Canada Learning to Play Under Pressure After Reaching World Cup Quarter-Finals

Canada had only once before won a single elimination game in the Women's World Cup. They didn't win at all in the group stage four years ago.

So, this is progress. Canada played in front of a record 53,855 crowd on Sunday night, and they beat Switzerland 1-0 to advance to the quarter-finals.

And they are learning to play—and win—tight games: Five of their past eight games, including friendlies, have ended as 1-0 victories. This team was supposed to be loaded with lots of ammunition, a run-and-gun offence that set out to dominate the game. “As head coach, I want my team to attack,” Canada coach John Herdman wrote in the Globe and Mail.

Instead, they are managing the games with tactical smarts and the right amount of patience.

Josee Belanger scored the winning goal for Canada against the Swiss, but she was only in a position to score because Herdman put her back in her natural position.

Belanger had spent the group stage covering as a right-back for the injured Rhian Wilkinson, but she was restored as a striker, and she completed a beautiful combination play to get Canada a crucial goal five minutes after half-time.

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It was Herdman who coaxed Belanger back into the national team after Belanger had spent some time injured herself. She missed the 2011 World Cup and considered retirement.

Before that, she was good for a goal every two games. Belanger, now 29, needed Herdman to convince her to buy into the program. Herman replaced Caroline Morace on the bench, and that seemed to change everything.

“I heard the team environment was better,” the Quebec native told TSN. “At that time I was coaching, and with those girls looking me, I wanted to be a model for them.”

Belanger’s redemption was not exactly foretold at the beginning of this game. The Swiss had completely dominated the Canadians in the first half, with Ramona Bachman pressing the hosts every time she picked up the ball. When Canada did have the ball, they could not break down the Swiss.

So Herdman challenged his team to take the initiative in the second half.

“He just put it pretty simply. He just said 'We can't have any regrets ... This second half we're going for it.' And everybody did," goalkeeper Erin McLeod told TSN.

The goal was a product of a nice cross into the box from Wilkinson. Christine Sinclair nudged the ball toward Belanger, who curled it into the far side of the net.

It was one of just two shots on target, but Canada score at the right time. Then they keep their lead.

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The 19-year-old Kadeisha Buchanan was always there to clear the lines, and so was McLeod when anything slipped by the defence.

A late surge from the Swiss forced McLeod to make two key saves, including a fingertip stop on Vanessa Bernauer. In the final minutes, McLeod was also confident in the air, rising to claim the ball before anyone else reached it.

The whole attitude of Canada is changing. They are working for one another, supporting each other, inching along to another game. The lack of goals brought about much criticism during the group stage, including from this author here. But the will and belief in this team is only growing.

Their next game is Saturday in Vancouver. Expect another record crowd for a Canadian football match.

“Look, at the end of the day, I’ll say it again, job done,” Herdman told TSN. “England or Norway. Let’s do it.”