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BERLIN, June 26-- Germany got off to an expectedly good start in defense of their World Cup title on Sunday when they beat Canada 2-1 in their first group game. Kerstin Garefrekes and Celia Okoyino Da Mbabi scored for the host nation in front of 74,000 spectators. Christine Sinclair, who played most of the second half with a broken nose, scored for Canada with a free kick with eight minutes to go. Germany attacked from the start of the Group A game, posing trouble for the Canadian defense with the first corner kick in the second minute. In the sixth minute, Sinclair should have scored for Canada against the run of play, but she fired over the bar with only Germany goalkeeper Nadine Angerer to beat. Kerstin Garefrekes scored the opener in the 10th minute, assisted by fullback Babett Peter. After a throw-in, Peter got free down the left flank and floated a cross to the back post. Garefrekes was able to rise above her defender and head the ball across the face of goal, leaving Erin McLeod wrong-footed as she failed to stop the shot. Germany doubled their lead at the end of the first half, thanks to some very poor defending and a good finish by Celia Okoyino da Mbabi, assisted by Garefrekes. Canada attempted to execute an offside trap, but Marie-Eve Nault failed to step up with her teammates, allowing Okoyino da Mbabi to stay onside and get free on goal before she finished easily. Canada played well in the first half, matching Germany throughout the period, but their defense positioning ultimately let them down. Nault was particularly poor, while Kaylyn Kyle wasn 't great either. Both were substituted off and the changes didn't help much. While Germany didn't score again, they were actually considerably better for most of the second half and simply failed to finish their chances. | 
