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Canada 7s - Shane Thompson as player
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Dubai 7s on TV Tonight - USA Not Canada Attending
[ed. comments below, except as noted]
posted Dec 4 2009
If you have Setanta you'll be able to watch some of the Dubai 7s on TV tonight at 7pm (check your local listings). They'll also be showing games on a delayed basis at other times throughout the weekend and on Monday. One of the sad stories from a Canadian perspective is that Canada is not attending this year, however our neighbours to the south are and not only that have inked a sponsorship deal with Emirate Airlines (see story below). It's another example of the need to "get our house in order" at the national level.
USA Sevens teams strike deal with Emirates [from irb.com]
With just two days to go until rugby fever hits Dubai, the event's sponsor Emirates Airline has increased its commitment to rugby with the announcement that it has become the Official Airline of the USA Rugby National Sevens teams.
Both the USA men's and women's Sevens teams will wear the well-known 'Fly Emirates' strap on their shirts during the IRB Sevens World Series, which starts this week with the Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens.
"This is a landmark deal for USA Rugby," said USA Rugby Chairman Kevin Roberts. "Emirates is more than an airline, they represent a lifestyle of optimism, discovery and passion. A lifestyle all USA Rugby players, members and fans share and aspire to. Emirates is passionate about rugby and will bring fresh impetus to the game's development in the U.S."
On their last visit to Dubai, for the Rugby World Cup Sevens in March, the USA Women's Sevens Team made it to the semi finals, before losing to eventual runners-up New Zealand, while the men's team got through to the Plate quarter finals.
Al Caravelli's side made it through to three Cup quarter finals in last season's IRB Sevens World Series, and a first ever semi final on home soil in San Diego.
"We are very proud to announce our partnership with the USA Rugby Sevens squad," said Gary Chapman, President Group Services and Dnata, Emirates Group.
"Emirates is a truly global rugby supporter and our partnership with the Eagles comes at an exciting time for the sport of rugby in the USA, especially following the news that the sport will become an Olympic event in 2016.
"Following the weekend's action we will certainly be looking at developing this partnership with USA Rugby further."
Emirates is the title sponsor of the Dubai Rugby Sevens, in addition to three other tournaments on the IRB Sevens World Series in London, Edinburgh and George, South Africa.
The company was the first to become a Worldwide Partner of the Rugby World Cup 2011 and also sponsors the England and Samoa Sevens squads.
Sevens – The Olympic Vote: Are We Ready?
by BC Rugby News 7s Correspondent
posted Sep 15 2009
Before we get too far along in this discussion – it has to be said right off the top that sending any our young players overseas appears to do little for profiling the overall product here at home.
Once again domestic rugby takes it in the ear – clubs who will be waiting for the young high school graduates to come their way may only be able to watch with dismay if our brightest young stars start heading overseas to North Wales.
Joe Lydon who runs the elite development program in Wales is a sensational man and an excellent coach – they don’t come much better and anyone under his tutilage is bound to improve. But that’s not the issue here.
The issue remains the diluted product we will continue to have here at home without injecting some profile or without injecting our brightest young stars into the club ranks or into our own elite development programs.
Never before have we had so many elite coaches in our midst on home soil – qualified, talented and offering wonderful programs to our players at the club level, at uninversites and of course in our schools. These people work tirelessly to improve rugby in their communities and they have accomplished a great deal to this point in time.
It is discouraging enough that we have so many senior players away playing in Europe – but earning a living by playing rugby here at home is still not possible.
Enter the Sevens confirmation in October – are we ready, are we prepared and what has been done to this point in time?
What is the administrative structure going to look like as we enter the Olympic pathway?
How are we going to search far and wide for players? And how are we going to entice the country’s youth that this is a worthwhile game to pursue at the Olympic level?
Immediately on the horizon is funding – Sport Canada, it is rumored, will only fund the podium players (ie Sevens athletes) which leaves many of our fifteens athletes further out in the cold if they stay home and play domestic rugby.
