COVENTRY, England, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Canada clinched the
bronze medal in the women's Olympic soccer tournament when a
goal seconds from the end of time added on gave them a 1-0 win
over France at the City of Coventry Stadium on Thursday.
With extra time looking inevitable and 92 minutes on the
clock, midfielder Diana Matheson pounced on a loose ball that
bounced off a defender's thigh to break French hearts after they
had dominated the second half but wasted chance after chance.
On Monday, Canada were devastated when they lost 4-3 in the
semi-final to the United States, whose winning goal came in the
third minute of added time at the end of extra time.
On this occasion it was the French women who were left
stunned and in despair after losing a game they should have won
convincingly.
France hit the post, had a shot cleared off the line and
enjoyed most of the possesion, but Gaetane Thiney, Camille
Abily, Eugenie Le Sommer and Louisa Necib were all guilty of
missing chances that looked easier to score.
To their credit, Canada defended well even if the defending
was frantic and frenzied at times but with extra time looming,
they counter-attacked swiftly and scored after France failed to
deal with the break.
Defending champions the United States meet world champions
Japan in the gold medal match at Wembley later on Thursday (1845
GMT) with an Olympic record crowd of over 83,000 expected at the
match.
(Writing by Mike Collett; Editing by Mark Meadows)