Simeon Jackson left the pitch as a hero by the Norwich City crowd last Saturday, when the Carrow Road faithful gave him a standing ovation for his efforts in a 2-0 win over a struggling Bolton Wanderers.
Jackson started and was lively throughout his 74 minutes on the pitch, earning praise for his tireless work on the right side of the pitch.
The Mississauga, Ontario, native assisted on Norwich’s first of two goals by beating his defender at the top of the Bolton penalty area and whipping in a low, hard cross that teammate Andrew Surman took two cracks at before successfully burying the ball high into the goal.
Unfortunately for Junior Hoilett, his night was pretty much the opposite, as Blackburn Rovers were were big losers last Saturday, falling 7-1 to Arsenal.
The Canadian midfielder was on the pitch for all 90 agonizing minutes as Blackburn were dismantled by the London giants in humiliating fashion. Hoilett’s side suffered its third loss in five matches and seems destined for a prolonged fight just to remain in the Premier League.
Blackburn are currently second from the bottom with 14 matches remaining.
The weekend also saw David Edgar in action for nPower Championship club Burnley, who needed a late equalizer to draw 1-1 with visiting Peterborough United. Edgar put in his usual 90 minutes of work on the backline as Burnley remain within striking distance of a promotion playoff berth.
Over in Germany, Canada captain Kevin McKenna went the distance for FC Köln in a 1-0 victory over Kaiserslautern. McKenna nearly opened the scoring in the first half, but the big defender’s headed effort struck the post and fell harmlessly wide.
Marcel de Jong also played 90 Bundesliga minutes on Saturday, helping his team FC Augsburg grind out a 2-2 draw at Hoffenheim. Augsburg are currently second from the bottom in the German top flight, but they are also just three points from safety after 20 rounds.
Looking to earn promotion into the first division, Eintracht Frankfurt defeated Eintracht Braunschweig 2-1 on Sunday to stay in second place in Germany’s 2.Bundesliga. Big striker Rob Friend was an unused substitute for Frankfurt, while speedy attacker Randy Edwini-Bonsu made his debut for Braunschweig as a 68th-minute entrant.
The third Canadian forward in the 2.Bundesliga, SpVgg Greuther Fürth’s Olivier Occean, was on the pitch for the duration of his team’s 3-1 loss at Dynamo Dresden. The defeat dropped Fürth to fourth on the league table.
Next door in the Netherlands, the rehabilitation of Atiba Hutchinson continued. Last Thursday, Hutchinson returned to the pitch for the first time in months following knee surgery, entering as an 82nd-minute substitute in PSV Eindhoven’s 3-2 win over NEC in KNVB Cup action.
Three days later, the 28-year-old midfielder watched from the bench as PSV played to a 1-1 deadlock with hosts Heracles in the Eredivisie.
Meanwhile, in Turkey, Mike Klukowski appeared in one of Manisaspor’s two matches over the past week. The 30-year-old left back started and played 90 minutes in a 3-2 loss to Eskişehirspor, but he was nowhere to be seen for his side’s 1-0 win at his former club Ankaragücü on Monday.
After a torrid start to the season, Manisaspor are currently 14th in Turkey’s Süper Lig.