So right away funding and money become a central concern and the union has not had a very credible record for getting and keeping sponsors over the years. Too many big donors have come and then gone in disgust. Most recently the Custom House deal which was targeted specifically at our Sevens program.
Elsewhere other countries are already in organizational mode – Scotland is carding their sevens players, the Americans are about to, Wales appear to have a plan in place, the South African have carded their players and moved into a central location and Fiji for their part have just recalled the electric William Ryder back from Japan and their players are under contract. Manu Samoa and Hong Kong as well – the list is growing almost daily.
As recently as this past summer the topic of Sevens had to be added to the agenda of the board meeting after a request to do so from the former national women’s coach so one has to wonder if we are going forward with a concrete plan or if we are going to be scrambling around bumping into each other.
To date two national sevens coaches have been let go – and disturbingly both departures were not amicable in any way. There has been no announcement of a replacement for the NSWT despite the upcoming tournaments this year.
And despite the incredible athletes in the women’s program presently the fact remains that these players need to be out there competing in as many sevens tournaments as possible. Not only does it promote women’s rugby but it also profiles the short game in the country since many of these present players may not be around by the time the Olympics takes on Sevens as an event.
On the men’s side – many players past and present reside on the west coast which is a necessity in order to compete on the iRB Sevens circuit. But that does not address the urgency of profiling the game in most populated parts of the country – namely Ontario and Quebec. It is uncharted water where a huge talent pool must exist.
So what’s the plan and what are we going to do about it? Or are we going to simply wait until after the October vote to see what sort of monies come our way from the Canadian Olympic Committee via the IOC.
The new men’s coach already has a daily work-load at the elite carded program in Victoria and it would seem near impossible for him to travel far and wide across nation into every hamlet in search of talent. But without question – that is where the new talent resides.
It seems to be the trend these days but there are more questions than immediate answers. ‘Walking and talking’ are two separate issues – we are famous for our ‘talk’ but, in truth, most of the ‘real walkers’ have since departed our ranks for more reliable pastures.
Surely it is time for someone to step forward and start asking the right questions so we have a viable plan in place come October.
Sevens – IOC Vote Set for October
by BC Rugby News 7s Correspondent
posted September 2 2009
The International Olympic Committee is just weeks away from their assembly vote in Copenhagen this October.
At this point it seems unlikely that the iRB’s push for inclusion for Sevens Rugby in the Olympic Games will be derailed despite the recent headlines in England and South Africa.
For their part - the RFU is making all the right moves to improve the general deportment of their domestic game after the Harlequins ‘bloodgate’ scandal – their CEO is calling for a return to the grassroot values of years gone by - and since he controls the purse strings for the majority of serious clubs in the land it is probable that his wishes will be supported by the membership if they want to get their share of the revenues allocated.
In South Africa ‘the justice situation’ is somewhat different – probably traditional values were violated to some degree but like their uncompromising playing style - the players, and it appears their union, are unrepentant in their approach and that is unlikely to change. Regardless, it should not influence any vote to include the short game into the IOC family.
The call for a return to traditional grassroots values does sound good in an interview and read well in a press release - but without question ‘change’ has been upon us since the game ventured into professional territory – whether we like it or not things have changed dramatically and we should now admit that we are at a point of no return.
The custodians for the values we used to hold so dear to the game appear to be at the school level and in the mini ranks of our club system. And even then at the top level in our schools the pressure for success for the 1st XV and their coaches is onerous indeed.
Winning games and championships promotes profile in any jurisdiction these days and an athletic child is more likely to choose a successful program rather than a wilderness backwater situation.
Earlier this summer an article was written and posted on this station crying out - “What has Happened to my Game?”
Indeed, what has?
It was thoughtful and insightful as expected since the author is such a person who values the game of rugby in its purest sense.
For those of us who now watch instead of play, there is a growing swell of opinion that the game has evolved into a static solution of defensive lines and uncompromising patterns of ‘inhibitors’ which dominate the landscape.
Instead of offence ruling the land, now every serious club has a defensive coach who stifles the game into absolute bordom. It is dreary, boring and dull when this pattern of play occurs.
