Canada 6, Honduras 0: Hometown boy kick-starts Gold Cup demolition at B.C. Place
The last time he was in
B.C. Place
, Niko Sigur was a wide-eyed ball boy, watching Jonathan David and the Canadian men's national team thump French Guiana 4-1 in Nations League qualifying.
Tuesday night, the Burnaby native was on the receiving end of a give and go with the star Canadian striker, scoring his first goal for the Reds in a 6-0 domination of Honduras. It was Canada's opening match in the Gold Cup tournament, which will continue for them next week in Houston.
It was the sixth cap for the 21-year-old, who had dozens of friends and family who were part of the 24,286 in the stands at
B.C. Place
. He'd said Friday he wasn't just here to soak up the experience. He wanted to contribute.
GOAL 🇨🇦
NIKO SIGUR SCORES HIS FIRST FOR THE
#CANMNT
😎
Canada go up 1-0 over Honduras with a smooth give-and-go, finished perfectly 💪
🔴 Watch Gold Cup on OneSoccer & TSN
pic.twitter.com/ywuwiVMXEG
When he was that ballboy watching play in 2019, he wasn't just soaking up the experience. He was judging, assessing, comparing, and pondering if he had the technical ability to play at that level on this day.
'I always knew in the back of my mind that I could play there one day, and here I am,' said the utility back, who held down the right side of Canada's back line on Tuesday.
'I'm not really happy just being here and being a part of it. I want to contribute, and I know I can contribute. It's nice to be here, but I also want to make an impact and help the team.'
For Sigur, it's been a long and winding road to the national team. From the Whitecaps academy, to York University, to a stint with the League One Vaughn Azzuri in Ontario, he moved to Slovenia, playing for Radomlje's youth team, eventually transferring to the academy of Croatia's Hajduk Split in 2022. By 2023, he'd played his way onto the first team. A year later, the Croatian-Canadian dual citizen switched his national team allegiance to Canada.
And Tuesday, a nation applauded him.
GOAL 🇨🇦🇨🇦
It's TANI TIME 😎
#CanMNT
are up 2-0 over Honduras 🇭🇳 at the stroke of half-time as Tani Oluwaseyi finds a near-impossible angle and smacks it home 🚀
🔴 Watch Gold Cup on OneSoccer & TSN
pic.twitter.com/MfdNNc8d0c
David's flick of Sigur's pass split two defenders, and Sigur took two calm touches, the second one a slicing shot past Honduran keeper Edrick Menjívar into the near side corner 27 minutes into the game.
Tani Oluwaseyi made it 2-0 in first-half injury time, turning and roofing a ball from a sharp angle 10 yards out. He had a hand in Canada's third goal, getting a slight touch on a Richie Laryea cross, shifting its trajectory to a wide-open Tajon Buchanan at the back post, and he, too, put it in the top netting to make it 3-0 in the 48th minute.
GOAL 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
TAJON MAKES IT 3️⃣
It's 3-0 for the
#CanMNT
vs. Honduras as Tajon Buchanan finishes off pass across goal with his first touch 💪
🔴 Watch Gold Cup on OneSoccer & TSN
pic.twitter.com/sOEpSYF4S5
Honduras had only one shot in the first half; a weak, rolling effort from long distance that Dayne St. Clair easily scooped up. St. Clair stopped a semi breakaway in the 50th minute, then made another post-blank stop on the ensuing corner to keep Honduras off the scoresheet.
They finished with five shots — three on target — but the game was thoroughly controlled and measured by the Canadians. They held 57 per cent of the ball and outshot the visitors, putting 18 on frame — eight of those on target.
GOAL 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
#CanMNT
are cruising to victory, now up 4-0 over Honduras 🇭🇳 as Tajon Buchanan notches a 2nd from a corner kick 🎯
🔴 Watch Gold Cup on OneSoccer & TSN
pic.twitter.com/nySiaGlqvN
Promise David scored his second goal in as many games as
he finds his feet with his new national team
, collecting a tough leading pass from Ali Ahmed before chopping it back across Menjívar into the back of the net.
Anderlecht-bound Nathan Saliba,
late of Montreal FC
, completed the destruction with his 90th-minute golazo, a curling, left-footed strike from 20 yards out that Menjívar had no chance at.
