The Canadian women’s field hockey team opened Women’s World League Round 2 with a convincing 5-0 victory over Turkey Saturday in Dublin, Ireland.
Early in the match the Canadians, ranked 22nd in the world, put a lot of pressure on the Turks, ranked 36th, setting the tone for what was to come in the subsequent sixty minutes.
The first goal of the game came in the seventh minute at the hands of Canadian forward Hannah Haughn who beat the Turkish keeper Selin Guzeller to make it 1-0.
Minutes later, Guzeller was forced to make a big save on a penalty stroke against Canadian defender Sara McManus. But the Turks couldn’t keep the Canadians at bay for much longer.
In the twelvth minute, Canadian forward Thea Culley was able to finish off a nice play by tipping the ball past Guzeller and giving Canada a 2-0 lead.
The start couldn’t have been drawn up any better, with Canada in full control throughout the first quarter.
McManus was able to make good on her next opportunity as in the nineteenth minute she converted on a penalty corner to give Canada the 3-0 lead as the two teams headed to the half-time break.
The offensive outburt continued in the second half with Canada holding a comfortable lead. In the thirty-fifth minute, forward Brienne Stairs, who was among the world’s top goal scorers in 2014, converted on a penalty corner to put Canada up 4-0. Stairs added her second of the game in the fifty-eight minute as Canada cruised to victory.
Canadian goalkeer Kaitlyn Williams earned the shutout for Canada in her 51st international match.
Canada will face host Ireland, one of the tournament favourites, on Sunday. The match will be live streamed at 8:15am PST/11:15 am EST the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paHrv0NVMHo
The top two finishers at World League 2 gain an entry into World League Round 3 in Spain in June, where the top teams will earn a spot at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