The October vote, if confirmed, will lift rugby football out of the dreary wilderness of lined defenses and stoic patterns of cover that inhibits creativity and dramatic offensive action.
Sevens is a game where offense rules as a first consideration and it is incumbant upon the govenors who sit in authority over the Laws Committee to ensure that we do not slide down the defensive waterfall that the fifteens game appears to have gone.
However, by its very nature, Sevens rugby should remain a dynamic and thrilling game where creativity and athletic adventure rule the day – there is simply too much room on the field for it to enter the doldrums and present course the the fifteens game is undertaking.
The Sevens fit for the Olympics is perfect – big crowds, explosive action and a chance for countries who do not excell in the fifteens game to reach the podium.
In our next edition we will explore the “readiness factor” and discuss if we (Canada) are on the launch pad for this Sevens confirmation or if we are wandering around in the wilderness still wondering what to do next.
Stay tuned.
Sevens – Shane Thompson Replaced as Coach
[ed. Setanta Sports in Canada will continue to operate normally, they are not affected by the UK decision and are still taking new subscriptions: more info at www.setanta.com/global/ca.html]
by BC Rugby News 7s Correspondent
posted June 25 2009
Some sad new this week on two fronts – first, that the rugby TV broadcaster Setanta has gone into ‘administration’ which is the European word for receivership or filed for bankrupcy protection.
It was posted in the Guardian Newspaper on Tuesday indicating that the sports channel had pulled the broadcasting plug due to financial issues.
For those of us who enjoy worldwide rugby on our TV screens this is indeed dismal news - and whether or not these rugby fixtures will be picked up by other networks remains uncertain.
Next – is the grim news that Canada Sevens coach Shane Thompson has been replaced.
To ‘insiders’ this is not exactly startling news as once the national union made it clear of their intention to have a competition for the job, combine it with the existing skills portfolio, it appeared that the Sevens Coach was probably doomed.
It was no secret that this iRB season had been particularly hard and frustrating for the former coach with issues of selection, specific training for the sevens players and preparations for the Rugby World Cup and iRB events to name just a few.
Like Ric Suggitt before him - Thompson had a fire and a passion for the competition and Sevens was indeed his passion. And, like Suggitt, he had to swallow hard too many times and endure far too much off-field frustrations which took its toll and clouded the on-field competition and accomplishments.
He began his playing career in 1997 when he debuted in Dubai and ended it remarkably some eight years later at Los Angeles in 2005 – an astonishing feat and accomplishment in any sporting arena. (See profile below)
Later in 2005 he began his coaching career on the iRB circuit taking the team to London and Paris. The following September he enroled in the National Coaching Institute completing his Level 4 standing the following spring.
He went on to coach the team at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in 2006, at the Rugby World Cup Qualifer in 2008 and ultimately at the Rugby Sevens World Cup in 2009 at the United Arab Emirates - Dubai.
With news posted earlier this year on the national website that the union was going to combine both the skills job and the sevens job it seemed clear that the writing was on the pyramid walls.
As usual this leaves us with more questions than answers and the mute behavior of our paid staff in Ontario continues unabated in this instance once again.
Immediately on the radar are two major issues – first the upcoming Commonwealth Games in India and second the upcoming vote this fall by the IOC in Copenhagen.
Commonwelath Games Canada is in the final stages of their preparations for Delhi in 2010. With that in mind there are very strict rules of governance in all the competition sports – first and foremost being that all coaches, managers and officials must be level qualified by national standards.
In the past this has never been an issue for our staff since all of them were Level 4 or higher qualifed. Now that is not the case.
Next is the IOC vote in Copenhagen and the (hopeful) acceptance of Sevens into the Olympic movement.
If that goes through as the iRB hopes it will do then expect the Canadian Olympic Committee to enter the picture with their guns blazing – in short they have manuals and protocols that would dazzle Microsoft’s biggest unit! And once again coaches and officials will need to have their house in perfect working order according to the IOC.
There was news earlier this month that the women’s national sevens coach had written to the chairman about her concerns for the future of the women’s program given these upcoming events and lack of attention for her troops.
