Howard Walker, Staff Reporter
Midfielder Jermaine Hue juggles the ball during the Reggae Boyz's training for tomorrow's international friendly against Canada at the National Stadium. - Ian Allen/Staff Photographer
A 17-member Canadian squad arrived in the island yesterday for their international friendly against Jamaica tomorrow, hoping to complete the double over the Reggae Boyz and extend their unbeaten streak to five games.
The Canadians arrived over two hours late yesterday at 3:40 p.m. and had to miss their scheduled 5:00 p.m. training session at the Harbour View Mini-Stadium.
The Canadian team was whisked away to the Hilton Kingston hotel in New Kingston and will have their first workout at the National Stadium today starting at 11:00 a.m.
In the first encounter, a Rob Friend strike gave Canada a 1-0 win in Montreal on September 4 and coach Stephen Hart has assembled a strong unit that could repeat that performance.
Only four players in this squad are not plying their trade overseas - the Montreal Impact trio of goalkeeper Greg Sutton and defenders Adam Braz and Gabriel Gervais, along with the late inclusion of Martin Nash of the 2006 United Soccer Leagues champion Vancouver Whitecaps.
Canada, ranked 71 in the world, will be looking to Paul Stalteri of Tottenham Hotspur (England), Julian de Guzman, Deportivo La Coruna (Spain), Josh Simpson, Kaiserslautern (Germany), Tomasz Radzinski, Fulham (England) and Friend, Heerenveen (Netherlands) to lead the charge.
Efforts to contact coach Hart proved futile as after missing their evening training, he was locked away in a meeting with his team.
However, he was quoted on CanadaSoccer.com saying: "Playing in Jamaica will obviously be very different from recent games we have played. The climate must be considered and at home, Jamaica, with their passionate supporters, have proven difficult for most opposition. However, it's a challenge I am sure the team looks forward to."
Squad: Greg Sutton, Montreal Impact (Canada), Adam Braz, Montreal Impact (Canada), Kevin McKenna, Energie Cottbus (Germany), Reda, Marco Sogndal (Norway), Patrice Bernier, Tromso (Norway), Paul Stalteri, Tottenham Hotspur (England), Julian de Guzman, Deportivo La Coruna (Spain), Tomasz Radzinski, Fulham (England), Rob Friend, Heerenveen (Netherland), Mike Klukowski, FC Brugge (Belgium), Gabriel Gervais, Montreal Impact (Canada), Atiba Hutchinson, FC Copenhagen (Denmark), Josh Simpson, Kaiserslautern (Germany), Sandro Grande, Molde (Norway), Ali Gerba, Odd Grenland (Norway), Kenny Stamatopoulos, Tromso (Norway), Steve Nash, Vancouver Whitecaps (USA).