Canada has a few more training days here before heading South for their next games. They play Curaçao on Saturday at Shell Energy Stadium in Houston, then face El Salvador on Tuesday — also in Houston.
GOAL 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
PROMISE DAVID MAKES IT 5 🔥
Look at the footwork on this effort as the
#CanMNT
go up 5-0 over Honduras 🇭🇳 amid chants of "We want six!"
🔴 Watch Gold Cup on OneSoccer & TSN
pic.twitter.com/sYz01FfKjx
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CBC
an hour ago
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Tajon Buchanan's brace lifts Canada to 6-0 Gold Cup win over Honduras
Social Sharing Niko Sigur has made some special memories over his years of watching soccer at Vancouver's B.C. Place. He added another Tuesday as he scored his first goal for Canada and helped his country thump Honduras 6-0 to open their Gold Cup campaign. "Of course, it feels really nice," Sigur said of the strike. "Something I'm working for all these years. You don't always see right away the work paying off, but this is one of those days that it is." The 21-year-old rightback/midfielder from Burnaby, B.C., was part of a well-rounded offensive onslaught for the 30th-ranked Canadians on Tuesday. Sigur opened the scoring in the 27th minute, and Tani Oluwaseyi followed with a tally in first-half injury time. Tajon Buchanan notched a brace with goals in the 48th and 65th minutes, substitute Promise David scored in the 75th, and Nathan Saliba sealed the win with a strike in the 90th minute. Goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair stopped all four on-target shots he faced from No. 75 Honduras. The victory was a "total team" effort, said Canada's assistant coach, Mauro Biello. "I can't look at one guy and find someone who had an off game. Everybody came out with the right mentality," said Biello, who stood in for head coach Jesse Marsch on the touchline as he sat out the first game of a two-game suspension. "We played within our identity, and we were able to not give them much and score goals. And that's part of who we want to be. And I think for this first game of the tournament, super happy to get it started in that way." WATCH | Buchanan strikes twice in Gold Cup opener: Tajon Buchanan strikes twice as Canada crushes Honduras in opening Gold Cup match 7 hours ago Duration 2:28 The Canadians settled into the game midway through the first half and took charge when Sigur scored in the 27th minute. Sigur passed off to Jonathan David at the top of the penalty area and, when David chipped it right back, he sent a right-footed shot sailing in past Honduras 'keeper Edrick Menjivar. His first goal for the senior national team came in his sixth appearance, and with ample friends and family in the announced crowd of 24,286. "I don't often get to play in front of my family and friends in Croatia. I've maybe got two, three people I have to give tickets to," said Sigur, who plays for signed with Hajduk Split in Croatia's first division back in December 2023. "This night was a little different. But it means the world to me. "And with the World Cup coming, we have two group stage games here [in Vancouver]. But we have a little bit of work to do in between, so we'll get to that." WATCH | Is Canada ready to win the Gold Cup?: Is Canada ready to win the Gold Cup? Plus, Holly Ward talks her NSL journey 21 hours ago Duration 15:58 Oluwaseyi doubled the lead in the third minute of first-half injury time, collecting a pass from Richie Lareya and quickly blasting a shot into the top corner of the net from the side of the six-yard box. He celebrated by running to the touchline and grabbing the jersey of Canadian defender Sam Adekugbe, who's away from the team after suffering a torn Achilles tendon last week. The offensive onslaught continued early in the second half. Lareya crossed a ball into Oluwaseyi, and the Minnesota United forward back-heeled it to Buchanan. Stationed at the side of the six-yard box, Buchanan popped a shot up and in under the crossbar to give Canada a 3-0 lead in the 48th minute. The 26-year-old forward — who currently plays for Spain's Villarreal CF — struck again in the 65th off a corner. Mathieu Choiniere swung a ball in, and Oluwaseyi jumped up, trying to head it on net. 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And I think so far, it's been going on pretty well to this point." Canada will return to action on June 21 when the squad faces No. 90 Curacao in Houston. The team will wrap up Group B play against No. 81 El Salvador on June 24. The winner and runner-up from each of the four groups advance to the knockout stage in the 16-team tournament. The finale will be held in Houston on July 6. Canada won the Gold Cup in 2000 and finished third in 2002. When the tournament was last held in 2023, the country lost to the United States in a penalty shootout in the round of 16.