The chairman replied and promptly added the topic to the agenda for the July board meeting – however the fact that it was not on the agenda to begin with shows a disturbing level of interest given these factors and major sporting events immediately on the horizon.
Sadly this brings us back to the beginning as the union continues to cut people loose; not giving due respect or consideration and certainly not profiling accomplishment.
Little red Caps are nice but really they are not the central issue – Suggitt is gone and now so is Shane Thompson. Both will be missed.
Maybe it’s time to consider ‘celebration’ as a format instead of trying to add to the landfill.
PROFILE - SHANE THOMPSON – Player, captain & Coach
Debut: 1997 Dubai Sevens
1998 Japan
1999-2000
Mar del Plata, Argentina
Punta del Este, Uruguay
Wellington, New Zealand
Suva, Fiji
Brisbane, Australia
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Hong Kong
Tokyo, Japan
Santiago, Chile Rugby World Cup Qualifiers
Paris, France
2000-2001 WSS
Durban, South Africa
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Wellington, New Zealand
Hong Kong
Shanghai, China
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Tokyo, Japan
London, England
Cardiff, Wales
2001 World Games
Akita, Japan
2001-2002 WSS
Santiago, Chile
Mar del Plata, Argentina
Brisbane, Australia
Wellington, NZ
Beijing, China
Hong Kong
Singapore
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
London, England ©
Cardiff, Wales ©
2002 August
Manchester, England
Commonwealth Games
2002 –2003 WS
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
George, SA
Brisbane, Australia
Wellington, NZ
Hong Kong
Cardiff, Wales
London, England
2003–2004 WS
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
George, SA
Wellington, NZ
Los Angeles, USA
Hong Kong
Singapore
Bordeaux, France
London, England
2004-2005 WS
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
George, SA
Wellington, NZ
Los Angeles, USA
2005-2006 WS – Coach
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
George, SA
Wellington, NZ
Los Angeles, USA
2006 CWG
Melbourne, Australia
Commonwealth Games
2005-2006 WS
Hong Kong
Singapore
Paris, France
London, England
2006-2007 WS
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
George, South Africa
Wellington, NZ
San Diego, USA
Hong Kong
Adelaide, Australia
London, England
Edinburgh, Scotland
2007-2008 WS
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
George, SA
Wellington, NZ
San Diego, USA
Hong Kong
San Diego, USA
2008 RWC Qualifier
Nassau, Bahamas
2009 RWC
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
2008-2009 WS
Wellington, NZ
San Diego, USA
2008-2009 WS
Hong Kong
2008-2009 WS
London, England
Edinburgh, Scotland
London Sevens Final Review: Canada Wins Shield with Victory Over USA
by BC Rugby News 7s Correspondent
posted May 25 2009
Day One in London went somewhat as predicted although some of the scores suggest that this young and inexperienced Canada Team did much better than expected.
With blow-outs administered to the minnows by the established teams in some pools – Canada, on the other hand, managed to stay reasonably close in their very difficult pool grouping.
In fact it was good to hear that the coach felt fairly upbeat after such grueling pool challenge.
Day Two must have got everyone’s heart rate going early when we came so very close to upsetting the polished Kenyan Team – in fact Kenya went on to win the Bowl with a 12 – 7 win over Dubai Rugby World Cup winners Wales.
In the Shield Semi-Final it seemed that the disappointment of the loss to Kenya almost strangled Canada as we squeaked out a close encounter with newcomers Germany. Nevertheless we prevailed 26 – 24 and continued on in the Shield competition.
The Shield Final put us front and centre with our southern neighbors and it must have given the players and staff immense satisfaction to take the American’s apart 27 – 7 to win the hardware on the final day of competition.
Well done young Canada – onto Scotland next weekend.
