“We played a good game, but at the end of the day, you have to put the ball in the back net,” said coach Carolina Morace.

Canada maintained the bulk of possession and kept pushing forward throughout the match, but was unable to score the equalizer. As such, Canada finishes fourth at the 2010 CONCACAF Women’s Under-20 Championship and did not qualify for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Germany 2010.

“We played our hearts out,” said captain Chelsea Stewart.

Costa Rica’s lone goal was scored on a free kick fired from down the left side. Alvarado ignored her teammates in the box and went straight for goal with a shot that sailed above the defence and into the net.

Down 0-1, Canada countered quickly and pushed Costa Rica back into its own end. Unfortunately, Canada could not penetrate Costa Rica’s penalty area with enough regularity to threaten for goal.

Canada’s best chance in the first half was a shot from outside the box by Bryanna McCarthy. The shot was almost on target, but landed on top of the netting instead of below the bar.

In the second half, Canada had plenty of possession, but could not connect for the equalizing goal. It had a decent chance in the 47th minute with a cross from the right side, but substitute Julie Casselman’s header was stopped by Costa Rica’s goalkeeper Priscilla Tapia.

Canada kept trying to build its play to get behind the Costa Rica defence, but could not break the opponent’s back line.

Finally in the 84th minute, Canada created a wonderful opportunity thanks to the hard work by forward Chloé Malette. With Costa Rica trolling the ball down the right side, Malette came in from behind to steal the ball and then carry it towards the box. She was upended just before she reached the penalty area, thus winning Canada a valuable free kick.

McCarthy took the free kick from the right side with eight white shirts in and around the box. Chénard came in and connected for the header, but goalkeeper Tapia stopped the ball on the line.

Canada continued to push in the dying minutes, but could not connect for that elusive goal. The final whistle blew with Canada on the wrong side of an 0:1 loss.

Yet again, Canada started the game with a new formation, of note this time without injured centre back Lexi Marton. Canada’s starting XI featured Cynthia Leblanc in goal, Vanessa Legault-Cordisco at left back, Shannon Woeller and Bahar Sansar at centre back, Molly Allen at right back, Christabel Oduro at left midfield, Chelsea Stewart and Laura Chénard at centre midfield, Bryanna McCarthy at right midfield, and Rehana Murani and Chloé Malette up front.

Julie Casselman replaced Oduro in the 20th minute, Adriana Leon replaced Murani in the 46th minute, and Gina Pacheco replaced Casselman in the 66th minute.

Canada finishes the 2010 CONCACAF Women’s Under-20 Championship with a record of three wins and two losses. It finished fourth behind Costa Rica, Mexico and CONCACAF champion USA.

For FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter, the U-20 showpiece will serve as a taster for the following year’s main event.

“FIFA and the German Football Association wanted to hold this competition a year before the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2011 to help fans get into the spirit of the event,” said the President of world football’s governing body.

“Given the quality of football that will be on offer, the U-20 national teams will be capable of attracting very large crowds. This tournament will therefore act as an appetiser.”

“The U-20 Women’s World Cup is genuinely a very exciting tournament. Spectators will have the opportunity to discover talented players for the future in some magnificent stadiums,” said Organising Committee President Steffi Jones.

“Some of the players at the 2010 event will be back the following year. And on the other hand, the four venues will have the opportunity to host some thrilling encounters.”

The last edition of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup, held in Chile 2008, was successful both in terms of large crowds and the extensive media coverage. The 32 matches attracted a total of 351,309 fans at an average of nearly 11,000 per game.

There are 16 places in the U-20 Women’s World Cup 2010, allotted to the confederations as follows:

Franz Beckenbauer, chairman of the Organising Committee for the FIFA U-20 and U-17 Women’s World Cups, is of course a prestigious ambassador for the competition.

Tickets for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup are expected to be available for purchase from March 2010 onwards.

The AAP complements other Sport Canada initiatives, such as support of sport science program, coaching, National Sport Centres and National Team programs; the success of the AAP depends on the co-ordinated efforts of National Sport Organizations (NSOs), athletes and Sport Canada.

Policies, Procedures and Guidelines

Introduction
Carding Criteria

Soccer Men (D-Carded) Receiving AAP Support As of December 1, 2008

Glossary
D-CARD = Development Cards
B&H = Bosnia & Herzegovina
OTH = Other

Soccer Women Receiving AAP Support As of December 1, 2008

Glossary
SR = Senior International
SR1 = Senior International First Year
C1 = Senior National First Time
D = Development

LA FLORIDA, Chile – The U.S. Under-20 Women’s National Team got goals from Sydney Leroux and Alex Morgan, both first-half strikes from outside the penalty area, to defeat Korea DPR 2-1 and win the 2008 FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup.