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Canada 6, Honduras 0: Hometown boy kick-starts Gold Cup demolition at B.C. Place
The last time he was in B.C. Place , Niko Sigur was a wide-eyed ball boy, watching Jonathan David and the Canadian men's national team thump French Guiana 4-1 in Nations League qualifying. Tuesday night, the Burnaby native was on the receiving end of a give and go with the star Canadian striker, scoring his first goal for the Reds in a 6-0 domination of Honduras. It was Canada's opening match in the Gold Cup tournament, which will continue for them next week in Houston. It was the sixth cap for the 21-year-old, who had dozens of friends and family who were part of the 24,286 in the stands at B.C. Place . He'd said Friday he wasn't just here to soak up the experience. He wanted to contribute. GOAL 🇨🇦 NIKO SIGUR SCORES HIS FIRST FOR THE #CANMNT 😎 Canada go up 1-0 over Honduras with a smooth give-and-go, finished perfectly 💪 🔴 Watch Gold Cup on OneSoccer & TSN When he was that ballboy watching play in 2019, he wasn't just soaking up the experience. He was judging, assessing, comparing, and pondering if he had the technical ability to play at that level on this day. 'I always knew in the back of my mind that I could play there one day, and here I am,' said the utility back, who held down the right side of Canada's back line on Tuesday. 'I'm not really happy just being here and being a part of it. I want to contribute, and I know I can contribute. It's nice to be here, but I also want to make an impact and help the team.' For Sigur, it's been a long and winding road to the national team. From the Whitecaps academy, to York University, to a stint with the League One Vaughn Azzuri in Ontario, he moved to Slovenia, playing for Radomlje's youth team, eventually transferring to the academy of Croatia's Hajduk Split in 2022. By 2023, he'd played his way onto the first team. A year later, the Croatian-Canadian dual citizen switched his national team allegiance to Canada. And Tuesday, a nation applauded him. GOAL 🇨🇦🇨🇦 It's TANI TIME 😎 #CanMNT are up 2-0 over Honduras 🇭🇳 at the stroke of half-time as Tani Oluwaseyi finds a near-impossible angle and smacks it home 🚀 🔴 Watch Gold Cup on OneSoccer & TSN David's flick of Sigur's pass split two defenders, and Sigur took two calm touches, the second one a slicing shot past Honduran keeper Edrick Menjívar into the near side corner 27 minutes into the game. Tani Oluwaseyi made it 2-0 in first-half injury time, turning and roofing a ball from a sharp angle 10 yards out. He had a hand in Canada's third goal, getting a slight touch on a Richie Laryea cross, shifting its trajectory to a wide-open Tajon Buchanan at the back post, and he, too, put it in the top netting to make it 3-0 in the 48th minute. GOAL 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦 TAJON MAKES IT 3️⃣ It's 3-0 for the #CanMNT vs. Honduras as Tajon Buchanan finishes off pass across goal with his first touch 💪 🔴 Watch Gold Cup on OneSoccer & TSN Honduras had only one shot in the first half; a weak, rolling effort from long distance that Dayne St. Clair easily scooped up. St. Clair stopped a semi breakaway in the 50th minute, then made another post-blank stop on the ensuing corner to keep Honduras off the scoresheet. They finished with five shots — three on target — but the game was thoroughly controlled and measured by the Canadians. They held 57 per cent of the ball and outshot the visitors, putting 18 on frame — eight of those on target. GOAL 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦 #CanMNT are cruising to victory, now up 4-0 over Honduras 🇭🇳 as Tajon Buchanan notches a 2nd from a corner kick 🎯 🔴 Watch Gold Cup on OneSoccer & TSN Promise David scored his second goal in as many games as he finds his feet with his new national team , collecting a tough leading pass from Ali Ahmed before chopping it back across Menjívar into the back of the net. Anderlecht-bound Nathan Saliba, late of Montreal FC , completed the destruction with his 90th-minute golazo, a curling, left-footed strike from 20 yards out that Menjívar had no chance at. Canada has a few more training days here before heading South for their next games. They play Curaçao on Saturday at Shell Energy Stadium in Houston, then face El Salvador on Tuesday — also in Houston. GOAL 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦 PROMISE DAVID MAKES IT 5 🔥 Look at the footwork on this effort as the #CanMNT go up 5-0 over Honduras 🇭🇳 amid chants of "We want six!" 🔴 Watch Gold Cup on OneSoccer & TSN
