Only for Guild Members » But its been five years of anger

MONTREAL -- Canada is sitting pretty ahead of the 2014 FIFA U-20 Womens World Cup. Brewers Brandon Woodruff Jersey . Canada was placed in one of the easiest groups during Saturdays live televised draw in Montreal. The eighth-ranked Canadians will face North Korea (ranked No. 4), Ghana (No. 19) and Finland (No. 26) in the group stage. "We definitely didnt expect an easy group," said Canadian U-20 coach Andrew Olivieri. "We were anxious. Its a great group." Olivieri, a retired Montreal Impact goalkeeper, doesnt want to get ahead of himself before the first ball is kicked five months from now. A good draw, however, allowed him to raise his expectations. "Weve never been beyond a quarter-final, except for that first tournament (in 2002)," he said. "Were in a good position. We want to reach the quarter-final, and win that quarter-final." Since the inaugural competition in 2002, also hosted by Canada, the U-20 tournament has been held every two years. This year, the 20-day tournament begins on Aug. 5 and wraps up Aug. 24. Four Canadian cities -- Montreal, Toronto, Edmonton, and Moncton -- will welcome some of the best womens under-20-year-olds from 16 different nations. The final will be held at Montreals Olympic Stadium. Canada plays Ghana in the tournaments opening match in Toronto. Ghanese coach Bashir Hayford thinks Canadians would be too quick to treat the first game as an easy victory for the home side. "All eyes will be on us," said Hayford. "It will be a bit intimidating with that crowd. But well have supporters in Toronto too. I know they will galvanize and come and support us. If we can win, our confidence will be built for subsequent games. We are going to play very well." Ghana earned its spot in the U-20 World Cup by defeating Equatorial Guinea 4-3 in penalty shots in January. This is their third successive trip to the U-20 World Cup, but they have yet to make it past the group stage. "Every country wants to win the cup," said Hayford. "Thats why were competing. If you ask me about my expectations, Ill tell you: we want to win the cup." After Ghana, the Canadians will face the Finns, also in Toronto. Finnish coach Marianne Miettinen knows playing in Canada will be a great experience for her young players. She says she will be wary of Canadas good speed up front, but knows her side will come to Toronto with a lot of heart. "Finland has a good fighting spirit," said Miettinen. "The Northern teams are really well organized. Were going to give everything in every game. Were going to be really tough to beat." The Canadians close out the group stage against North Korea, in Montreal. And although the fast-paced North Korean team will prove to be a tough test for Canada, the host nation luckily avoided the Group of Death -- the soccer group that invariably brings together some of the worlds best teams. For the upcoming U-20 Womens World Cup, that group is composed of the United States (ranked No. 1), Germany (No. 2), Brazil (No. 3), and China (No. 6). Together, the U.S. and Germany have won five of six U-20 competitions. The Americans are the defending champions, having beaten the Germans 1-0 in the final game of the 2012 tournament in Tokyo, Japan. If Canada does make it past their group stage, they will have to face the Americans, Germans, or Brazilians in the quarter-final. "Its going to be challenging," admitted Olivieri. The tournaments third group opposes Nigeria (ranked No. 5), South Korea (No. 10), Mexico (No. 11), and England (No. 13), and the final one includes France (No. 9), New Zealand (No. 15), Costa Rica (No. 25), and tournament newcomers Paraguay (unranked). The U-20 World Cup will give also give Canadian soccer fans a taste of whats to come. Next summer, Moncton, Montreal, Ottawa, Winnipeg, Edmonton and Vancouver will host the 2015 FIFA Womens World Cup, the first senior FIFA tournament held in Canada. Olivieri, whos been coaching the under-20s for two years now, said that any player who excels on his squad this summer will have a very good shot at being involved in next summers World Cup. In total, Canada will host 84 international soccer matches in seven cities across the country in the next two years, and is expected to draw a combined nearly two million soccer fans. "The womens game is improving in Canada," said Olivieri. "It will be incredible. There are many young kids already playing the game, and this will only help. The reach of the game will change." Note: Mayor Denis Coderre and former Montreal Canadiens coach Jacques Demers were in attendance for FIFAs official draw. a Ten of the 16 team coaches were also present in Montreal on Saturday. Brewers Wade Miley Jersey . A wide-eyed 18-year-old visiting North America for only the second time in his young life, Caboclo immediately noticed the "big tower" his new home is best known for. Brewers Xavier Cedeno Jersey . Nothing pretty. But this is 1/4 World Cup. Usually plays out this way. http://www.cheapbrewersjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=brewers-mauricio-dubon-jersey . Now he has a complete game. Scherzer tossed a three-hitter in his 179th career start for his first complete game and Victor Martinez hit his 16th homer to lead the Detroit Tigers a 4-0 win over the Chicago White Sox.VITTORIO VENETO, Italy -- Stefano Pirazzi won the 17th stage of the Giro dItalia on Wednesday, the first professional victory of his career while Nairo Quintana retained the overall leaders pink jersey. Pirazzi made an obscene arm gesture as he crossed the finish line and was reduced to tears following his win. "It wasnt a nice gesture, Im sorry, forgive me," Pirazzi said. "But its been five years of anger, five years of criticism. As the days went by, my moral was going down. I was here to get this victory finally, that was the target. "I was unleashing all that. Five years of criticism is a lot for a young guy. I really had to deal with a lot. Today I reached a goal that I wanted since I was a young boy watching the Giro. Im very happy. Ill enjoy it and never forget this moment." Pirazzi, who had led from the breakaway, made his move with little more than a kilometre remaining and edged out Tim Wellens and Jay McCarthy in a sprint at the end of the 204-kilometre (127-mile) stage from Sarnonico to Vittorio Veneto. The peloton crossed the line 15:36 behind Pirazzi as the top overall standings were unchanged. Quintana remained 1:41 ahead of fellow Colombian Rigoberto Uran and 3:21 ahead of Cadel Evans, with Pierre Rolland only five seconds further back. Victorias Ryder Hesjedal, the 2012 Giro champion, finished 33rd in Wednesdays stage and was in ninth overall, 4:16 back of Quintana. Svein Tuft of Langley, B.C., was in 158th after finishing 144th in stage 17. Quintana had moved into pink after Tuesdays tough leg, which was marrred by confusion after some teams believed part of the route had been neutralized -- meaning the times for that section wouldnt count. Brewers Paul Molitor Jersey. "In reality there is no controversy," Quintana said. "I know what happened. Theyre creating a story which isnt there. "It would be unjust (if they took time away from me). The organization said the race wasnt neutralized so why remove an advantage that I won?" The peloton remained together for almost half the route before a group of 26 riders managed to get away. After the previous tough stage -- where the cyclists had to deal not only with both the legendary Gavia and Stelvio climbs, but with snow and rain as well -- the peloton was happy to keep a steady pace and let the escape go. The best-placed rider in the break was Damiano Cunego, who was more than 48 minutes behind Quintana, and so the pink jersey group allowed the gap to go out to more than 12 minutes. Thomas De Gendt attacked from the breakaway on the approach to the last of three classified climbs, the ascent up the Muro di Ca del Poggio. Pirazzi followed and caught the Belgian cyclist near the summit, and they were soon joined by Wellens, McCarthy and Matteo Montaguti. There were attacks off the chasing group but the quintets advantage continued to grow and it swiftly became apparent they would not be caught before the finish. The Giro returns to the mountains in Thursdays 18th stage, a 171km (106-mile) leg from Belluno, with a summit finish up to Rifugio Panarotta. 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