by Al Clark
al@canucks-abroad.com

With the withdrawl of Marcel de Jong due to club commitments, Canada has called up Dominic Imhoff (not Daniel) and former U23 player Eddy Sidra of Cottbus Reserves. Both call ups are a surprise, but the inclusion of Sidra is both a surprise and a welcome development. It's good to see this squad is giving a chance to youngsters rather than trotting out ageing players who are past their usefulness to the MNT. That's not to say their contributions in the past have not been appreciated - they have - but the fact is soccer will always be about passing the torch and bringing through the next generation. Of the 18 players in the final roster, all are "Canucks Abroad" with only Hemming playing in North America, with USL1 Charleston.

Eddy Sidra: Playing for Cottbus (right)Giving camp time, and maybe minutes against Cyprus, in what is a training exercise more than anything else makes great sense. Let's see what Canada has to work with, let's give invaluable experience and motivation to younger players so they can get a taste of what they're future might hold. More over, let's put Canada in the best position to actually win games the next time the WCQ's come around. It's all good and well fielding a team that can win today, but it's much more important to make sure there's no repeat of the shambolic WCQ2010 qualifiers again next time around.

Speaking exclusively with CA, Sidra had this to say about his call up, "Of course it feels great to be called up with the Senior team. I didn't know what to expect seeing is how it is my first camp but luckily the guys are really friendly and welcoming making it easier to come in. The pace is high and the training is intense. I'm really enjoying it and am happy to be a part of this camp."

Dominic Imhoff: Source: FC Tuggen Official SiteDominic Imhoff is a real surprise. The FC Tuggen player is the brother of more established Imhoff, Daniel. The young Imhoff currently plays in the 3rd division of Swiss football.

So Kudos to Hart for calling up a swath of youngsters, like Jackson, Ornoch, Ricketts, Hemming and, of course, Sidra. Let's hope they can find their feet at this level.

Here's the current squad, allowing for the recent call ups/withdrawl:

CANADA
1- G- Lars Hirschfeld |#8200;ROM / CFR Cluj
18- G- Kenny Stamatopoulos | NOR / FC Lyn Oslo (on loan from / emprunt de Tromsø I.L.)
2- D/M- Nik Ledgerwood |#8200;GER / TSV 1860 München
3- D/M- Chris Pozniak |#8200;SCO / Dundee FC
4- D- Adrian Cann |#8200;DEN / Esbjerg fB
5- D- Kevin McKenna |#8200;GER / 1. FC Köln
6- M- Julian de Guzman | ESP / Deportivo La Coruna
7- D/M- Paul Stalteri |#8200;GER / Borussia Mönchengladbach
8- M- Tyler Hemming | USA / Charleston Battery
10- F- Tosaint Ricketts |#8200;FIN#8200;/ Myllykosken Pallo –47
11- D- Richard Hastings |#8200;SCO / Inverness CT
12- M- Issey Nakajima-Farran |#8200;DEN / FC Nordsjælland
13- M- Jaime Peters |#8200;ENG / Ipswich Town FC
14- M- Dominic Imhof | SWI/ FC Tuggen
15- M- Josh Simpson |#8200;GER / FC Kaiserslautern
16- F- Andrzej Ornoch |#8200;DEN / Esbjerg fB
17- F- Simeon Jackson |#8200;ENG / Gillingham FC
D- Eddy Sidra | GER / FC Energie Cottbus)