Scott Tupper is a Canada veteran of more than 250 international caps.

A defender and drag-flick exponent, Tupper stepped up to take a penalty stroke against South Africa in a World Cup pool match against South Africa with his team trailing by a goal.

The 31-year-old kept his cool despite the noise of the packed Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar to slot the ball home and eventually fetch Canada a valuable point.

“I was a little nervous,” he said. “My wife was in the stands in front of me and I didn’t want to upset her by missing the stroke.”

India will remember Tupper for sure when they square up today in the final pool game.

He scored twice to force a 2-2 draw in the 2016 Rio Olympic concluding pool game – an outcome that pitted India against fancied Belgium in the quarterfinals which India lost.

then, in the HWL Semifinal round in London, Tupper’s rock solid defence helped the Red Caribou shock India 3-2 in the 5th-6th playoff to seal a berth in the World Cup.

Tupper has played for clubs in Racing Club in Brussels, Belgium, and Club An der Alster, in Hamburg, Germany, having assisted the latter to the 2011 title.

Having taken to hockey at the age of six, Tupper played for Vancouver Hawks eventually debuting for his country in 2005. He was an integral part of Canada’s epic win over Argentina in the Pan American Games final in Rio de Janeiro which brought them a place in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and his first appearance at the Games.

Having started off as a midfielder, Tupper gradually adopted a role in the defence while honing the skills of a drag-flicker and a supplier of long aerial balls deep into the opponents’ half.

His motto: “Good enough is not good enough” sums up his quest to not just improve but excel while representing the Maple Leaf and meeting challenges that playing for Canada calls for.

Photo: Yan Huckendubler