For Leroux, it was her fifth goal of the tournament as she earned the Golden Shoe as the tournamen’s top scorer. She also won the Golden Ball as the tournament’s top player, just the second American to earn that honor along with Carin Jennings, who was the top player at the 1991 FIFA Women’s World Cup in China.

Morgan’s goal, which proved to be the eventual game-winner, was her fourth goal of the tournament. Morgan won the Bronze Ball as the tournament’s third-best player and the Bronze Shoe as the third-leading scorer.

The U.S. defense, which allowed a tournament-low three goals in six games, played yet another superb match, allowing North Korea’s lone score with just 90 seconds left in second half stoppage time. It was the only goal allowed during the five matches played by U.S. goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher, who was awarded the Golden Glove as the best ‘keeper in the tournament. The U.S. capped the historic win by taking the FIFA Fair Play award.

“I’d like to congratulate North Korea on a wonderful effort,” said U.S. head coach Tony DiCicco. “It was obviously very difficult for us to hold onto the lead because they kept coming at us and giving us trouble possessing the ball, but I am very, very proud of my players tonight. We won because we played very good defense throughout this tournament and because Sydney Leroux and Alex Morgan scored as many goals as they did.”

The USA scored 12 goals in the tournament, a combined nine from Leroux and Morgan as well as one each from midfielders Becky Edwards and Keelin Winters. The USA’s game-winning goal against Germany in the semifinal was originally credited to Leroux, who forced the goal on a hustling play, but it was later changed to an own goal.

North Korea started the match strong and was the aggressor in the early going, forcing several turnovers in the midfield, but Choe Un Ju and Cha Hu Nam were forced to take shots from long distance that gave Naeher little trouble. Naeher finished the night with six saves, seeing by far the most action of the tournament.

After the initial pressure from the Asian champions, the U.S. settled into their rhythm and in the 23rd minute struck first. A deflected shot from Morgan was poorly cleared and bounced to Keelin Winters who was about 30 yards from the goal. Winters’ deft first-time touch to Leroux was settled perfectly and she quickly wheeled toward goal and struck a side-footed shot into the right side of the net from 18 yards out.

“It’s an absolutely amazing feeling,” said Leroux. “I’ve never felt like this before in my life. After the game we were all crying because it just felt so amazing. I’m so happy with my team and the way we played the whole way through. We’ve gone through a lot together and to go to the final and have the gold medals around our necks is just amazing.”

Minutes after scoring, Leroux was back on the attack as she got on the end of a long ball. She took a shot from the top of the box that nearly snuck into the near post under the diving Kim Un Ju. Morgan was also dangerous throughout the opening half, creating opportunities for her teammate and drawing numerous fouls. Set pieces were plentiful in the match, which saw North Korea commit 17 fouls to the USA’s five.

Just three minutes before halftime, Morgan tallied the crucial goal when she doubled the USA’s lead on a remarkable individual dribbling run after receiving a throw-in from Elli Reed near the right sideline.

Morgan settled the bouncing ball as she spun around a defender and took off toward goal. She spilt two more defenders with lengthy strides, but then almost lost the ball as a North Korea defender came hard into the tackle. She was able to keep control, then beat another defender with a quick move to the inside before sliding to smack a 26-yard shot with her left foot. The ball flew over Kim and into the upper left corner for what surely was one of the best goals in the nine world championship finals the American women have played in during their history.

“I think we were happy with a 1-0 lead, but once it became 2-0 I think we realized that we weren’t going to lose this one,” said Morgan. “We stepped it up after the first goal and we didn’t let them come back.”

Even with a two-goal advantage the U.S. continued to push and at times it looked like the USA would be more likely to get a third before North Korea got its first. Midfielder Christine Nairn, the USA’s youngest player, was dangerous from distance in the first half, forcing Kim into two difficult saves. Nikki Washington, who gave U.S. opponents trouble all tournament long down the right flank with her speed and creativity, forced a turnover in the 53rd minute. She then sprung Leroux down the right side, but her shot from a tough angle was scooped up by Kim.

The Leroux and Morgan duo nearly netted another in the 64th minute as Morgan chased down a ball in the corner. She took on a defender and sent the ball into the box for Leroux, but her shot was blocked away by a defender.

With time ticking away, North Korea stepped up its pressure and created a number of dangerous opportunities before finally putting away a goal in the 92nd minute on a nice volley from Cha Hu Nam. That proved to be too little, too late for the North Koreans, who did not get another good chance. Seconds after the goal the referee blew the final whistle, giving the USA its second world title at this age level.

The USA won the first-ever FIFA U-19 Women’s World Cup in 2002, took third in 2004, and finished fourth at the first U-20 Women’s World Cup in 2006.

