Also: Messi vs Nashville, Huntsville Strikers and MUFC updates, 401 Derby on Sunday, and Serie A kicks off this weekend

Consider this year’s final in the Women’s World Cup a fun but raucous party of good friends and family crashed by the cool kids from out-of-town.

Despite the rampant hyperbole in the lead sentence, the England team deserved every bit of their 3-1 win over Australia in the semi-final, but it still felt a wee bit like the World Cup party was over.

When the final whistle blew, the 75,000-plus in attendance went silent (save for a few pockets of English supporters), there were stunned faces on the Australian players and supporters where huge smiles once existed, and you could even hear a tinge of disappointment in the announcers’ voices as they called the last few minutes of the match . . . it all felt so final.

But it wasn’t the end and though the Lionesses crashed the Matildas’ party, there is the still the third-place match between the hosts and Sweden on Saturday at 4 a.m. EST. Then on Sunday morning at 6 a.m. EST, European champion England will face Spain for the right to be crowned World Champions.

The Australians will hopefully win that third place match and give their nation one last hurrah – it’s the least they can do after their home faithful showed out in tremendous numbers all tournament long.

As for the final, if England can show the resolve, timely scoring and passion they have throughout the tournament, they’ll get the job done.

As a bonus, the dynamic Lauren James is again available for the final after serving her two-game suspension for stepping on a Nigerian player in the round-of-16.

She will likely be on the bench to start (if it was me picking the first 11) and come on in the 60^th minute to provide the magic that only she can.

We should all hope for an enthralling match, and I’ll be up watching with my 11-year-old daughter (well, she’ll likely join me for the second half).

And that’s been the best part of this world cup from my point of view: the engagement we’re seeing from our youth players, particularly the girls, as even with Canada and the U.S. out, they’re still very keen to know what’s going on.

On a side note: special nod to my friend Graham Pollington for correctly predicting an England-Spain final. Perhaps the only person on the planet to do so (hahaha).

Extra side note: We’ve been talking about this amongst our football/soccer circles throughout the World Cup, but the growth of the women’s game in Europe with the traditional powerhouse nations now getting serious about it, means the U.S. and Canada need to level-up or be left behind. Globe & Mail columnist Cathal Kelly wrote a solid column about it this week (and because of that, I had to change mine up a bit) – Sorry, Canada – England and Spain have decided the Women’s World Cup

Visit FIFA Women’s World Cup for the full tournament standing, schedule and results.

All Matches are available on TSN channels and apps.

Messi in Leagues Cup final

The Leagues Cup final is set with Inter Miami’s magical Lionel Messi and Friends heading to Music City for a winner-take-all match against Nashville on Saturday, August 19 at 9 p.m.

Both finalists have secured qualification for next season’s CONCACAF Champions League with the winner getting a direct berth into the round-of-16.

Since Messi’s arrival in Miami they have yet to lose a match and it would seem like his first trophy in North America is a foregone conclusion. Plus, world class stars Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and a strong supporting cast have helped.

But Nashville is scrappy, disciplined and well-coached with plenty of experience to field in the match. Plus, they’re at home and having reigning MLS MVP Hany Mukhtar leading their attack.

While most neutral fans will undoubtedly be supporting Inter Miami on Saturday, I’ll be cheering on Nashville.

Not because they’re the underdogs, but because one of my favourite Canadians and former TFC players, Jacob Shaffleburg, is on Nashville as is another former Red, Lukas McNaughton (should they win the Leagues Cup, it will be another example of Bob Bradley’s incompetence as he’s the one who shipped them away).

In either case, let’s home for a strong and competitive match for all to enjoy!

Almost forgot, the third-place match between Philadelphia and Monterrey goes on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. with the winner claiming a berth in next season’s CONCACAF Champions League.

MLS Season Pass on Apple TV airs all the Leagues Cup matches.

HUNTSVILLE STRIKERS ROUND-UP

On the Strikers rep development side of things, the U11 girls fought to a 1-1 draw in Barrie on Monday night with Paulina Jusczak scoring for Huntsville. The girls have three games left on the calendar – all home games – and will be aiming for a solid winning streak to end the year.

