PUNISHMENT AND PENANCE   12th March 2009

We lost to England tonight by 3 -1, all the goals coming in the first half. The English team had a great game and they deserved their win tonight. They were dominant.

The England team play a style of soccer that is very similar to the way Carolina would like us to play in the future. Unfortunately, England have now shown us how this is done well. They moved the ball quickly and precisely and their runs off the ball were well timed and efficient. Watching them in action can only help us get to where we want to be.

I am not going to linger on the details of the game. It sucks to lose. Sincy scored her 99th goal which sets her up perfectly for the match against Japan game at home in Toronto on 25th May 2009.

I served my suspension from the Tournament up in the stands, but I still feel exhausted. I think my mind wasn't quite clued into the fact that I wasn't actually out on the field with my team. Fortunately, I had gone for a long run this morning, a sort of penance if you will. I am so glad that I did, otherwise I don't know what I would have done watching the game.

The Canadian team worked their butts off and of course, everyone is absolutely shattered at the moment. I missed out and that is punishment in itself. And, our 3:00 am morning flight from Cyprus is beginning to look even worse than we previously thought.

Now we get to go back to our respective homes and jobs around the world and work on .... well, everything. The beauty of starting the 2009 season 5 months behind the rest of the soccer world, which is how long we went without training after the Olympics, is that we have to catch up on 5 months of getting better and learning the new system in a short period of time. While we are obviously still a work in progress, we did still reach the finals of the Cyprus Cup in only our 4th game.

Off to Oslo! And, while I remember, the team could be out some serious money this season. Join us at the "Right to Play," in our initiative to raise money for children in need. Click on the logo at the bottom of the left hand column on the Home page