The Canadians completed a remarkable qualifying campaign on Wednesday with a defeat, defeated 1-0 by Panama, but will continue to go to Qatar as the first finisher in CONCACAF. “And more will follow,” promised coach John Herdman. “We have traveled thousands of miles,” he added. “We have played many minutes. We have kicked every ball. We have never stopped. And we are on our way to Qatar, No. 1 in CONCACAF. I will sleep well tonight.” Despite the defeat, the Canadians gathered at the Estadio Rommel Fernandez after the final whistle to celebrate that they finished at the top of the last qualifying round match at CONCACAF, which covers North and Central America and the Caribbean. Herdman said he felt “weird” but also right to celebrate after a defeat that saw the Canadian draw annulled for offside and the Panamans doing their best to waste time as the clock broke. “It was a hell of a journey for this group of fans, the organization (Canada Soccer) and these players,” Herdman said. “And the work begins now, at all levels of the game. This is just the beginning of what we have to do. And tonight was one of those brilliant learning experiences. “It was a master class from Panama in the second half, just how to stop at least a quarter of the game. It was great. So we learned from that.” There is a lot to celebrate. Canada’s qualifying round began on March 25, 2021, when it opened the first round with a 5-1 win over Bermuda in Orlando. The Canadians were 73rd at the time, climbing 40 places in the standings on a trip that saw them playing in the streets in eight different countries. They got 14-2-4 in three rounds in the qualifiers, beating the opponent 54-8. The two defeats occurred in the last international window, starting with the 1-0 defeat last week in Costa Rica, with Canada having to play one player down for two thirds of the match. The Canadians then qualified for the World Cup with Sunday’s 4-0 win over Jamaica in Toronto, leaving their hair down for a day of celebration before returning to training. All hosts won the last day of the CONCACAF qualifiers on Wednesday. Costa Rica beat USA 2-0, Mexico beat El Salvador 2-0 and Jamaica beat Honduras 2-1. The Canadian men ended in a draw with Mexico’s No. 12 with 28 points, 8-2-4, but took first place in the round robin of the eight teams due to the superior goal difference. The 13th US ranking (7-3-4, 25 points) finished third in the goal difference against No. 42 in Costa Rica. Costa Rica finished fourth after winning all three outings in the last international window and will face No. 111 of New Zealand in an intercontinental playoff in June. The All Whites beat the Solomon Islands 5-0 in 142nd place earlier Wednesday in the final of the Oceania qualifiers. On Friday, Herdman’s team will find out what awaits them this November at the 32-team football show. The 33rd-ranked Canadians wanted to finish first in the region and earn valuable FIFA rankings that could help them draw in Friday’s World Cup in Doha. The four pot draws for the 32 teams are divided by world ranking. Canada hoped to move him from Pot 4 to Pot 3, which would allow him a more favorable draw by avoiding a number of higher ranked countries. But it was not to be. “I just felt we weren’t good enough in our game,” Herdman said. “We had better performances.” The temperature was humid at 27 degrees Celsius at the start, the temperature was 30 degrees. And it was a miserable affair without any team being targeted in the first half. The hosts went on the counterattack in the 49th minute with Gabriel Torres, in his 100th appearance, scoring with a volley the perfect cross of Jose Luis Rodriguez. The cross passed Kamal Miller with Torres turning his focus with his right foot over goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau in the top corner. The Canadians pressed as the second half continued with both teams finding more space in the attack. The Canadian considered that equalized with the diving head of the substitute Cyle Larin in the 80th minute, but the goal was judged offside after a video check. With the Canadians pushing for a draw, Atiba Hutchinson’s back heel found Junior Hoilett and the veteran sent a cross to Larin in front of the net for something resembling his 25th goal for Canada. The Besiktas striker put his finger in his mouth to silence the crowd before kissing his signal while celebrating. But the celebrations ended when referee Jair Maruffo went to the stadium screen to check the offside. Canada continued to come forward during the seven minutes of delay, but could not score, with Larin’s head going out of a free kick. No. 63 Panama (6-5-3, 21 points) finishes fifth just outside qualifying. The Canadians are at the top of the region in their first appearance in the CONCACAF final qualifying round after qualifying in France in ’98. Herdman made seven changes to the starting line-up that qualified for Sunday with a 4-0 win over Jamaica in Toronto. Hutchinson returned as captain, playing in the center-back position instead of his regular role in midfield, with Crepos taking the baton at goal. Also in attendance were Miller, Alistair Johnston, Ismael Kone, Lucas Cavallini and Mark-Anthony Kaye. The initial 11 team entered the game with 316 participations. Hutchinson, 39, took the No. 95 cap, extending his record in Canada Men. It was a first start for 19-year-old Cone, the CF Montreal midfielder who made his bench debut last week against Costa Rica. Larin and Hoilett came in with half an hour left as Canada looked for a draw. Hewlett and Larin almost fed David in front of goal, only to see Panama goalkeeper Luis Mejia block the ball with his body. Crepeau made a nice dive in the 77th minute to stop Edgar Barcenas’s foul from the edge of the penalty spot. Herdman’s record at the helm of men is now 29-8-4, with the only defeats from the USA (twice). Mexico (twice) Haiti, Iceland, Costa Rica and Panama. Men ranked 94th in the world when Herdman took over in January 2018, passing the women’s program. Panama, which, like Canada and El Salvador, had to survive two qualifying rounds to get here, started the final qualifying round in style with a 4-2-2 record that included a victory over the USA and draw with Mexico. But she won only one of her next five games (1-3-1) ahead of the final against Canada. Canada entered Wednesday’s game with a career-high 4-1-6 record against Panama, winning 4-1 when the two met on October 13 at BMO Field with Alphonso Davies scoring in an unforgettable solo effort. The only defeat came in the same place on Wednesday night, a 2-0 defeat in September 2012 in the qualifiers for Brazil 2014.
