Canada secured their passage into the knockout phase of the FIFA Women's World Cup Finals on June 15, comfortably accounting for a decidedly disappointing Football Ferns team 2-0 in front of 14,856 fans at the Stade des Alpes in Grenoble. It was very much a backs-to-the-wall job from the outset for the Football Ferns, but only after Shelina Zadorsky's header had prevented a Catherine Bott cross from reaching Betsy Hassett and Rosie White in the fourth minute. Immediately afterwards, Abby Erceg stepped in to prevent Jessie Fleming from bursting into the penalty area, while soon afterwards, Erin Nayler dealt with a cross-shot from Janine Beckie and a tame header from the same player after Kadeisha Buchanan's ball forward was flicked on by Christine Sinclair. After Erceg blocked a Beckie piledriver, another driven cross from the winger left Bott in agony, and forced her premature departure from the fray with a forearm injury, almost certainly a broken bone of some description. While the Football Ferns were down to ten, prior to Annalie Longo's introduction as substitute, Canada went desperately close to breaking the deadlock from a Beckie corner. Her delivery to the far post saw Sinclair rising above all-comers, only to head against the crossbar. Buchanan latched onto the rebound, but saw her header blocked by Rebekah Stott, then cleared off the line by Katie Bowen. The Football Ferns survived that genuine scare, and continued to survive on crumbs from the rich man's table as the Canadians dominated possession. But they didn't truly threaten Nayler's goal. On the half-hour, a super tackle by Stott stopped Nichelle Prince in her tracks as she entered the penalty area, while Erceg was next to foil the Canadian striker before a cross from Ashley Lawrence was punched off Sinclair's head by Nayler. Eight minutes before half-time, a Zadorsky cross picked out the head of Prince, but she could only guide the ball onto the roof of the net, after which the Football Ferns engineered a chance out of nothing. Stott surged out of defence and played a one-two with Sarah Gregorius before spreading the ball wide to Hassett. Her cross had White's name written all over it until the hitherto untroubled Stephanie Labbe punched it away to Olivia Chance, whose cross-shot flew across the face of goal. The general pattern of play in the first half continued unabated after half-time, with the addition of some Canadian goals which were richly deserved. After Beckie cut in off the left and curled a shot over the bar, the first of them materialised in the 48th minute. Beckie released Prince down the left, her pace giving her the edge of the fast-retreating figures of Stott and Erceg. As both approached the speedster, Prince played the ball inside to the completely unmarked figure of Fleming, who calmly steered the

sphere into the bottom far corner of the net - 1-0. Within seconds, they should have had a second, Sinclair steering a shot over the bar from ten yards after Prince released Beckie down the left, allowing her to wrong-foot Ria Percival and deliver a cross into the heart of the penalty area. The relentless Canadian pressure continued, with only a terrific Erceg tackle thwarting the in-full-flight Prince in the 54th minute, the same player firing wide of the mark four minutes later as Beckie got the better of Percival once more, the long-time New Zealand fullback having to reprise her old role following Bott's injury-enforced departure. The Football Ferns weren't aiding their cause by turning over hard-earned possession to Canada within a couple of passes of securing the ball. They really weren't at the races in this match - it was a feeble display by their standards, and it was little wonder that the Canadians duly dominated proceedings all over the park, virtually from Japanese referee Yoshimi Yamashita's first whistle. After Nayler had smothered a twenty-yarder from Prince, the Football Ferns custodian pulled off a contender for Save of the Tournament in the 72nd minute, flying to her left to tip a header from Prince over the bar, following a cross from Sinclair. The Football Ferns mounted a rare attacking raid in the 76th minute, following a free-kick. Longo and Percival combined on the right, with the latter's cross headed past the post by Erceg. The same pair combined to create an opening for White in stoppage time, but she, too, headed past the post on a night New Zealand will want to forget. For in between these attempts, Canada had doubled their advantage to claim a decisive victory. Fleming played the ball wide to the overlapping Desiree Scott, whose cross arced to the back post. Sinclair rose once more, and this time hit the post with her header, which rebounded across the goalmouth. Prince was first to react - 2-0. The Canadians had further chances to score, with Bowen's desperate challenge denying Scott in the act of shooting in the 86th minute, before Percival roared back to thwart her West Ham United team-mate Adriana Leon in the penalty area two minutes later - guarantee the Football Fern will make plenty of mileage out of that confrontation. Leon will only need to remind her Kiwi team-mate of the final score, however, one which flattered a hugely disappointing Football Ferns side, who won't need telling they let themselves down on this occasion, and now take on Cameroon in Montpellier in five days' time knowing that their ambitions of a first Women's World Cup Finals and progression to the knockout stages hinge on the outcome. Canada:     Labbe; Riviere (Chapman, 75), Buchanan, Zadorsky, Lawrence; Prince (Leon, 84), Scott, Schmidt, Beckie (Quinn, 83); Sinclair, Fleming F'ball Ferns:     Nayler; Bott (Longo, 18), Stott, Erceg, Riley; Hassett (Kete, 85), Bowen, Percival, Chance; White, Gregorius (Green, 62) Referee:     Yoshimi Yamashita (Japan)