The U.S. triumph also capped a remarkable year for the U.S. Women’s National Team programs, which advanced to the championship game of all three FIFA women’s tournaments this year, winning the 2008 Olympics and finishing second at the 2008 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup. The victory for the U-20s makes the United States the first country to win two women’s world titles in the same calendar year.

The victory also completed a historic treble of sorts for DiCicco, who led the full U.S. Women’s National Team to the 1996 Olympic gold medal as well as the ground-breaking 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup title.

Attendance
12,000
Scoring
USA – Sydney Leroux (Keelin Winters) 23rd minute
USA – Alex Morgan (unassisted) 42
PRK – Cha Hu Nam (Ri Ye Gyong) 92+

USA Lineup
1-Alyssa Naeher; 6-Elli Reed, 15-Lauren Fowlkes, 17-Nikki Marshall, 3-Meghan Klingenberg; 11-Christine Nairn (12-Ingrid Wells 81), 14-Keelin Winters (capt.), 8-Becky Edwards; 16-Nikki Washington (10-Michelle Enyeart, 65), 13-Alex Morgan, 19-Sydney Leroux

Subs not used: 4-Liz Harkin, 5-Kierstan Dallstream, 7-Alyssa Mautz, 9-Gina DiMartino, 18-Chantel Jones, 21-Cat Parkill
Head Coach:

Tony DiCicco

PRK Lineup
1- Kim Un Ju; 3-Pak Kuk Hui, 16-Sin Sol Ryon, 17-Ri Un Hyang; 6-Kim Chun Hui, 7-Ri Ye Gyong, 9-Choe Un Ju, 12-Ri Jong Sim (10-Ri Hyon Suk, 42), 14-Hwang Song Mi; 11-Ra Un Sim (capt.), 20-Cha Hu Nam

Subs not used: Kim Hyon Sim, 4-Kim Hyang Mi, 5-Yun Song Mi, 8-Kim Chol Mi, 13-Ri Un Hye, 15-Ryom Su Ok, 18-Tak Un Mi, 19-Choe Yong Sim
Head Coach: Choe Kwang Sok

Stats USA-PRK
Shots … 9-15
Shots on Goal … 5-7
Saves … 6-4
Corner Kicks … 1-3
Fouls … 5-17
Offside … 1-0

COQUIMBO, Chile (Dec. 4, 2008) – The U.S. Under-20 Women’s National Team booked a place in the championship game of the FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup with a hard-fought 1-0 semifinal victory over Germany in front of 15,548 appreciative fans.

In the championship game, the USA will face North Korea, which dramatically defeated France, 2-1, in the other semifinal on goal in second half stoppage. The USA and North Korea square off on Sunday, Dec. 7 at Estadio Municipal de la Florida in Santiago, Chile. Kickoff time 6:30 p.m. local time (4:30 p.m. ET). TV information will be announced at a later date, and ussoccer.com’s MatchTracker will have live coverage.

The match will mark the USA’s first appearance in the final of the FIFA Under-20 tournament since winning the championship in 2002 when it was held as an Under-19 event.

The lone goal of the match came in the 21st minute from forward Sydney Leroux, who knocked in her team-leading fifth goal of the tournament, putting her atop the leader board for the Golden Boot, awarded to the tournament’s top scorer. U.S. goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher and her strong defensive unit combined to earn the team’s fourth shutout performance in five games of the tournament.

The match started on full throttle, as both teams took good chances very early in the match. Germany earned a corner kick in just the second minute that led to a Katharina Baunach shot, but her volley sailed high. In the ninth minute, midfield Nikki Washington sprinted down her right flank and hit a cross that clanked off the cross bar.

Washington was dangerous all night on the wing, consistently beating defenders on the dribble and into space. It was one of several runs in the first half that led to the winning goal. Washington made a great hesitation move to get around two defenders while pushing the ball past them down the right wing. She hit a low, driven ball across the top of the six yard box that Leroux met on a full sprint, sliding to get a foot on the ball and knock it into the lower right corner.

Both teams pressed throughout the remainder of the first half, with the Americans getting the more dangerous opportunities. Leroux got behind the German defense in the 30th minute and tried to chip the German ‘keeper, but the ball went wide of Alisa Vetterlien’s goal.

In the second half, the U.S. settled into a possession game while Germany turned up their attack. But the U.S. was still able to create several good chances. Midfielder Christine Nairn, making her second start of the tournament, hit several dangerous corner kicks, with Leroux nearly netting her second of the game off one of them, sending a header just past the post in the 56th minute.

Halftime substitute Monique Kershowski made a fast impression for the Germans, taking on three U.S. defenders and winning a corner in the 58th minute. The ensuing cross from Baunach led to a shot from distance by Bianca Schmidt, but it was just wide.

