The Canadian women’s goalball team secured a fifth place finish at the Paris Paralympics, after defeating Japan 1-0 in a tightly contested classification playoff 5/6 match on Wednesday.

Both teams entered the game off quarterfinal eliminations respectively, and trying to finish as high as possible before the tournament’s end. 

It was a rematch of the Pool D top two seeds — Japan beat Canada 2-1 in a hard-fought preliminary round battle on Monday. But this time, Canada got sweet revenge in another defensive showcase, thanks to a decisive late goal by Amy Burk.

This game began at a slow pace, with neither side able to find a goal in the first half, despite both teams having 48 throws heading into the break.

Canada was rewarded with a penalty shot about three minutes out of the break due to a high ball violation by Japan. (When a team throws the ball and it fails to land before the first “high ball line.”). 

However, Captain Burk could not seize the chance on the 1-on-1 with Yuki Temma, as the throw hit the right post and bounced away.

The 34-year-old from Charlottetown finally found the gap through the outstanding Japanese defence, delivering a crucial goal for Canada with a bouncing throw from the right with 4:24 left. That one bounced off Saki Amuro, and into the net.

The goal by Burk gave Canada a 1-0 lead, which they held onto the remainder of the game.

Following the disappointing 5-1 quarterfinal loss against Israel on Tuesday, this important win against the world’s number two ranked team ensured the Canadians finish off the campaign in a positive fashion. 

Despite falling short to a podium finish, the Canucks improved from their ninth-place finish in Tokyo to fifth in Paris.