Youth in, Leroux out: Canada, U.S. announced Olympic qualifier rosters

Canada’s 20-woman roster for next month’s Olympic qualifier came out Tuesday, coach John Herdman and his staff naming seven players 20 years old or younger for their first real intense bit of competition.

But perhaps the biggest piece of news came from south of the border.

While we (grit our teeth and) wish the couple mazeltov and all, the question now becomes - who’s our designated villain in the stars and stripes? First Abby Wambach retired. Now Leroux’s on break, all the way until after Rio. Throw in a couple of other considerations, and suddenly the defending world champions have a few questions of their own to answer.

Given the tournament’s format, wherein the semifinal winners of the eight-team tournament claim berths for Rio 2016, and the fact that the U.S. and Canada are clear favourites to advance, perhaps they won’t be asked until later. For now, Herdman and his opposite Jill Ellis are playing the usual calibration game, trying to introduce as much new blood into the cycle as they can in pursuit of the Olympic goal, and a high-pressure tournament where experience will mean a lot more.

A left-side centreback and forwards of pace and craft have been two areas where the senior roster needs a youthful upgrade, according to Herdman. So that’s the pair of 23-year-old Shelina Zadorsky and 20-year-old Rebecca Quinn vying for the spot to start alongside Kadeisha Buchanan at centre back. Up front, four youngsters - 16-year-old Deanne Rose, Gabrielle Carle (17), Nichelle Prince (20) and Janine Beckie (21) - are the depth additions who figure to get some minutes spelling veterans Melissa Tancredi and the peerless Christine Sinclair. Add 2015 WWC holdovers Ashley Lawrence (20) and Jessie Fleming (17), and there's your kiddie brigade on a roster that has just seven veterans remaining of the team that brought home a bronze medal from the 2012 Olympics.

As for the rivalry, if the sides accomplish what they set out to do it won’t matter beyond the usual bragging rights. Win their groups in Texas, and they wouldn’t face one another with an Olympic ticket on the line. That'd do Herdman & Co. just fine. The rest of us, starved for villainy, will just have to make do.