Rhian Wilkinson's Official Website

Welcome to my website. Since 1st March 2006, when we started the site we have received over 65,000 hits. Thank you. There is a real demand for news on the National Women's Team.

I have played soccer since I was 5 years old, and have been fortunate to play for some excellent teams from around the world. I will provide regular news, not just about what is happening in Canadian soccer, but insights into what it means to be a woman soccer player in the Canadian Soccer Association.

I have written on my early soccer years in Quebec Soccer, my NCAA soccer career with the Lady Vols of the University of Tennessee, the W. League's Ottawa Fury and Norway's Team Strommen of the Topserrien league. Please let me know if there is other news you would like to see on my site, and please keep visiting as often as possible.

                             Latest News Updates:

RHIAN'S SOCCER JOURNALS:

RECOVERY, & COFFEE BECOMES A MILITARY EXERCISE

7th August 2008

Sorry for the short journal yesterday, but I was utterly spent, physically and emotionally, after our opening game.



Today, after a couple of hours to digest the game and think about my role and how the team played, the day seems so much brighter. I found that yesterday, I was having trouble getting over my own mistakes in the game, and I rather selfishly forgot to focus on the importance of our team victory. Though the result was not as convincing as we would have liked, Canada's National Women's team did win their first ever Women's Olympic soccer game. Many years from now I am going to look back on this experience, and what I will remember will be our first victory, and not any slips or mistakes that I made. READ MORE

RHIAN'S SOCCER JOURNALS:

WE WON   6th August 2008

My apologies if this journal is rather short, but I am really tired tonight.

I am sure that given the size of the Press coverage here, there is no one in Canada who does not now know that we defeated Argentina tonight by two goals to one. There was nothing pretty about the win, and in fact there were some downright ugly plays, but we got the win and in the end this is what matters most. Both Sweden and the United States did not.

The Argentinean goal was caused by my terrible error, when I slipped on the turf. What can I say though? These things happen. We had a problem with slipping on the turf all evening, and I think that the sod laid in the stadium has very shallow roots and little grip. Anyway, it's no wonder that I miss being in the forward line. In defence you are exposed. One mistake at the back and you are left having nightmares about it for weeks! READ MORE

MEDIA REPORTS:

CANADA DEFEATS ARGENTINA 2-1 IN OLYMPIC MATCH

6th August 2008

Canada’s debut in Olympics women’s soccer will go down as a success. 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.
Media Reports courtesy of Torstar and Associated Press MORE

RHIAN'S SOCCER JOURNALS:

PREPARATION FOR ARGENTINA 4th August 2008

The past few days in Tianjin have, in many ways, been boring ones - the usual preparation for a big match. Even though on this occasion, there is always the underlying factor that we know we are at the Olympic Games, the majority of our time is spent in the same ways that we would prepare for any other Tournament. This event is just on a much larger, multi-sport, scale. READ MORE

A general view shows the Tianjin Olympic Center Stadium illuminated in North China's Tianjin Municipality May 25, 2007. The stadium
will host football preliminary competitions of Beijing Olympic Games in 2008. [Xinhua]