Canadian men win Indoor Pan Am Championship
August 15, 2010
By: Tony Stewart
The men’s final between Canada and the US started with a bang as the US conceded a penalty corner in the first minute. US goalkeeper Jason WELLINGS did well to smother Jonathan ROBERT’s initial drag-flick, but obstructed for another PC. This time Jonathan played the option pass through his legs to Adam ALI who scored with a powerful, low shot. The celebrations had not died down for the Canadian team when a fortunate bounce enabled Pat HARRIS to tap in at the back post for the USA. The score was 1-1 with less than two minutes played in the match.
The game settled down for a period, with both defences snuffing out the few chances created. The stalement was broken by Sean BARRETTO’s brilliant, delicate deflection of a long pass at the left boards, just over the advancing ‘keeper and into the empty goal. Also before the half was over Nick HIGNELL was about to collect a pass on a diagonal run, but Sean told him to leave it. Nick continued his run to the left, and Sean calmly passed the ball in front of the stranded goalkeeper for Nick HIGNELL to fire the ball powerfully into the back-board. However, Pat HARRIS scored again within a minute, and Shankar PREMAKANTHAN in the Canadian goal had to make a couple of important penalty corner saves to preserve the lead at the interval.
After the break, the USA upped the tempo with some incisive runs, especially from the HARRIS brothers Pat and Sean, but nobody could fashion a good scoring chance. With ten minutes left, a fast passing move left Sean BARRETTO open to fire home his second goal of the game. Shortly after Brandon BARBER increased the lead with a trademark goal; a powerful, low shot through little or no gap. Immediately after the re-start, Luke GOVIA capped his hard-running tournament with a fine deflection right in front of the US ‘keeper. At 6-2 there was no way back for the USA, but they persevered, and Thomas KRAUSS scored a consolation effort from close range to complete the scoring.
Although he wasn’t on the scoresheet in the final, Jonathan ROBERTS was easily the tournament’s top goalscorer with 18 goals and he took home a second trophy as MVP. Brandon BARBER was equal second goalscorer with 8. And finally Shankar PREMAKANTHAN was voted top goalkeeper, completing a clean sweep of the awards for Canada.
With the first place finish, the Canadian men’s team qualify’s for the Indoor World Cup in Poland next year, where they will attempt to maintain their record of top non-European team.
