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Rowe ready to sub in for Canada’s national soccer team

By Craig Westcott/February 24, 2022

CBS soccer star Lauren Rowe, 17, has been named as one of five “training players” for Canada’s national Under-20 women’s soccer team, which will be vying over the next few weeks to qualify for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Costa Rica.

The team will go up against Saints Kitts & Nevis, El Salvador and Trinidad and Tobago in games scheduled from February 25 to March 12.

Members of CBS council were quick to sing Rowe’s praises for the achievement.

Ward 1 councillor Shelley Moores said she personally had the privilege of serving as the manager of one of Rowe’s teams when Rowe played at the nationals a few years ago. 

“I’ve always said from the very first day I saw her play that this girl is going places,” said Moores. “And I’m just so excited and I’m sure her family is very excited. It’s a big, big, big deal and a big opportunity for her. So, a big congratulations to Lauren and her family.”

While Rowe has been called up as a training player to the 20-person national squad, Mayor Darrin Bent noted, “If anybody comes off the field, she’ll be one of the first ones on, I’m sure.”

The mayor noted that Rowe only recently returned from the Vancouver Whitecaps training facility and has been identified since about the age of 14 by top scouts as a player to watch. Two years ago, Rowe was named the Newfoundland and Labrador Soccer Association’s Youth Female Athlete of the Year.

The addition to Canada’s Under-20 team could lead to even bigger things down the road, Bent added.

“This puts her in very good stead to possibly be part of Team Canada for the World Cup in 2024,” said the mayor. “It’s an amazing accomplishment for this young lady. She is an astounding player. Even if you don’t like soccer, if you saw her play, you’d have a grand appreciation for her talents and abilities. So, congratulations to Lauren… I know I want to see you playing on television when I’m cheering on our national women’s team in the very near future. And the national women’s team, of course, has led the way in Canada, and the men are catching up there now and we’re having an exciting time watching them.”

Canada Soccer have announced their squad for the upcoming 2022 Concacaf Women’s Under-20 Championship, Canada’s qualification route for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Costa Rica 2022. Canada’s 20-player squad, coached by Cindy Tye, will compete from 25 February to 12 March for one of four berths to the global tournament.

From 20 remaining Concacaf nations, Canada are in Group G with matches against Saint Kitts & Nevis on 25 February, El Salvador on 27 February, and then Trinidad and Tobago on 1 March. From Group G, three nations will advance to the knockout phase. Throughout the competition, fans will find extended coverage across Canada Soccer’s digital channels on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube featuring the hashtag #CANWNT.

This will be the first Concacaf youth tournament since the global pandemic that canceled tournaments in 2020 and 2021. Following the Concacaf Women’s Under-20 Championship in February and March, Canada will compete in the Concacaf Women’s Under-17 Championship from 23 April to 8 May and then the Concacaf Men’s Under-20 Championship this summer.

Canada Soccer will continue to closely monitor all Covid-19 developments in consultation with the Public Health Agency of Canada and relevant governing bodies through the Canada Soccer Sport Medicine Committee to ensure the safety of all players and staff.

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