Christine Sinclair scored a spectacular goal for Canada in a 2-1 loss to Germany on Sunday. (Associated Press)
BERLIN - There was a roar as the German team stepped onto the field before the game - the almost vibrational roar of 73,680 flag-waving, cracker-shaking fans.
When the Canadian team followed shortly thereafter, there was a slightly lesser but very respectable cheer, at least to my ears.
I've never been overly patriotic - perhaps too many years roaming the world because of work. But in that moment, seeing those red and white uniforms out on the field, I must admit I felt a little warm and fuzzy inside.
And even more than patriotism, it's because this Women's World Cup is personal.
Like many of you [readers in Canada], I grew up in the soccer system that produced our national team players. Starting from the age of three or four, I remember playing for teams named after flowers and charismatic mega fauna. We vied for oranges and pink popsicles at the end of mid-afternoon games.
Later on, I had the privilege to play with and against a handful of the players on Team Canada as part of rep. teams, university leagues, and in the Quebec and National training programs. I was even coached at UBC by Canada's assistant coach and former player, Andrea Neil.
Most importantly, though, I'm the very proud stepsister of veteran player Rhian Wilkinson.
So it's personal. And naturally during Canada's 2-1 loss to Germany on Sunday, it was impossible for me to keep my journalistic hat on. I became a blend of follower, fan, friend, former-teammate and family. Somewhere between the national anthems, the flashing lights, inexhaustible Mexican wave, or incomprehensible German songs - let alone the brutish tackles of the opposition - my nerves got the best of me.
Speaking to perennially cool Christine Sinclair in the lead-up to the opener, she told me how she stays focused on the field. "You do look at the crowd and the stadium during warm-up, but as soon as the whistle blows, it all sort of disappears," she said.
And despite an opening slip in the first few minutes of the game, Sinclair proved her cool once more in a very collected free kick.
But I wasn't the only one with nerves. I could feel it coming straight off the pitch.
In the first half, there were a few moments of beautiful soccer - a little footwork by Kaylyn Kyle, nice one-touches by Jonelle Filigno and Sinclair. Sophie Schmidt had a strong first half in the midfield. But on a whole, the team seemed shaken.
In the second half, the Germans pushed harder. Canada was hanging in there, hanging on for dear life.
"Allez les filles!" I cheered from a very German, very drunk section of the stands.
Overall the Canadians had more ball possession, but they didn't capitalize, including Sinclair's loft over the net in the first minutes of the game, and Filigno's botched first touch in front of the net in the 86th minute. In the first half the team's defence was porous on the left side, leading to the first two goals, and several other chances. The midfield in the second half was a gaping wasteland.
If it weren't for the Sinclair goal, I would have left a little disappointed, I must admit. But it was a beautiful goal, perfect in fact. That one goal made all the difference.
And in the end, 2:1 is a very respectable score against the German giants. As John Molinaro points out, Canada has lost all 10 games they've played against Germany, including a 5-0 friendly last year in Dresden. I'll be getting into this more in my future blogs, but Canada has still got a ways to go before it can meet Germany on a program level - the results speak for themselves. Canada's getting better, but climbing to the top takes time.
The German supporters I met were a bit surprised at the low goal differential.
"I was hoping for a score of 3-0, but 2-1 is OK," said Melanie Schultze, as she headed out of the stadium.
And Canadian fans seemed pretty content with the loss.
"We are proud of the girls - they played great," said Sven Hapke from Burlington, Ontario, who came to Germany with his two daughters. "We are happy it wasn't a blow-out like many people here thought it would be."
After the game coach Carolina Morace praised the team's star striker Christine Sinclair, after she endured a possibly broken nose in the second half, and went on to score.
"I asked her if she wanted to come out and she said 'no, absolutely not - I want to play.' She didn't want to give up."
Now it's all about getting that focus back. The next two games are even more important.
"Allez les filles!"
Follow Anjali Nayar on Twitter.
And check out her photo essay here.
When the Canadian team followed shortly thereafter, there was a slightly lesser but very respectable cheer, at least to my ears.
I've never been overly patriotic - perhaps too many years roaming the world because of work. But in that moment, seeing those red and white uniforms out on the field, I must admit I felt a little warm and fuzzy inside.
And even more than patriotism, it's because this Women's World Cup is personal.
Like many of you [readers in Canada], I grew up in the soccer system that produced our national team players. Starting from the age of three or four, I remember playing for teams named after flowers and charismatic mega fauna. We vied for oranges and pink popsicles at the end of mid-afternoon games.
Later on, I had the privilege to play with and against a handful of the players on Team Canada as part of rep. teams, university leagues, and in the Quebec and National training programs. I was even coached at UBC by Canada's assistant coach and former player, Andrea Neil.
Most importantly, though, I'm the very proud stepsister of veteran player Rhian Wilkinson.
So it's personal. And naturally during Canada's 2-1 loss to Germany on Sunday, it was impossible for me to keep my journalistic hat on. I became a blend of follower, fan, friend, former-teammate and family. Somewhere between the national anthems, the flashing lights, inexhaustible Mexican wave, or incomprehensible German songs - let alone the brutish tackles of the opposition - my nerves got the best of me.
Speaking to perennially cool Christine Sinclair in the lead-up to the opener, she told me how she stays focused on the field. "You do look at the crowd and the stadium during warm-up, but as soon as the whistle blows, it all sort of disappears," she said.
And despite an opening slip in the first few minutes of the game, Sinclair proved her cool once more in a very collected free kick.
But I wasn't the only one with nerves. I could feel it coming straight off the pitch.
In the first half, there were a few moments of beautiful soccer - a little footwork by Kaylyn Kyle, nice one-touches by Jonelle Filigno and Sinclair. Sophie Schmidt had a strong first half in the midfield. But on a whole, the team seemed shaken.
In the second half, the Germans pushed harder. Canada was hanging in there, hanging on for dear life.
"Allez les filles!" I cheered from a very German, very drunk section of the stands.
Overall the Canadians had more ball possession, but they didn't capitalize, including Sinclair's loft over the net in the first minutes of the game, and Filigno's botched first touch in front of the net in the 86th minute. In the first half the team's defence was porous on the left side, leading to the first two goals, and several other chances. The midfield in the second half was a gaping wasteland.
If it weren't for the Sinclair goal, I would have left a little disappointed, I must admit. But it was a beautiful goal, perfect in fact. That one goal made all the difference.
And in the end, 2:1 is a very respectable score against the German giants. As John Molinaro points out, Canada has lost all 10 games they've played against Germany, including a 5-0 friendly last year in Dresden. I'll be getting into this more in my future blogs, but Canada has still got a ways to go before it can meet Germany on a program level - the results speak for themselves. Canada's getting better, but climbing to the top takes time.
The German supporters I met were a bit surprised at the low goal differential.
"I was hoping for a score of 3-0, but 2-1 is OK," said Melanie Schultze, as she headed out of the stadium.
And Canadian fans seemed pretty content with the loss.
"We are proud of the girls - they played great," said Sven Hapke from Burlington, Ontario, who came to Germany with his two daughters. "We are happy it wasn't a blow-out like many people here thought it would be."
After the game coach Carolina Morace praised the team's star striker Christine Sinclair, after she endured a possibly broken nose in the second half, and went on to score.
"I asked her if she wanted to come out and she said 'no, absolutely not - I want to play.' She didn't want to give up."
Now it's all about getting that focus back. The next two games are even more important.
"Allez les filles!"
Follow Anjali Nayar on Twitter.
And check out her photo essay here.
