ANALYSIS – The CANXNT/CANWNT April roster was revealed on March 27 (Thursday) for the two games at BC Place and Starlight Stadium. The 23-player roster includes returning players from the roster, including Quinn.
Note: Just to note that Evelyne Viens has been replaced by Nyah Rose because of a minor muscle injury (Source: CANWNT X Account on March 28, 2025).
CANWNT April Roster for the Games Against Argentina
Expected Players in the CANWNT April Roster
Players such as Jessie Fleming, Vanessa Gilles, Julia Grosso, Jade Rose, and Shelina Zadorsky are some of the players one would expect to make the roster. There is also, of course, Marie-Yasmine Alidou, who had a successful window for the national team in February.
There is also Liverpool F.C. Women midfielder, Olivia Smith. This is what the CANWNT manager, Casey Stoney, said about Smith and her potential with the national team:
“The sky’s the limit for Liv (Olivia Smith) with her ability, her technical ability, turn the page at speed and, you know, and what I’ve been really impressed with recently is a defensive work rate, you know, she looks fitter. She looks hungrier in terms of performance, she can score and create for herself, which is, you know, quite rare in football. But she can do that. I think the way she’s contributing to a really competitive league and showing maturity at such a young age like there’s so much potential there, the sky’s the limit. We just got to keep her fit and available.”
Smith was not able to make the Olympic roster for the national team. However, there is no doubt what her talent can bring to Canada. She was excellent in the Concacaf W Gold Cup for the CANWNT. In fact, just recently for the national team, she scored two goals against Manchester United F.C. Women’s Club to help earn her team the 3-1 on March 14, 2025.
With forwards, it is likely that Adriana Leon and maybe Alidou are ahead of Smith as the main striker on the team. However, that is not to say that Smith does not make the Starting 11 as the CANWNT could play both Smith and Leon in the Starting 11.
NSL/SLN Players on the Roster
READ MORE: AFC Toronto and CANWNT Player Profile: Emma Regan
Just like the February roster, there are two NSL/SLN players on the roster. The only NSL/SLN player on both rosters is Emma Regan, an AFC Toronto midfielder/defender, who was the player of the match in Canada’s draw against China in the 2025 Pinatar Cup.
A lot of the talk were about Quinn, a midfielder for the Vancouver Rise FC. Their return to the national team was one of the big talking points in the media session with Stoney.
This is what Stoney had to say about their return to the national team and the representation of the CANWNT/CANXNT with the national team.
“Yeah, we’ve got a few players in the NSL now, which I think is really positive for the Canadian football soccer landscape, obviously, bringing Quinn back in was really important. I think they’re a very technical player, very calm, and composed. I wanted to be able to see them in our environment. Obviously, haven’t been able to select them before, but due to injury, but now they are back and fit and healthy. It’s important to bring them back in and see them in the environment.”
Quinn will most likely start for the CANWNT/CANXNT as they play a big role with the national team. The other NSL/SLN player who made the February roster, but did not make this roster is the midfielder of the Vancouver Rise FC, Samantha Chang. She played two of the three games in the 2025 Pinatar Cup competition.
READ MORE: CANWNT Pinatar Cup Roster Revealed: Two NSL Players
Newer Players on the Roster
Carly Wickenheiser was the daughter of late NHL player, Doug Wickenheiser. Carly is also the niece of Canadian women’s ice hockey great, Hayley Wickenheiser. She was not on the initial list of players for the 2025 Pinatar Cup competition. However, Carly was a late addition to the Pinatar Cup roster because of an injury suffered by Bianca St-Georges as seen above. Wickenheiser played two games in the Pinatar Cup against China and Taiwan. These were also the first two games that Wickenheiser has played for the national team.
The other player to note is Alidou, the CANWNT midfielder who made quite an impression on Casey Stoney and the national team by scoring a hat-trick against Chinese Taipei in the Pinatar Cup competition. This is what Stoney said to Felipe Vallejo, a contributor to AFTN Canada and the Northern Tribune, about Alidou (Source: Har Journalist):
The Relationship Between Jesse Marsch and Casey Stoney
READ MORE: CANWNT Head Coach Casey Stoney: Former Lionesses Captain
There is a special relationship building between both Marsch and Stoney. This is what Stoney said about Marsch inviting her to the CANMNT camp for the Concacaf Nations League (Source: OneSoccer):
“It’s quite unique for a female coach to be invited into the men’s environment; it doesn’t happen often, and it’s never happened in my lifetime before.”
This is quite a remarkable story as it shows the inclusiveness of both head coaches and how they are working together to improve each other’s programs.
In addition, Stoney also said that Marsch played a big role in going further into the process of becoming the CANWNT/CANXNT. This is what Stoney said about Marsch (Source: Canadian Premier League Facebook Page):
Marsch showed this initiative in other ways including supporting the women’s soccer game when the Montreal NSL/SLN team revealed their team’s name as the Montreal Roses FC/Roses de Montréal FC with Canada Soccer president, Kevin Blue.
Injuries and Games Coming Up For Canada
For injuries, it is a similar situation to the February window with players such as Ashley Lawrence, Kadeisha Buchanan, and Cloé Lacasse still injured. The situation is slightly better now with Quinn returning to the national team.
Also, this is what Stoney said she expects from Argentina in April when asked by the writer of this article:
“Yeah, I think what we would expect is a physical game, a competitive game. They will be organized, sometimes they play in the back five, sometimes they play in the back four. So, we’re not sure exactly how they’ll turn out in terms of that, but they will be extremely competitive. They’ve got good threats going forward, organized in terms of defence, and will be hard to break down at times.”
One reason for Argentina being organized in defence is their captain, Aldana Cometti, who plays as a centre-back for Argentina and also Madrid CFF.
The CANXNT/CANWNT will now play against Argentina at BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, on April 4 and at Starlight Stadium in Langford, British Columbia. The game will take place at 10:30pm ET (7:30pm ET) in Vancouver, while the game in Langford will take place at 10:00pm ET (7:00pm PT). All games will be shown live on OneSoccer, Telus, and FUBOTV.
Women’s International Friendly
10 June 2018 – Hamilton, ON, CAN
Photo Credit: Canada Soccer by Martin Bazyl
