08-05-2019, 01:02 AM
My near-lifetime of attending football matches kicked off as a five-year-old snotty-nosed kid going to Craven Cottage with my family to watch Fulham play a West Ham team with that famous trio of World Cup winners - Bobby Moore, Martin Peters and Geoff Hurst. And there was travelling up to rural Rotherham in 1981 to watch Chelsea get spanked 6-0 - at a time when this upcoming seasons BPL title favourites were marooned in the bottom half of the second division. We should have heeded the ominous warning before setting out from London, as it was Halloween morning. Ive also had the utmost privilege of attending European and FA Cup Finals. That all said, last Tuesdays U-20 game at Olympic Stadium vaults right into contention as one of my most unforgettable moments inside a football stadium. I attended Tuesdays pivotal group stage game with our U-12 playing daughter. With Canadas team comprised of players the same ages as her two elder sisters, it really bought home to us the profound significance that our hometown was hosting the FIFA U-20 Womens World Cup Finals. By the sheer noise and electric atmosphere, you wouldnt have known there were only 13,000 in the very same stadium that jammed in over 60,000 when David Beckhams LA Galaxy played the Impact in 2012. This was no more apparent than in the 65th minute, when Jeanine Beckie scored the lone goal of the game to send Canada into the quarter-finals and the crowd delirious at the final whistle. That atmosphere wasnt lost on Nichelle Prince. "They were crazy, it was insane - especially with this huge stadium," she told the media post-game. "It was an honour to be able to play in it. The crowd was amazing." As some filed out of the stadium at the final whistle, we stayed behind to fully soak up the on-field celebration and lap of honour. The standout image was when the squad sprinted over to the section that their families sat in. I have no problems admitting this bought a tear to the eye. I could only imagine the immense pride which most have been felt by players and families alike. Think of all those countless hours over many years spent toiling on a training field and football pitch. And what must have coursed through their minds as the reward of a quarter-final at the World Cup now beckoned. It was hard to imagine this was the very same team that, at halftime last Friday in Toronto, looked to be doing their best impression of our U-20s in 2007. That team ended up losing all their group stage matches and werent even able to register a goal in those three matches. Whatever was said at halftime - that inspired Canada to turning round the 0-2 score line against Finland with three unanswered second half goals - is truly the stuff of legend. Coincidentally, last Fridays victory was a day removed from the second anniversary of that glorious London 2012 bronze medal match. Toronto captured and Montreal enraptured. Now the scene shifts to Edmonton for Saturday nightsencounter with Germany - a team which certainly captured the eye in Tuesdays earlier game at Olympic Stadium. The Germans were effortless as they stroked in goal after goal past a hapless and unrecognizable Brazil. Where, I wonder, have we heard that before? Edmonton is sure to evoke and rekindle those extraordinary scenes and memories from the FIFA U-19 Womens World Championship in 2002. That was when, on the back of 10 goals and an MVP performance from Christine Sinclair, the host nation made it all the way to the final. Four Canadians made it onto the All-Star Team. Matched against our best football friends to the south in that final, it seemed we were heading for penalties until eventually becoming unstuck in the second half of extra time - courtesy of a Lindsay Tarpley winner. In doing so, the 2002 U-19 final sowed the seeds for the biggest global rivalry in the womens game. This was on clear display at that now infamous London 2012 semifinal at Old Trafford. Five of those Sinclair goals in 2002 came against England in the quarterfinal at Commonwealth Stadium. A crowd of just over 23,000 was in attendance then. A spike in the box office occurred after Tuesdays North Korea victory, with sales for the Germany quarter final already surpassing the 16,000 mark. So were already guaranteed this will be the largest crowd of Canada 2014 so far. Runners up in 2012 and champions in 2010, Germany - along with the French - are the two standout teams of the tournament. Stopping their trio of goal