In a perfect world, Brooke Sawan would have been sitting in the crowd in Edmonton Saturday afternoon to watch Canada beat China 1-0 in the opening game of the FIFA Women's World Cup.
But she had a game to play with her Environmental Dynamics Inc. (EDI) team against ReMax in a Prince George Youth Soccer Association girls house league game at Rotary Soccer Field.
Fortunately for Sawan, 14, her game in Prince George was over long before the opening whistle at Commonwealth Stadium and she was able to see the game on TV, along with a couple billion other people on the planet.
"It's pretty cool to have the World Cup in Canada, it's going to blow it up (in popularity)," said Sawan. "Mostly people focus on guys' soccer but the girls play pretty good too. The girls are powerful too. We can play."
Now in her ninth season of youth soccer, Sawan also suited up for her high school team at PGSS. When she was a little girl starting out in the Timbits division she wasn't even aware of the Women's World Cup or the national team program. It wasn't until the Canadian women came close to winning the 2012 Olympic tournament that she started following it closely.
The emergence over the past 15 years of Burnaby-born-and-raised Christine Sinclair as one of the world's best female players showed Sawan it's possible for a Canadian girl to rise to the top, and Sinclair did not disappoint in the opener against China, scoring the only goal of the game on a penalty kick in the 90th minute to cinch the victory.
"Christine Sinclair is a pretty big inspiration," Sawan said. "It's a real eyeopener. That could be me."
Thirteen-year-old Autumn Carter, who plays for ReMax, is also a big Sinclair fan and she's counting on the Team Canada captain to lead them into the medal round.
"She really inspires me, I feel like I can push myself to be her," said Carter. "I've been playing soccer my whole life and I feel like I can go that far and one day be like her. I wish I was in Edmonton today but I had soccer so I couldn't do it."
The Women's World Cup started in 1991 and has been played every four years since then. Canada's best finish (fourth) came in 2003. Although Canada is not considered one of the favourites to win the 24-team tournament, Carter thinks they have what it takes to get to the medal round.
Seeing Sinclair, Sophie Schmidt, Melissa Tancredi and rest of their teammates wear the Maple Leaf on home soil in the biggest soccer tournament in the world against international opponents will be a learning experience for 13-year-old Danika Schellenberg, who also plays for EDI.
"I really like playing soccer and like watching it and when you see how good they play, it can influence the way you play," said Schellenberg. "I was going to go see it in Edmonton but we didn't have the money for it."
EDI co-coach Angie Prince played youth soccer in Prince George as a goalie and had a chance to try out of the UNBC Timberwolves. She never got close to a national team spot but there's no reason that door won't swing open for a girl from Prince George.
"It's really positive reinforcement to have the World Cup in Canada and I think it will get more girls out to play soccer," said Prince. "Canada is very strong and we're very united and we'll be out there, obviously supporting the team. Women's soccer is just like women's hockey. It's becoming more nationally known and more accepted. There's more positivity around it and there will be more people supporting it."
Biljana Gajic, head coach of the ReMax team, grew up playing soccer in Bosnia, the former Yugoslavia, and although she continued to play into her adult years, women's soccer was never a major sport in her home country. She's thrilled about the big crowds expected for the World Cup and exposure it will give to the game in Canada over the next three weeks. The Saturday crowd of 53,058 was believed to be the largest crowd ever to gather to watch a Canadian national team in action.
"It's become popular over the last 15 years but before that it was a man's world, so it's really exciting now to see women entering that world," said Gajic, while watching her young players warm up for their game.
"Just watching these girls doing it here, all of them can dream one day that they can play for Canada's soccer team. It boosts women's confidence and it's giving these girls that passion, something to fight for to have that drive and that sense of accomplishment.
"Soccer is more and more spreading to this part of the world too. It's just a game people like and I am proud that Canada is hosting it and I hope we do good because we have a pretty strong team."
