 | Report: Paige Adams Readies For Under-20 Challenge |
Article by Dan Olson/Coquitlam Now Sports Editor
Photo taken by Paul van Peenen/Coquitlam Now
Port Coquitlam's Paige Adams is a girl on a mission. At 15, she's earned a place to Canada's under-20 women's national soccer team camp. Next month, she aims to be storming the opposition defences in Mexico as Canada tries to qualify for the U-20 World Cup in Russia next August.
That means this week's hectic pre-Christmas countdown is the one time she has to relax - while also attending to her own personal training program. "I do a lot of training, everything really," Adams said. "I do running, go to practice, everything." She'll ring in the new year in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, where the national team will prepare for the CONCACAF qualifying tournament in Mexico, which begins for Canada Jan. 18 against Trinidad and Tobago.
For Adams, making the u-20 team was a natural leap that followed her roles with the u-15 and u-17 squads, which included a three-game u-17 exhibition series last summer against Germany.
The two sides split the series, with each side recording a 3-0 victory, along with a 0-0 draw. Adams scored the team's second goal in the win over Germany. "It was a really good experience and we were fairly equal. We tied, lost and won and I played almost the full game every day."
That September test wrapped up what had been a whirlwind summer for the Riverside Secondary student, who spent August in Germany with the u-15 squad in a tournament, followed by the three-game series in Newfoundland. By the time she returned, she had barely time to catch her breathe before heading off to school. "I started school the very next day after returning, so I was pretty tired."
Playing at the international level is a challenge that Adams enjoyed. A star with the three-time provincial champion Coquitlam Wild, who placed third at this year's national championships, the fast-footed attacker said the calibre of play has given her own game a big boost. "The speed of everything is so much more; you have to get rid of the ball quicker, and try to pressure the backs faster... (The Germans) were more aggressive and everything was a little higher level. As soon as you get the ball you have to move it."
Three years ago was when Adams put the spotlight on soccer, deciding to ride it as far as she could. It meant upping her training commitment, which has received boosts from the Roman Tulis School of soccer and the National Training Centre in Burnaby. Canadian head coach Ian Bridges said the coming qualifying tournament is a great test for the team, with the camp in Florida crucial to re-establishing team chemistry after the cancellation to a pair of autumn camps. "What will certainly help is the fact that we have 11 players at this camp who were on the U19 team that qualified for Thailand in 2004, so I think we have players who know how to compete and how to win... But as with earlier teams, we also have some exciting young talents mixed-in amongst the group that are learning fast and are pushing the 'veterans' - if you can call 19 year-olds veterans," Bridges said.
Canada will be aiming at repeating as champion, while a top-three finish in the eight-team tournament will guarantee a berth to the World Cup. Nine of the 20 players heading to Mexico will be making their u-20 debut. Adams is the youngest but has some vital international player at the camp, experience to draw from. Cracking the line-up at 15 puts Adams in good stead when it comes to her future goal. She says the exposure to older and higher calibre players, both in practice and games, has really improved her skills. "Right now I hope to get more experience and learn more," Adams said. "I want to get more playing time, but with the u-20 team there are so many good players."
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