Teenage keeper Beanlands called to Canadian WNT camp

Carolina Morace has called teenage keeper Rachelle Beanlands to the Canadian women’s national team camp as a potential replacement for Stephanie Labbe.

Beanlands who attended this past winter’s national U-18 camp in Brazil, backstopped the Ottawa Fury U-17 girls to the 2010 Super Y-League North American Championship. She will join keepers Erin McLeod and Karina LeBlanc in the camp.

Labbe is still dealing with swelling and fluid on her knee after being injured a week and a half ago in Swedish league play. She had an MRI on her knee last week and is expected to meet with doctors later Tuesday for a prognosis on her injury.

Morace wants to have the members of her World Cup squad fit and ready for full training by May 10, and will leave off players who aren’t fit enough to go at that time.

Labbe will need to be fit by that date — even though she will likely know her fate when she receives the prognosis from the doctors.

Christine Sinclair, Kelly Parker and Candace Chapman, all teammates on the WPS powerhouse Western New York Flash, left for Italy and will spend approximately a week with the national side. Parker, former W-League MVP, will have the chance to show Morace that she is back from her foot injury and will be ready to bolster the attack from midfield.

After the week-long stint is done, the three will be returned to the Flash, where they will remain until the first week of June. They will then go back to Canada’s camp in Italy to begin final preparations for the World Cup.

Canada kicks off the World Cup June 26 with a date against the host Germans.

The Canadian Soccer Association is planning a series of friendlies for the women ahead of the WWC; two matches against Switzerland and friendlies against Hungary, the Netherlands and North Korea are in the planning stages.