There was clearly no lack of disappointment; tears likely flowed in abundance.

Despite their stated acknowledgement that a more than challenging pool that also included Nigeria, Ireland and Australia was not the ideal draw, there was nothing that could have prepared Cloe Lacasse and the remainder of the Canadian women’s soccer team for a FIFA World Cup appearance that would last but three games.

Making her first entry to this level of international play, Lacasse is surely every bit as crushed by the outcome as were the balance of her teammates, simply by nature of the ultra-competitiveness that is wired into the core DNA of these athletes. In that sense, she is no different.

The road that the 30 year-old graduate of Ecole Secondaire Macdonald-Cartier travelled, one that rarely pointed to this ultimate end destination, would come as little consolation to the super scorer who has recently signed on with Arsenal of the Women’s Super League – though it most definitely should.

The simple truth is that the four years (2015 – 2019) that Lacasse would spend with the IBV women’s team housed out of Vestmannaeyjar (Iceland) offered little in the way of even a small inkling that the soccer star who pursued Icelandic citizenship in 2019 in the hopes of representing a country, any country, would proudly don the maple leaf in Australia four years later.

“For me, the pivotal moment was probably when I chose to leave Iceland (July 2019) to go play for Benfica (Portugal),” said Lacasse. “It took a big leap of faith. I was going to a renowned club on the men’s football side but we were very young with the women, only having one season under their belt before my arrival.”

“Before going there, I definitely had thoughts about whether or not I was meant to continue playing,” she noted candidly in email correspondence following the first two Canadian games.

“You start to think is this really what I should be doing, taking so much time and energy away from my friends and family, being so far away. I just had an inkling that this was the chance I was waiting for so long. My family and friends supported me to give this club (Benfica) a chance and see if they could provide me the platform that we all believed I rightfully deserved.”

“It turned out the inkling was correct.”

In November of 2021, Lacasse would earn her first cap – and with every ensuing match, she would carve herself a role, a high energy forward with the ability to pressure opposing defenses thanks to her speed and quickness. It has culminated in the most special of settings imaginable.

“The World Cup is a special tournament because the best in the world are all there, all in one location, competing for the same trophy.”

What a location it has been.

“The energy in Australia has been contagious,” said Lacasse. “The country as a whole is ecstatic to be hosting. Everywhere we go, we see and feel the enthusiasm.”

And while there is no denying that the team goals were simply not met, it would be hard to classify the play of Lacasse as falling short of expectations. Given the role in which she was slotted, the All-Big Ten First Team All-Star during her time with the Iowa Hawkeyes delivered – though Lacasse will contend she could have done more.

“When the stakes are this high, there’s always additional pressure, more nerves and excitement,” she said. “For me, I definitely try and channel those feelings and turn them into positive and infectious energy. We’ve trained our entire careers for moments like these. High level athletes want to be on this stage, want the chance to prove themselves in the biggest competition there is.”

That lifetime of training can provide key perspective in the aftermath of a tournament appearance cut short. Taking time to ponder all that would lead to the opportunity itself is a wonderfully healthy exercise, in and of itself.

“My parents were the best, to say the least,” said Lacasse. “The time and investment they put into my youth career was second to none. They poured so much into my success and I will always be grateful and astonished with what they did for me. Without their commitment, there is zero chance any of this would have happened.”

As has been noted many times over, Cloe Lacasse was one in a long line of young women in northern Ontario who leveraged their careers with the Sudbury Canadians into a scholarship south of the border. Long after his daughter, Francesca, had made her way to the NCAA with the University of Findlay in Ohio, coach and chief club architect Frank Malvaso remained.

“Frank is an incredible human being,” said Lacasse. “What he did for the girls soccer community in Sudbury when I was growing up was immense. If he didn’t create that team (Sudbury Canadians), I would have likely ended up not playing, or playing for a team in Toronto.”

“We were able to train in Sudbury and compete in Toronto, for the most part,” she added. “He invested a lot of his time and his own money into the club, without asking for anything in return. He was just passionate about the game and the development of soccer in Sudbury.”

“Playing football (soccer) in a small town has its limitations,” noted Lacasse. “It’s important to create a strong platform to get yourself recognized. After that, you can continue to build, to believe in yourself. You can achieve your dreams, no matter where you’re from.”

The simple truth is that for Cloe Lacasse, the dream of one day playing in a World Cup game long predated dreams of Team Canada moving on in July of 2023 – and as hard as it may be, she likely needs to remind herself of that fact, at least from time to time.