SOCCER SHOCKER: GOLD FOR CANADA GOALIE HELPS UNDERDOGS CANADA 2, COLOMBIA 0.Byline: Fred J. Robledo Staff Writer This was surely the greatest week in the history of Canadian soccer, complete with a fairy-tale ending. The sport's newest overachievers upset Colombia 2-0 Sunday in front of 6,197 at the Coliseum Coliseum: see Colosseum. to capture the 2000 Gold Cup - a tournament that began with CONCACAF CONCACAF Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (Soccer) CONCACAF Confederacion Norte, Centroamericana y del Caribe de Futbol Asociacion (Spanish) giants Mexico and the United States Relations between the United States and Mexico are among the most important and complex that each nation maintains. They are shaped by a mixture of mutual interests, shared problems, and growing interdependence. . It was the first tournament championship ever on an international stage for Canada, who came into the event ranked 85th in the world by FIFA FIFA International Association Football Federation [French Fédération Internationale de Football Association] FIFA n abbr (= Fédération Internationale de Football Association) → FIFA f - with the worst reputation among the 12 participating teams. Canada, which had never been beyond the first round in recent Gold Cup competition, needed to win a coin flip over South Korea to gain a berth in the quarterfinals. From there, the Canadians thumbed their noses at precedents, defeating Mexico, Trinidad & Tobago and Colombia all in the same week to finish 3-0-2. Jason Devos and Carlo Corazzini each had goals for Canada, and goalkeeper Craig Forrest Craig Forrest (born September 20, 1967 in Coquitlam, British Columbia) is a Canadian soccer commentator and a former goalkeeper. He was the first-choice goalkeeper for Canada during the 1990s and either first or second choice at English club Ipswich Town from the late 1980s to , the MVP (Multimedia Video Processor) A high-speed DSP chip from Texas Instruments, introduced in 1994. Officially introduced as the TMS320C80, it combines RISC technology with the functionality of four DSPs on one chip. of the tournament, recorded his second straight shutout. Forrest, who had a penalty-kick save Thursday against Trinidad & Tobago, saved another Sunday, guessing correctly in the 85th minute, stopping Colombian striker Faustino Asprilla's shot to the left side. Devos said he expects this to be headline news, at least for a day, all over Canada. ``Hopefully, this will be front-page news at every newspaper across the country,'' said Devos. ``This has never happened before, we've never won a major trophy. It's a monumental achievement, just unbelievable.'' Most experts expected Canada to fold after upsetting three-time Gold Cup champion Mexico last week, but Devos said the Canadians never stopped believing something more special could happen. ``Whenever we go out on the pitch, we go out with the intention of winning,'' said Devos. ``Historically, we haven't had much success, but today we turned the corner.'' Canadian coach Holger Osieck Holger Osieck is a German football coach. He currently manages J.League club Urawa Red Diamonds. He served as an assistant coach of Germany national football team when they won the 1990 FIFA World Cup. He also led Canada to the title of 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup. said he hopes this victory improves financial backing of Canada's national-team program. ``Now that we won it, I hope everybody in Canada will support us and we can go further as a soccer nation,'' said Osieck. ``Hopefully, this will pave the way to develop Canadian football Canadian football: see under football. the way it should be developed.'' The Canadians, controlling most of the action and showing rare confidence, scored with time winding down in the first half. Martin Nash Martin Nash can refer to:
The Canadians extended their lead in the second half after Jeffrey Clarke was tripped by Gomez on a breakaway, setting up a penalty kick that Corazzini converted in the 67th minute for a 2-0 lead and his tournament leading fourth goal. In the 85th minute, Forrest preserved the shutout with another brilliant penalty-kick save - further increasing his reputation on the international stage. ``He's definitely the best goalkeeper in CONCACAF and one of the best in Europe,'' said Devos. ``Not just because of the two penalty-kick saves, but throughout the tournament he came up big for us and that's what you need to win championships.'' CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1) Canada's Paul Fenwick Paul Fenwick (born 25 August 1969 in London, England) is a Canadian soccer player. He participated in the 1996 CONCACAF Gold Cup and the 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup. External links
Kevork Djansezian/Associated Press (2) Canada's Carlo Corazzini, center, celebrates his goal with two teammates in the second half of their Gold Cup victory. Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press |
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