Scott sets sights on helping Canada defend Olympic soccer gold

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This article was published 06/09/2023 (808 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A knee injury forced Desiree Scott to watch most of the National Women’s Soccer League season from the sidelines and she had to skip a chance to represent Canada at the 2023 Women’s World Cup.

Is there something left to salvage? Winnipeg’s most celebrated homegrown soccer star thinks there is, but first she must complete the rehab of her surgically repaired knee.

Hampered by an agonizingly slow recovery from the January procedure, the 36-year-old midfielder is hoping to return to active duty next month.

“I anticipated being back in four or five months and I had surgery in January, so it’s been eight months,” said Scott from Kansas City, Mo., earlier this week where she is captain of the NWSL’s Current. “It’s taken way longer than anticipated. Not that I’ve had any major setback but… when I missed out on the World Cup, the body just needed more time. I’m actually back in training now — non-contact — so things are finally moving and groovin’ but it took a long time for me to get to this point.”

Scott attended Canada’s pre-World Cup training camp in Australia in July, hoping to get clearance from the medical staff and head coach Bev Priestman.

“I went for three weeks for the pre-camp just so they could see me,” said Scott. “They kind of ran me through some tests and different things and it was kind of a collaborative decision after that pre camp — I wanted to be the best version of myself and fitness-wise, with my knee, the mechanics and everything. I just wasn’t ready in time.”

Inexplicably, her fitness has taken a dramatic turn in recent weeks.

“The progress I’ve made over the last month has been ridiculous,” said Scott, who hopes to return to game action on Oct. 7. “So that’s positive for sure. Again, (it’s) not how I anticipated this year going for me at all, but I’m making strides in practice. Being back with the team and actually being on the field helps the process for sure…

“It’s hard to kind of keep that positive mentality when things continue to not go your way and how you anticipated them,” said Scott. “But I have a great mental mental therapist that I connect with just to keep giving me perspective. As athletes, we are not used to slowing down… I think that’s kind of the hardest thing. I never knew what to expect. I expected things to go smoothly as long as I put the work in.”

The three-time Olympic medallist had pondered retirement but now plans to follow through on plans to compete for a spot on the national team when it defends its gold medal at the Summer Games in Paris next summer.

“I’ve definitely had feelings about (retiring) but as I get back on the pitch and I’m back with my team, I realized more and more that I still love this and this is not how I personally want to go out and end my career,” said Scott.

“So it’s kind of catapulted me and motivated me to want to have next year. There’s an Olympics around the corner with Team Canada, a new stadium opening here in Kansas City and I think there’s a lot of exciting things that I’m motivated to get back for and show up for. I really just want to leave my imprint in probably what will be my last year.”

Without Scott in the lineup, the Current has slumped to last place in the 12-team NWSL and will need to win its final four regular-season games and hope for some help in order to earn one of the league’s six post-season berths. Scott led Kansas City to the 2022 league final before losing 2-0 to the Portland Thorns.

“I wouldn’t say I’m the reason (we’re losing) but I do feel like there’s a sense of leadership missing in the role that I felt I could play in terms of that communication, that voice on the pitch supporting, encouraging,” said Scott. “We’ve had a lot of roster changes and with the coaching staff and a lot of things kind of thrown in the mix… Especially coming off the championship year… it’s been a tough season for us for sure.”

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca