Latest news with #JadeHoumphanh
CBC
08-05-2025
- Sport
- CBC
3 Saskatoon players clinch spots in 1st FIFA Futsal World Cup
Social Sharing Canada Soccer's women's futsal national team — which features three Saskatoon players — won the inaugural CONCACAF women's futsal championship in Guatemala City last weekend, clinching a spot in the first-ever FIFA Futsal World Cup. Futsal is often compared to indoor soccer, but played in a smaller court with a few different rules. The fast-paced game has made its mark internationally, but is still growing in Canada and across the province. Saskatoon's Erica Hindmarsh, Jadyn Steinhauer and Jade Houmphanh are three of the 14 Team Canada players who beat Panama 8-2 to win the championship. University of Saskatchewan Huskie Coach Jenson Barandica-Hamilton also joined the team as an assistant coach. Barandica-Hamilton said he was "amazed" when the team, which had only started playing together earlier this year, was able to secure the win. "I don't think it has fully sunk in yet," he said. "What we were able to accomplish is really mind-blowing in a way, considering we beat some countries who had been preparing for years for this event, whereas our program is a very new program." Alex Derosa, head coach for the Canadian team, was given the opportunity to compete in the tournament at the beginning of January and did not start assembling the team until the middle of February, Barandica-Hamilton said. "It's a very, very quick turnaround in terms of putting together a national team and going to compete at international level," he said. Players like Humphrey, Hindmarsh and Steinhauer have been participating in futsal during their off-seasons from soccer, building on their decision making, technical ability, speed of play and creativity, Barandica-Hamilton said. WATCH | 3 Sask. players help take home 1st women's futsal championship for Canada: 2 hours ago Duration 1:22 A surreal moment Houmphanh, a defender for the team, was finishing one of her nursing shifts when she received a call from Barandica-Hamilton [her coach on the Huskies], who told her she would be one of the 14 girls invited to play on Team Canada. She said it "felt like a very surreal moment." Houmphanh first got into futsal for fun in 2016 after a former coach introduced it to her. Houmphanh said many people on the national team were surprised to see people from Saskatchewan playing, as most players were from Quebec and Montreal. "I feel like myself and my other two teammates that got selected have very unique qualities about ourselves that helped us stand out at the camp and then make the final roster." The team had no expectations coming into the competition and wanted to see "where they stood," Houmphanh said. In its first game against Costa Rica, Team Canada lost 2-3. Despite the result, the players gained confidence. "I think that really solidified us to just see the level that we were at compared to other teams." The team went on to win four straight games to win the tournament. Houmphanh said she hopes the success from winning the championship will show it pays to invest in women's sports and give women different opportunities to progress in their athletic careers. "I feel like sometimes we're overlooked compared to the bigger provinces," she said. "But there is talent, and there's a lot of good programs going on that is building the sport in our province." Next up, World Cup Team Canada is now set to compete at the inaugural FIFA Futsal Women's World Cup in the Philippines starting on Nov. 21. Barandica-Hamilton expects a "massive challenge" for his team, which will compete against countries that have professional futsal leagues like Costa Rica, Portugal, Mexico and Brazil. "But as I said, we're a team that is very 'live in the moment,' are very 'pride in what we do', and and we hope to represent well."
CBC
15-04-2025
- Sport
- CBC
Canada Soccer names roster for inaugural CONCACAF W Futsal Championship in late April
Canada Soccer has announced its roster for the inaugural CONCACAF W Futsal Championship, scheduled for April 28 to May 4 in Guatemala. Jadyn Steinhauer, Jade Houmphanh and Erika Hindmarsh are drawn from the recently crowned Canadian champion SK Impact FC from Saskatoon. Shayla He joins from the Canadian runner-up FC Underdogs of Montreal. There are also four players from Quebec's Xtreme FCL. The nine-team tournament at the Domo Polideportivo in Guatemala City will determine the region's first-ever women's futsal champion and send two teams to the inaugural FIFA Futsal Women's World Cup later this year in the Philippines. The FIFA Futsal World Cup, slated for Nov. 21 to Dec. 7, will feature 16 teams from the six FIFA confederations. Futsal is a five-a-side indoor game played in two 20-minute halves. Like hockey, teams can make changes on the fly. Canada had been drawn in Group B alongside the United States, Costa Rica, and the winner of a play-in match between Honduras and Nicaragua on April 28. Canada opens April 29 against Costa Rica before facing the Honduras-Nicaragua winner on April 30 and the U.S. on May 1. The top two teams from each of the two groups advance to the May 3 semifinals with the championship game the next day. Both finalists move on to the FIFA World Cup. "It's a unique chance to measure ourselves against the best in CONCACAF and see how far we've come," Canada coach Alexandre Da Rocha said in a statement.: It's an absolute honour and a privilege to kick-start this journey — we have the players, we have the staff, and we have everything in place to compete with every team at this competition." Female players want FIFA championship Da Rocha, a former coach of the Quebec's women's futsal team, has served as an assistant coach with the Canadian men's futsal side since 2019. Female futsal players have long campaigned for a FIFA championship. In 2022, the International Women's Futsal Players Association condemned FIFAs "public neglect towards women futsal players." FIFA held the first Futsal Men's World Cup in 1989 with the 2028 edition featuring 24 teams. Defending champion Brazil has won six of the 10 tournaments to date, finishing runner-up once and third twice. Canada has not participated since being one of the 16 invited countries for the inaugural men's tournament, failing to advance out of the first round after losing to Argentina and Belgium before downing Japan. That 1989 futsal team included Paul Dolan, Pat Harrington, Nick De Santis, Eddy Berdusco, Lyndon Hooper and Alex Bunbury. Dolan was also a member of Canada's 1986 FIFA World Cup squad in Mexico. There have been eight editions of the CONCACAF Men's Futsal Championship with Canada participating in four of them. The Canadians' best showing was making the quarterfinals, in both 2021 and 2024. Panama won the title last time out in 20204 ending Costa Rica's run of three straight championships. Canada roster Goalkeepers: Jadyn Steinhauer, Saskatoon, SK Impact FC; Lea Palacio, Montreal, FC Grenadieres. Fixo: Jade Houmphanh, Saskatoon, SK Impact FC; Maude Lagace, Laval, Que., Xtreme FCL; Sophie Therien, Montreal, Xtreme FCL. Ala: Cynthia Gaspar-Freire, Quebec City, Xtreme FCL; Erika Hindmarsh, Saskatoon, SK Impact FC; Erika Pion, Repentigny, Que., Atletico Montreal; Sadie Sider, Ottawa, University of South Florida; Shayla He, Montreal, FC Underdogs; Stephie-Ann Dadaille, Laval, Que., Atletico Montreal.