The U12 Girls defeated Barrie 2-1 in an away game on Wednesday night with Olivia MacKinnon scoring twice for Huntsville.

The U10 Girls played in Bracebridge on Thursday night. Result will be updated once available.

The U12 Boys defeated Bracebridge 8-1 on Thursday. Evan Wallgren and Will Evans each had hat tricks for Huntsville with Bryce Farley and Gavin Sawyer adding the others. Bracebridge’s lone goal was scored by Jordan Solman.

The U10 Boys have had three straight bye-weeks in HDSL play, which seems silly to anyone paying attention. They play next on Monday, August 21.

MUFC ROUND-UP

The Muskoka United FC U17 Boys drew Orillia 0-0 on Tuesday night at Conroy Park in Huntsville. Despite the draw, they remain undefeated and in first place in their HDSL division.

The U15 Girls were also held to a 0-0 draw on Tuesday night by South Simcoe United at Gostick Park in Bracebridge. They remain undefeated on the season and in first place in the HDSL.

The U15 Boys had a bye-week in I-Model C2 division play and enjoyed an exhibition match victory over the U13 Boys on Thursday night at Gostick Park. Their next match is away to Aurora on August 24.

The U13 Boys last game in HDSL play (in the U14 division) was a 4-2 loss away to Sudbury on Saturday, August 12. Callum Leese scored both Muskoka goals.

The U17 Girls fell 3-0 away to Barrie on Wednesday night in I-Model C2 division play.

The Muskoka United U13 Girls took a tough 7-0 loss to Bradford in I-Model C2 division play on Monday night.

401 Derby kicks off MLS restart

With the Leagues Cup finishing up on Saturday, Major League Soccer play resumes on Sunday with a bevy of matches including the 401 Derby between Toronto FC and Montreal.

This match will be of added importance to both TFC and Montreal with the Reds needing to win to at least start some sort of face-saving run with 10 games left and their rivals in the hunt for a playoff spot.

This week’s news cycle is a microcosm of the mess this season has been for Toronto.

After reports of good news early in the week on the injury front with the expected returns of all-time Red and captain Michael Bradley, plus team legend Javier Vasquez and star designated player Lorenzo Insigne, the end of the week was not so nice.

Starting goalkeeper Sean Johnson, who has often been stellar during this tumultuous campaign, is out four to six weeks with a broken hand that may require surgery.

Though this season is a write-off for TFC, getting three points against their biggest rival is a good way to start healing the wounds and get the final stretch of matches off on the right foot.

Roma for the Scudetto?

Yeah, yeah, I know I’m super-duper biased, but with four different clubs becoming Serie A champions over the past four years (Juventus, AC Milan, Inter Milan, Napoli), there is no reason to believe it can’t be five in five.

And, of the remaining clubs, the only one truly set up to challenge for both a top four finish (and accompanying Champions League spot) and the league title is AS Roma.

With recent reinforcements in the form of Leandro Paredes and Renato Sanches from PSG, plus the stability of another year with the same coaching team led by The Special One Jose Mourinho, this team is primed for a step-up and a solid campaign.

Plus, not many are predicting more than a fourth-place finish at best, which takes some of the pressure off.

This is a team whose core has been together for a while, including team captain Lorenzo Pelligrini, midfielder Bryan Cristante (who is half Canadian), centre back Gianluca Mancini, wingback Leonardo Spinazzola, and more.

Buoyed by superstar Argentinian Paulo Dybala, the most underrated English defender in the world Chris Smalling, and a strong supporting cast, this squad is ready for the long and winding battle ahead.

Oh, and star striker Tammy Abraham will be back from a long injury lay-off in January, which is like signing a huge player for the second half of the season.

AS Roma kicks off their season at home against Salernitana on Sunday, August 20 at 12:30 p.m. EST.

All Serie A matches are streamed live on the FuboTV Canada App. For full season schedule, results, and tables, visit:https://www.legaseriea.it/en

That’s what I have for this week! Stay tuned for our weekly Football Friday column featuring news from professional leagues, national teams, and our local Muskoka clubs.