Day Two Results
44 24-05-2009 18:52 New Zealand 26 - 31 England ENG Final Cup
43 24-05-2009 18:24 Fiji 24 - 10 Portugal ENG Final Plate
42 24-05-2009 17:56 Wales 7 - 12 Kenya ENG Final Bowl
41 24-05-2009 17:28 USA 7 - 27 Canada ENG Final Shield
40 24-05-2009 17:06 Scotland 12 - 26 England ENG SF Cup
39 24-05-2009 16:44 South Africa 5 - 10 New Zealand ENG SF Cup
38 24-05-2009 15:56 Portugal 19 - 10 Australia ENG SF Plate
37 24-05-2009 15:34 France 19 - 35 Fiji ENG SF Plate
36 24-05-2009 15:12 Kenya 17 - 10 Samoa ENG SF Bowl
35 24-05-2009 14:50 Wales 19 - 14 Argentina ENG SF Bowl
34 24-05-2009 14:28 Canada 26 - 24 Germany ENG SF Shield
33 24-05-2009 14:06 Georgia 12 - 38 USA ENG SF Shield
32 24-05-2009 13:34 England 26 - 12 Australia ENG 1/4 final Cup
31 24-05-2009 13:12 Scotland 22 - 21 Portugal ENG 1/4 final Cup
30 24-05-2009 12:50 New Zealand 33 - 14 Fiji ENG 1/4 final Cup
29 24-05-2009 12:28 South Africa 21 - 5 France ENG 1/4 final Cup
28 24-05-2009 12:06 Samoa 42 - 0 Germany ENG 1/4 final Bowl
27 24-05-2009 11:44 Kenya 12 - 7 Canada ENG 1/4 final Bowl
26 24-05-2009 11:22 Argentina 24 - 19 USA ENG 1/4 final Bowl
25 24-05-2009 11:00 Wales 36 - 0 Georgia ENG 1/4 final Bowl
Day One Results
24 23-05-2009 20:33 England 31 - 14 Samoa ENG Pool B
23 23-05-2009 20:11 Argentina 0 - 38 New Zealand ENG Pool D
22 23-05-2009 19:49 Fiji 26 - 5 Kenya ENG Pool C
21 23-05-2009 19:27 South Africa 17 - 14 Australia ENG Pool A
20 23-05-2009 19:05 France 57 - 7 Georgia ENG Pool B
19 23-05-2009 18:43 Portugal 24 - 7 Canada ENG Pool D
18 23-05-2009 18:21 USA 0 - 40 Scotland ENG Pool C
17 23-05-2009 17:59 Wales 45 - 5 Germany ENG Pool A
16 23-05-2009 17:15 Samoa 26 - 26 France ENG Pool D
15 23-05-2009 16:53 England 61 - 0 Georgia ENG Pool D
14 23-05-2009 16:31 New Zealand 43 - 7 Portugal ENG Pool D
13 23-05-2009 16:09 Argentina 24 - 12 Canada ENG Pool D
12 23-05-2009 15:47 Kenya 33 - 0 USA ENG Pool C
11 23-05-2009 15:25 Fiji 7 - 12 Scotland ENG Pool C
10 23-05-2009 15:03 Australia 31 - 21 Wales ENG Pool A
9 23-05-2009 14:41 South Africa 70 - 0 Germany ENG Pool A
8 23-05-2009 14:09 Samoa 47 - 0 Georgia ENG Pool B
7 23-05-2009 13:47 England 20 - 14 France ENG Pool B
6 23-05-2009 13:25 New Zealand 40 - 0 Canada ENG Pool D
5 23-05-2009 13:03 Argentina 21 - 21 Portugal ENG Pool D
4 23-05-2009 12:41 Kenya 17 - 12 Scotland ENG Pool C
3 23-05-2009 12:19 Fiji 26 - 10 USA ENG Pool C
2 23-05-2009 11:57 Australia 50 - 0 Germany ENG Pool A
1 23-05-2009 11:35 South Africa 29 - 5 Wales ENG Pool A
2009 Team for London & Edinburgh
Stu Ault Rotherham Titans Perth, ON
Spencer Baker Capilano RFC North Vancouver, BC
Colin Brown London St. Georges St. Thomas, ON
James Buchanan Calgary Mavericks Calgary, AB
Kyle Buckley University of Victoria Montreal, PQ
Bryn Keys Velox Valhallians Abbotsford, BC
Tony La Carte Bayside RFC White Rock, BC
Neil Meechan University of Victoria Victoria, BC
Justin Mensah-Coker Plymouth Albion RFC Vancouver, BC
Ian Schoults Calgary Irish Calgary, AB
Derek Townsend Meraloma Club Vancouver, BC
Sean White James Bay AA Victoria, BC
SEVENS – 2009 Team for London & Edinburgh
by BC Rugby News 7s Correspondent
posted May 16 2009
The National Sevens Team for the last two iRB tournaments of the year was announced late Friday afternoon PDT.
