By Andy Jasner

PHILADELPHIA - Honduras advanced to the semifinals of the CONCACAF Gold Cup for the third time, beating Canada 1-0 Saturday on a first-half penalty by Walter Martinez.

Playing before a spirited crowd filled largely with the familiar blue and white shirts and flags, Honduras - which lost to the United States in the 1991 final and in the 2005 semifinals - will travel to Chicago to face the winner between the USA, which beat  Panama 2-1 in the later quarterfinal.

"We knew anything could happen," Honduras coach Reinaldo Rueda said through a translator. "We knew we had to play for 95 minutes and if we did, we would get the result."

Honduras controlled the first 10-15 minutes, but Canada slowly began to take possession. The Catrachos, however, got its break in the 36th minute when Canada defender Paul Stalteri was whistled for an infraction on a bicycle kick attempt by Martinez. The ball ricocheted inadvertently off Staltieri's hand and out of bounds.

Martinez capitalized by sending the penalty kick down the middle while Canada goalkeeper Greg Sutton dived left.

"All referees make mistakes and are human," Martinez said through a translator. "I didn't think it was a penalty, but I was able to score."

Stalteri argued the call for what many thought was a handball, but earned a yellow for his tug of Martinez's jersey disputing the decision by Salvadoran referee Joel Aguilar.

"From the end of the bench, it looked phantom to me," Canada interim coach Stephen Hart said.

Canada had a couple of good scoring chances earlier in the half, most notably in the 22nd minute.

That's when Atiba Hutchinson received a pass from Patrice Bernier and fired from 15 yards. But Honduran goalkeeper Donis Escober was able to get low and block the attempt with his left hand.

Just when it seemed as if the momentum had changed for Honduras, Canada nearly tied the game. In the 56th minute, Bernier sent a cross in front where an unmarked Josh Simpson. But Escobar again was able to make a diving save to preserve the advantage.

Playing in its ninth Gold Cup since 1991, Honduras will be trying for its first championship. Honduras has failed to qualify for the Gold Cup only in 2002. It has advanced to the World Cup finals once (1982) and remains in contention for 2010.

"I think with our speed, which is our strength, we were able to manage the game and pack it off in the back," Martinez said. "We were able to get the result we were looking for."

Canada, meanwhile, was eliminated after a nice run through the tournament. It was hoping for a Gold Cup title for the first time since 2000.

"I'm very proud of the players," Hart said. "I think we showed a lot of character."

Canada lost in a disputed semifinal to the United States in 2007 and fell just short in a potential rematch. Canada has now lost two of three matches to Honduras in the Gold Cup. Honduras won their meeting in 1991, 4-2, while Canada was victorious 3-1 in 1996.

On this particular night, Canada wasn't able to score despite a number of solid opportunities late in the second half. The best chance came in the 85th minute when Kevin McKenna's header struck the left post.

"In the second half, we did much, much, much better," Hart said. "Sutton came up big on chances. In the end, you lose on a penalty. What can you do?"

It was the second time Canada has lost on a disputed goal. In 2007, a Canadian goal was disallowed in injury time in a 2-1 loss to the United States in the semifinals.

"We executed our game plan pretty much the way we expected to," Sutton said. "You take away the tough call against us in the first half, which I think explains itself, we held possession of the ball. In the second half, we created a lot of chances."