Washington was double and triple teamed throughout the second half, which opened up space for her teammates. Midfielders Keelin Winters and Becky Edwards each had a couple of shots from outside the area, but could not turn them on goal.

As the minutes ticked down, Germany built up more and more of an attack and took a handful of shots at Naeher, but most were from long range, including several from Sylvie Banecki, but few gave the U.S. ‘keeper trouble as she upped her streak of scoreless minutes into the tournament to 360.

Germany never stopped pushing for an equalizer and its best chance of the night came in second half stoppage time. After two consecutive corners, Schmidt got forward at the top of the penalty area and with a lot of room in front of her, smacked a hard shot. It skipped low towards the left corner and nearly slid under Naeher, but the U.S. ‘keeper, as she has done all tournament, secured the ball and ended Germany’s hopes for a place in the final.

The USA-North Korea clash is a rematch of the 2008 FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup Final held three weeks ago in New Zealand. At that tournament, the USA also defeated Germany in the semifinals but fell to North Korea in overtime in the championship game.

The victory gave the U.S. Women’s National Team programs its ninth berth in the final of a FIFA world women’s world championship, by far the most of any country in the world.

GAME REPORT
Attendance
15,548

Scoring
USA – Sydney Leroux (Nikki Washington) 21′

USA
1-Alyssa Naeher; 6-Elli Reed, 15-Lauren Fowlkes, 17-Nikki Marshall, 3-Meghan Klingenberg; 11-Christine Nairn, 14-Keelin Winters (capt.), 8-Becky Edwards; 16-Nikki Washington, 13-Alex Morgan (10-Michelle Enyeart, 59), 19-Sydney Leroux (5-Kierstan Dallstream, 89)

Subs not used: 4-Liz Harkin, , 7-Alyssa Mautz, 9-Gina DiMartino, 12-Ingrid Wells, 18-Chantel Jones, 21-Cat Parkill
Head Coach: Tony DiCicco

GER
1-Alisa Vetterlein; 3-Katharina Baunach, 4-Josephine Henning, 5-Carolin Schiewe (capt.), 7-Bianca Schmidt, 8-Nathalie Bock (13-Lisa Schwabb, 57), 9-Isabel Kerschowski (15-Julia Simic, 74), 11-Nicole Banecki, 14-Verena Faisst, 16-Sylvie Banecki, 18-Stephanie Goddard (2-Monique Kerschowski,46)

Subs not used: 10-Nadine Kessler, 12-Desiree Schumann, 17-Marie Pollmann, 21-Jana Burmeister
Not available: 6-Kim Kulig
Head Coach: Maren Meinert

Stats Summary USA:GER
Shots … 12:12
Shots on Goal … 3:4
Saves … 4:2
Corner Kicks … 11:5
Fouls … 5:15
Offside … 0:1

The Canadian Soccer Association announced today that Bob Birarda has been named Canada’s women’s U-20 youth head coach. Birarda will be in charge of Canada’s efforts at the CONCACAF Women’s Under-20 Championship and hopefully the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.

‘It is exciting to think about getting the players together and evaluating where we are after such a long time away from each other,’ says Birarda. ‘This group of players has some great qualities. We are looking forward to building a team that can first qualify for Chile 2008 and then challenge for a world championship.’

Birarda had been serving as an assistant coach with Canada’s women’s national senior team under head coach Even Pellerud. He had also been an assistant coach with the women’s youth team under coach Ian Bridge (who is now with the senior team). Birarda also serves as head coach of the Vancouver Whitecaps women’s team, recently guiding them to a W-League championship in 2006.

To qualify for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Chile 2008, Canada – whose title sponsor is Winners – will need to finish amongst the top-three teams in the CONCACAF Women’s Under-20 Championship. The tournament will feature players born in 1988 or later. Canada has qualified for every FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup since its inauguration in 2002 (then known as the FIFA U-19 Women’s World Championship).

While Canada did not have to qualify within their confederation as FIFA hosts in 2002, they came away with a silver medal at the world event. In 2004, Canada hosted the CONCACAF Women’s U-20 Championship in Montréal, QC and Ottawa, ON and came away as champions after a 2:1 a.e.t victory over the United States. In 2006, Canada finished second in their confederation after a 2:3 loss to the United States in Veracruz, México.

‘I certainly believe that there will be several future World Cup (senior) team players that emerge from this pool,’ says Birarda of the 1988 players. ‘It is fantastic that those players’ development can continue next year through the exciting challenge of CONCACAF and FIFA events.’

As for Birarda’s coaching career, he has also been the head coach of the Canadian U-15, U-16, U-18 and Olympic development national teams over the past three years. In April, he helped the Canadian development team finish first at the 2007 International Soccer Festival in Alabama.