Despite some off-field maneuvering during early April the team will have Shane Thompson at the coaching helm going into the last two events of the iRB Sevens season.
A review of the pool assignments ensures that the iRB Sevens record holder will earn his pay cheque for these last two venues.
The team has improved under Thompson’s guidance this past season and anyone who has seen the tapes of games played or the TV broadcasts would agree that he has had his fair share of last second let-downs and ultimate disappointments.
In sevens - players earn their caps by playing in minutes and seconds unlike the fifteens game – and it is those few seconds when fortunes turn so quickly and become disappointments.
For the coach it is the entire package at the end of a tournament which will be judged – unfair has it might be. Test rugby is about winning and while we often pretend otherwise and say that improvement has been registered little really satisfies us except having more points than the opposition when the final whistle blows – that’s why we compete – to win.
The team selected shows several changes as expected - and there will be no mercy shown to the newcomers when they hit the ground in Europe.
With the iRB Sevens championship winners still in doubt there will be no favors offered until the wrap-up banquet in Scotland!
All the teams will be looking to move up and finish well – being closer to the top of the final points table helps a countries finances directly when budgets are allocated next season by the iRB.
Five new caps on any trip is not ideal but there are some positives to be noted - the University of Victoria’s Kyle Buckley has had a sensational season for his side in the B.C. Premier League – he has speed, strength and a good skill package.
The uncapped Derek Townsend from the BC Premier League championship team Meraloma Club is also a find – he ignited his team on several occasions in a rather dull final and his running ability with ball in-hand is legitimate and powerful. A football player, recruited to the Meraloma Club by former XV’s international Gary Fumano, it is easy to see that Townsend may have a sevens future.
The north shore’s Spencer Baker also has speed and this team will need all the speed available when it hits the turf at Twickenham as our pool assignment is fast and furious.
Justin Mensah-Coker (15 Caps) returns and will help this selection adding some much needed experience to the squad.
Joining Thompson will be the very capable and long-serving sevens physiotherapist Mike Yates from Summerland, BC.
Yates has great tenure with the Sevens Program and is held in high regard by the players and staff alike.
Our Pool D assignment in London is easily considered a deadly affair with Argentina, New Zealand and Portugal. Exciting times ahead…
Stay tuned to the iRB Sevens website for immediate results.
http://www.irb.com/
Good luck Canada!
SEVENS – 2009 Team for London & Edinburgh
Stu Ault - Rotherham Titans - Perth, ON
Spencer Baker # - Capilano RFC - North Vancouver, BC
Colin Brown # - London St. Georges - St. Thomas, ON
James Buchanan - Velox Valhallians/Calgary Mavericks - Calgary, AB
Kyle Buckley # - University of Victoria - Montreal, PQ
Bryn Keys - Velox Valhallians - Abbotsford, BC
Tony La Carte - Bayside RFC - White Rock, BC
Neil Meechan - University of Victoria - Victoria, BC
Justin Mensah-Coker - Plymouth Albion RFC - Vancouver, BC
Ian Schoults # - Calgary Irish - Calgary, AB
Derek Townsend # - Meraloma RFC - Vancouver, BC
Sean White - James Bay AA - Victoria, BC
Coach: Shane Thompson
Manager: Dustin Hopkins
Physiotherapist: Mike Yates
#Uncapped
SEVENS – Pools for London & Edinburgh
by BC Rugby News 7s Correspondent
posted April 30 2009
The pool assignments for England and Scotland have been confirmed by the iRB this week.
