrey, Mexico, which serves as the qualification route for both the 2023 FIFA World Cup in Australia and New Zealand and the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Canadian head coach Bev Priestman said a “blend” of old and new will be on display in the two friendly games in sa国际传媒
While the team that won in Tokyo won’t be the same one projected for the 2023 World Cup and 2024 Paris Olympics, the Tokyo team “deserves this moment,” said Priestman. “[But] we also want to start bringing in players from the [U-20 team]. It’s about moving forward and climbing a new mountain while celebrating past achievements.”
The game in Langford will be the last in a sa国际传媒 jersey for retiring goalkeeper Labbé: “It [will be] a surreal moment. It always felt so distant. But I’m at the point in my life where I know it’s the right decision,” said the 35-year-old Albertan.
Labbé said last summer was “such a whirlwind,” the team members went from Japan straight back to their pro clubs and had no time to really celebrate.
The celebration tour, which began with wins over New Zealand in Ottawa and Montreal, has allowed the players to “feel the excitement and see the impact the Olympic gold medal had,” she said.
“It’s such a humbling experience to see all the people we touched, who got up at 6 a.m., to watch the gold-medal game.”
Now the torch is being passed to the likes of Roberts, who recently put on the sa国际传媒 jersey at the U-17 level in a tour of Spain.
“It was a fantastic experience and everything I have dreamed about since I was a kid,” said the Glenlyon Norfolk School and Island Wave product.
Tickets for the Starlight Stadium and sa国际传媒 Place games between sa国际传媒 and Nigeria, an 11-time African champion, go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. through Ticketmaster.ca.
