Canada forward Cyle Larin (9) and Bermuda defender Kane Critchlow (8) battle for the ball during the first half of a World Cup 2022 Group B qualifying soccer match, Thursday, March 25, 2021, in Orlando, Fla. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-John Raoux
April 01, 2021 - 12:45 PM
Cyle Larin and Jessie Fleming have been named Canada Soccer’s players of the month for March.
Larin was on target four times in Canada's World Cup qualifying wins over Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. Fleming, meanwhile, helped England's Chelsea hoist the Continental League Cup and advance to the UEFA Women’s Champions League semifinals.
In scoring three times in a 5-1 win over Bermuda, Larin became just the third Canadian to score a hat trick in World Cup qualifying play (after Alex Bunbury in 1992 and Simeon Jackson in 2011).
The 25-year-old from Brampton, Ont, also scored in the 11-0 victory over Cayman Islands.
At the club level in March, Larin scored a goal and added an assist in four league matches as Besiktas maintained top spot in the Turkish Super Lig. He also scored in extra time to move Besiktas into the final of the Turkish Cup for the first time since 2011.
Fleming helped Chelsea FC win the FA Women’s League Cup for the first time, playing the full 90 minutes in a 6-0 win over Bristol City. The 23-year-old from London, Ont., became the second Canadian to lift the trophy, two years after Janine Beckie won with Manchester City.
In the FA Women’s Super League, Fleming featured in three matches in March as Chelsea maintained first place by two points ahead of Man City.
Fleming was one of six Canadians to reach the quarterfinal stage of UEFA Women’s Champions League, the first time that Canadians featured in all four series at this stage. Others involved were Beckie (Manchester City), Stephanie Labbe, (FC Rosengard, Sweden), Jordyn Huitema and Ashley Lawrence (Paris Saint-Germain, France) and Kadeisha Buchanan (Lyon, France).
PLAYERS OF THE MONTH: March 2021 — Cyle Larin and Jessie Fleming February 2021 — Alphonso Davies and Shelina Zadorsky January 2021 — Cyle Larin and Ashley Lawrence
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 1, 2021
News from © The Canadian Press, 2021