scorers in Diebritz, Bremer and Pamfil - who have already found the back of the net 11 times in only three matches - is a large part of the task that awaits our ladies. Park the bus, Andrew Oliviera will not. We have a trio of stardust ourselves in Kadeisha Buchanan, Nichelle Prince and Janine Beckie. These players especially have been instrumental in that extraordinary turnaround in our fortunes, since halftime against Finland last Friday. Make no mistake - if we advance, it will be against the odds. Our so-termed 12th Player at Commonwealth Stadium has a significant role to play. If Tuesdays final group stage game provided me with abiding memories, imagine what it could be like at Olympic Stadium in Montreal next Wednesday night. A possible Canada-France semifinal matchup exists. Imagine that for a moment. Noel.Butler@BellMedia.ca @TheSoccerNoel on Twitter Fjallraven Sac Soldes . The Asheville, N.C. native, who signed as a free agent with the CFL club last May, didnt see any action with Edmonton this season after opening the year on the injured list. Fjallraven Kanken Pas Cher . Pillar is batting .305 with 17 extra-base hits, 19 RBI and five stolen bases in 34 games for Buffalo this season. The right-handed hitter had an International League high, 18-game hitting streak this season and currently owns an IL high 26-game on base streak. http://www.sackankenpascher.fr/. The 155th edition of the Plate for Canadian-foaled three-year-olds, the oldest continuously run stakes race in North America, will be televised live on TSN in HD (High Definition) in a special presentation from 4:30 – 6:00 pm ET. Post time is 5:38 pm. Sac Kanken Promo . Vargas (8-3) allowed four singles and two walks while striking out five, allowing only two runners from a diluted Twins lineup to reach second base. Mike Moustakas and Jarrod Dyson hit RBI singles in the second inning against Kevin Correia (4-10), and that was all Vargas needed. Sac à Dos Kanken 16l . LOUIS -- Julius Randle had 19 points and 15 rebounds, Aaron Harrison finished with 18 points and No.BURNLEY, England -- Angel Di Marias promising debut failed to inspire lacklustre Manchester United to a first win of the season on Saturday as Burnley held on for a 0-0 draw in the Premier League. The Argentina midfielder, signed for a British-record fee of 59.7 million pounds ($99 million) from Real Madrid on Tuesday, played in central midfield and was one of Uniteds best players at Turf Moor before being substituted in the 70th minute. Di Maria set up Uniteds best two chances of the first half, his raking ball setting up Robin van Persie for a chance that was parried away by goalkeeper Tom Heaton while Juan Mata slipped as he attempted to convert Di Marias cross. United has just two points from three games under new manager Louis van Gaal despite spending about 130 million pounds ($215 million) this summer. That figure is likely to grow before Mondays transfer deadline, with United announcing hours before the game that it has reached an agreement with Ajax for the signing of versatile Netherlands international Daley Blind. Sticking with his 3-5-2 formation after Tuesdays embarrassing 4-0 loss to third-tier MK Dons in the League Cup, Van Gaal will be happy to see his much-maligned defence keep a fiirst clean sheet but there was a lack of cutting edge going forward.dddddddddddd That despite fielding Di Maria alongside Mata, Van Persie and Wayne Rooney in an exciting-looking forward line. Burnley earned a first point since promotion from the League Championship and was comfortable for most of the game, although Di Maria stretched them at times. He displayed a good range of passing -- exemplified by that brilliant long ball for Van Persies chance in the 15th -- and always seemed free in the middle of the pitch. He also showed a good turn of pace to spark attacks, but faded after his impressive start. After flexing his legs following a heavy challenge, he was replaced by Anderson. Van Persie had a goalbound shot cleared away from near the line in the 59th and the Netherlands striker looked Uniteds most dangerous forward on a day when Rooney and Mata, who went off with a right hamstring injury, failed to have an influence. Burnley came close early when David Jones curled a free kick against the crossbar, but the hosts mostly defended after that. In the dying stages of the match, United thought it should have had a penalty when Ashley Youngs shot appeared to hit Ashley Barnes arm. ' ' '