These are the last two venues before the circuit takes a rest for the summer months.
The next big Sevens event will be held in Copenhagen this Fall when the International Olympic Committee votes on which sports will be accepted into the Olympic movement.
The days and months following the last iRB tournament will be stressful times for our officials in Dublin who have put their heart and soul into their Olympic proposal.
Which ever way the IOC vote goes it will not diminish the sensational product that the iRB has created with their Sevens program.
Record crowds and record television feeds this season have seen another huge leap in the product that the Dublin staff has nurtured these past ten years. Add to that the overflow crowds for the Sevens event at the Commonwealth Games and it is easy to see that the iRB will still have a remarkable jewel which ever way the vote goes in Denmark.
For Canada – the next two events could stretch our player resources with fifteens conflicts for several top players.
The pool assignment for London is difficult. We are ranked at the bottom of this Pool D contest and getting into the Cup Round will be tough.
Argentina presently has 68 points and they will want to finish higher in the final iRB Standings when all is completed in Scotland.
Right behind them is New Zealand with 64 points so winning this pool and moving on to the Cup Round is imperative for both teams – don’t expect this pool to offer relief for Canada. Also in the pool is Portugal who always plays well in London and cause every team problems.
This pool will be a tense affair and no one will be taking their foot off the gas peddle.
In Scotland there isn’t much relief either for Canada with Kenya, England & Scotland in our Pool C assignment.
Kenya has 58 points presently and finishing well in London and Scotland could see them end up higher in the final iRB Standings than ever before.
England has 76 points going into London and is in second place overall and with Fiji just behind them with 74 points it is a tight affair at the top of the table.
This is the first year that the final standings are so remarkably close and who will finish where may not be decided until the final day in Scotland.
Two Bowl wins for Canada in London and Scotland would see us overtake Tonga and France which would be a wonderful way to end the season.
Good luck Canada!
Canada lose to Portugal in Plate Quarter-Final
posted March 7 2009
[ed. comments, scoring summary from iRB]
Canada played one game on the last day of competition, losing the Plate Quarter-Final to Portugal by a score of 12-5. Portugal then lost to eventual Plate winners Scotland. Zimbabwe won the Bowl and Wales defeated Argentina 19-12 to win the Cup.
Scoring Summary
Half 1
3:49 Justin Mensah-Coker CAN Try
4:24 Phillip Mack CAN Con Miss
6:03 Diogo Mateus POR Sin Bin
Half 2
6:11 Aderito Esteves POR Try
6:44 Pedro Leal POR Con Miss
9:22 David Mateus POR Try
9:47 Pedro Leal POR Conversion
Canada Finishes Day Two 2-1: Trip to the Plate Competition
posted March 6 2009
by BC Rugby News Correspondent
Canada 7 - South Africa 15
Canada 22 - Japan 12
Canada finished Day Two with a trip to the Plate competition at the Rugby World Cup in Dubai.
After a very close game with South Africa Canada redeemed their 2005 loss in Hong Kong and took apart Japan 22 points to 12 and thus ended up second in their pool.
Better still our point differential was such that we missed moving onto the Cup round marginally as Kenya and Wales out flanked Canada in the final push.
The game versus South Africa was close – certainly much closer than their coach Paul Treu would have wanted. South Africa had struggled in their only game on Day One and do not seem to have reached their stride yet. So while they win Pool C there is uncertainty about how much further they will go unless they find their top form on Day Three.
Against Japan it must have been sweet revenge for Plymouth Albion’s Justin Mensah-Coker – in 2005 at the world cup in Hong Kong Mensah-Coker crossed the line against Japan only to spill the ball forward as he went to ground. It was the beginning of Canada’s dismal showing at the 2005 event and clearly this result will have pleased the Vancouver native no end.
Day three will see Canada play Portugal in the semi-final of the Plate competition. Our recent record against Portugal is not impressive but so far in this world cup event our form has been excellent so this game is winnable.
Portugal is an awkward team to play against – their style is a mixture of
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