Sinclair nets two in Canada win

Christine Sinclair scored twice and helped set up another to help Canada to a 3-0 win over South Korea at the Algarve Cup soccer tournament Monday.

The goals raised Sinclair’s career tally to 172, just 12 behind retired American Abby Wambach’s international record of 184 goals.

Canada, ranked fifth in the world, will play No. 9 Japan for fifth place at the 12-team tournament Wednesday.

No. 10 Sweden, the Olympic silver medallist who defeated Rio bronze medallist Canada 3-1 en route to finishing atop Group B, will face the seventh-ranked Netherlands in the championship game while No. 4 Australia takes on No. 38 Portugal for third place.

Portugal (2-0-1) finished as the top secondplace team while Canada (2-1-0) was the second-best runner-up, which dropped the Canadian women into the fifth-place playoff.

Sinclair opened the scoring in the 24th minute Monday, banging home a rebound from her own penalty kick after fullback Allysha Chapman was taken down in the box.

Jessie Fleming, a 19-year-old midfielder earning her 50th cap, made it 2-0 in the 73rd minute with a right-footed shot from the edge of the penalty box from a Sinclair setup. It was her fifth goal for Canada.

The 34-year-old captain from Burnaby, B.C., making her 265th appearance for Canada, then padded the lead in the 79th minute by tapping the ball home after a goalmouth scramble.