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Canada's Scott is living out her dream at Women's FA Cup final

Canada's Desiree Scott fights for the ball with England's Jodie Taylor during second half of FIFA World Cup quarter-final soccer action in Vancouver, B.C. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward
Canada's Desiree Scott fights for the ball with England's Jodie Taylor during second half of FIFA World Cup quarter-final soccer action in Vancouver, B.C. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

It's Desiree Scott's birthday today. And at London's iconic Wembley Stadium on Saturday, she's hoping for the perfect present.

These last few months have been a bit of a whirlwind for the Winnipeg native. She's been with England's Women's Super League side Notts County since early 2014 but missed the first-half of the current season, electing to remain in Vancouver as the Canadian national team prepared for the summer's World Cup. While away, her club reached their very first FA Cup final where they'll face Chelsea this weekend.

But, Scott is back and her return was perfectly-timed. Just two days after stepping off a plane, she came on as a substitute against Liverpool and played thirty minutes. Since then, she's started County's last two games and looks set to feature prominently in the Cup decider.

Scott has been to Wembley before – to pick up a bronze medal at the London Olympics. But she's desperate to get on the turf and experience playing there.

“It's every footballer's dream and this being my first time in a FA Cup final, I think it's phenomenal and I'm thrilled to be a part of it. I just remember 2012 after we got our bronze medals and it was in that stadium so I'm just excited to finally be there and be playing on the pitch.”

County booked their place in the final in early May. Over four thousand miles away, Scott tweeted her delight but her mind was elsewhere. She and her Canadian teammates had high hopes of delivering at a World Cup in their own backyard. But for much of the tournament, Canada were tame and eventually succumbed to a quarter-final defeat to England.

Scott doesn't sugar-coat it: falling short of their target hurt. A lot.

“We had a goal to get to a World Cup final”, she says.

“Overall the group is disappointed because we felt we could've at least got to the last four - that was truly our belief and our aim was to get on the podium. So at the end of the day, we are disappointed with that but when you look at the World Cup as a whole and what the tournament did for Canada and women's soccer in general...the stands were filled for every game, there were 55,000 people coming to watch us. We have to realize that we did something more than reach a quarter-final, we really inspired all of Canada to tune in.”

The figures back up Scott's point. The TV audience for the tournament was massive, attendances for Canadian games were record-breaking but did it entice and seduce non-soccer followers? Was the wider Canadian public invested? If so, will that interest continue? And what will the World Cup's legacy be in the country? What are the long-term effects of hosting?

Scott is defiant.

“I don't think the soccer fans watched, I think everybody tuned in. It was one of the most viewed sporting events in Canada and that speaks volumes for the success of the tournament and the fact that people were interested in the sport.

For me, it's about the kids that came to the stadium to watch – that they realize if they work hard enough their dreams can come true. Seeing it live and being there, I think it gave them a chance to dream and to go on and try and achieve theirs. I think it's just about building the excitement and grow the sport and get more people involved who were watching it.”

Canada's World Cup odyssey did prove one thing: give the country something to get behind and they'll respond feverishly. So, attention now turns to next summer's Olympics and ensuring the team steps up and delivers. If it's another lukewarm, tepid affair for John Herdman's side, the swell of support that was on show just a few weeks ago may dissipate.

But perhaps something can be read into the core group wanting to right the wrongs of the World Cup. As seen in the US, it's almost inevitable that such a demanding and exhausting cycle is followed by a spate of retirements. But for Canada, only veteran goalkeeper Karina le Blanc is moving on. Everyone else is steely-eyed, desperate for success in Rio de Janeiro.

“Overall, our team is generally disappointed with how the World Cup ended”, Scott says.

“Had it been more successful, the group may have changed. It's easy to leave when you finish in a place you're happy with but I think a lot of us want to finish on that high note and with an Olympics right around the corner, I think all of us will still be kicking around, putting in that extra work and get on the podium before we finish our careers. There might be a few changes but I think the core group is going to stick around.”

Scott, a tenacious and combative central midfielder, will be crucial to Canada's Olympic aspirations. And winning is infectious so striding towards Brazil with a FA Cup medal in her back pocket would be ideal.

Saturday's showdown will be a barometer of how far women's soccer has come in a very short time. It's already an historic occasion – Wembley has never hosted the final before. And with the English team having finished third at the World Cup, the domestic game has benefited enormously from the feel-good story. Last year, the FA Cup decider saw 15,000 people attend. It's set to be twice that figure this weekend.

And Scott can't wait.

“It's a soccer culture here and they eat, sleep and breathe it”, she says.

“But definitely with the success of the English team and them winning that bronze, you can feel the excitement and the buzz of just how happy the fans are for their team. The attendances at each league game has grown. I mean, there's already 27,000 tickets sold for this game.

"I'm living my dream and playing the sport I love. I'm getting to play in a FA Cup final and get to do it with a fantastic group of girls. You get the days where you just sit back and think 'Man, is this really my life?'”