Canadian women show that Sinclair doesn’t always need to score

Mother Nature decided to play an awful trick on the championship game of the Cyprus Cup, but the Canadian women would not be denied their second consecutive title. Emily Zurrer scored the extra-time winner, her second goal of the tournament, to give Canada a 2-1 decision over the Netherlands in a wind-swept field Tuesday in Paralimni, Cyprus. Jonelle Filigno opened the scoring in the 20th minute, after the wind played havoc with a backpass made in the Dutch defence. Claudia van den Heiligenberg equalized five minutes before the halftime whistle. The wind played havoc with set pieces, long passes, you name it. The Dutch wasted a chance to win the game late in the second half, but starting keeper Erin McLeod was injured on the play — and needed to be replaced by Stephanie Labbe. That miss set the stage for Zurrer to win it, converting off a corner kick. But what makes this victory so exciting for Canadian soccer fans is not just the fact that the women’s team took this title, it’s the way it won. Christine Sinclair, called upon time and time again to score the winning goal — which she did in the Gold Cup and in the Sao Paulo tourney — only scored once in this competition. Her teammates provided the needed secondary scoring. As we get closer and closer to the Women’s World Cup, coach Carolina Morace needs to know that the opposition has to understand there is a consquence if it tries to man-mark Sinclair into the ground. Sinclair will get a lot of attention; but if the likes of Filigno and Diana Matheson can jump into the gaps that will be created by the havoc their famous teammate will cause in opposition back lines, Canada will still win games. In the past, Canada has needed Sinclair to be the star in order to win. In Cyprus, she was a valuable part of the supporting cast — and the results speak for themselves.