When a Canadian roster of any sort is announced, it usually comes with the same basic ingredients: a bunch of familiar faces, some newcomers, one or two "really?!" selections and an overall sense among fans of "yeah, I guess that will work... or, at least, I hope it will."
Such is the case with the roster of the 16 players whose National Women's Soccer League salaries will be paid by the CSA in 2014, a list that was submitted to the league by head coach John Herdman in late December and was unveiled on Friday morning.
Canada's list, as you'll see, includes that mix of veterans, newbies and head-scratchers (players who are new to the list -- i.e. weren't allocated in 2013 -- are in bold), and is ostensibly a representation of who Herdman sees as part of his player pool for the coming year:
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
Boston Breakers
Chelsea Stewart, Kaylyn Kyle
Chicago Red Stars
Rachel Quon, Adriana Leon, Erin McLeod
FC Kansas City
Desiree Scott, Lauren Sesselmann
Houston Dash (expansion team)
Melissa Tancredi
Portland Thorns
Christine Sinclair, Karina LeBlanc
Seattle Reign
Carmelina Moscato
Sky Blue FC
Sophie Schmidt, Jonelle Filigno
Washington Spirit
Diana Matheson, Robyn Gayle
Western New York Flash
Selenia Iacchelli
Players who were allocated in 2013 but are off the list this year are Emily Zurrer (moved to Jitex BK in Sweden), Melanie Booth (retired), Rhian Wilkinson, Bryanna McCarthy and Jodi-Ann Robinson.
Interestingly, Desiree Scott still has a spot even though it was announced this week that she will be joining Notts County in England this season. Presuming that this is just a result of Herdman having submitted his list on Dec. 22, before the move was known, it will be interesting to see who -- if anyone -- takes her spot. (FC Kansas City still seems to be under the impression she's coming back, even though CSN has been told that Scott-to-England is indeed a done deal.)
The omissions of Zurrer and Booth (due to circumstances), as well as McCarthy and Robinson (due to lack of playing time) were predictable, but Wilkinson's may turn some heads. The 31-year-old fullback has over 140 caps for Canada, but clearly Herdman sees more upside in Stewart, 23, and Quon, 22, on the backline going forward. Wilkinson has played several seasons in <strike>Sweden</strike> Norway and forged good connections there, so don't be surprised if she finds herself a job in Scandinavia.
Update (Jan. 4, 11 a.m. ET): Via Twitter, Wilkinson provided the following insight about her situation: "For personal reasons I will not be heading back to Boston this season." She wished the team well, and assured fans that she would still answer the call for Canada.
As for Stewart and Quon -- both were born in the U.S.A., but they come with much different narratives.
Stewart was part of the Canadian youth setup, and has 44 caps for the senior national team (and an Olympic bronze medal). Quon... well... her story is a bit more fraught. She's got plenty of youth experience -- with the U.S.A. Quon was on Canada's roster for last June's friendly in Toronto, but was ineligible to play since she didn't have FIFA clearance. She has since received that clearance (h/t John Molinaro) and is now free, thanks to a family connection, to represent Canada at the international level. While depth is always a welcome thing, suffice to say not all Canadian fans are especially supportive of this.
Either way, there they are on the list alongside Iacchelli, who's forged an interesting tale of her own. The 27-year-old hadn't regularly featured with a Canadian team (the U20s) since 2006, until Herdman called her in for several camps in late 2013. During that absence from the national team, she and Zurrer had started up a business together -- a frozen yogurt and waffle truck in Vancouver called Sweet Ride.
With Zurrer too far away to help run the business, and a new club contract on her plate, Iacchelli's going to have a very busy 2014.
Tancredi and Filigno were two names Herdman had mentioned as NWSL targets, and it'll be a welcome sight for two more talented Canadian strikers to be playing regularly (given Big Red's relative punchlessness as of late). Filigno, still just 23, has been to two Olympic Games with Canada and will surely be motivated after finally finishing her schooling at Rutgers this spring (not to jinx it or anything).
Tancredi, of course, is a wild card. The 32-year-old showed exactly what she's capable of at the 2012 Olympics (which is to say, a lot), but looked out of sorts during Canada's friendly against the USA in June 2013 (understandable, given that it was her only game of the year, plopped into the middle of a self-imposed absence to further her education).
Perhaps the most surprising exclusion was Kara Lang, whose attempted comeback to the national team was one of the top stories of the past year. Herdman made no secret of his desire to find her an NWSL spot in order to provide her playing time ahead of the 2015 Women's World Cup, but apparently, such playing time will need to be found elsewhere. So, what happened?
CSN has been told by a reliable source that Lang was offered an NWSL contract, but turned it down.
The source said several other players also turned down offers. While this is nothing more than speculation, one wonders whether that group included the likes of Brittany Baxter (nee Timko), who remains a regular member of the national team despite being without a club for several years, and Josee Belanger, who Herdman has convinced to return to the national-team setup after a several-year absence.
Players rejecting deals is perhaps not surprising given that, as reported by Equalizer Soccer last April, allocated national-team players from Canada and Mexico can expect to earn only about $20,000 per season. Those numbers may be slightly higher in the league's second year of operation, but even so, no NWSL player should expect to earn a living wage from playing club soccer in 2014.
That's an unfortunate economic reality of the women's game as it currently stands, and helps explain why Scott and Zurrer have decided to take their talents across the pond (though women's players in Europe are hardly laughing their way to the bank either).
In any event, the allocation list answers the big question (namely, "who's going to be on the list?") but leaves us with several others, as we embark on the final full calendar year before the Women's World Cup comes to Canada.
Can Tancredi round back into the form we saw on display at London 2012? What are Lang's club options, and what does this mean for her national-team comeback? Now that we know Quon clearly is a part of Herdman's plans, how will she fit into them (and what sort of response can be expected from the same Canadian fanbase that boos Sydney Leroux off the field every chance they get)? Will we see more Canadians turn up on the other side of the pond in 2014?
Answers a few questions, but leaves us with even more? Yep, that's a Canadian roster announcement alright.
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