Well, folks, it’s probably the biggest weekend in Canadian Rugby history for a very long time. Our outstanding Canadian Women are through to the Women’s Rugby World Cup Semi-Finals against New Zealand this Friday in Bristol. If you do anything this weekend make sure that at 1400 (Eastern) you are firmly ensconced in front of a TV, preferably at your local pub so you help to get more Canadians cheering on our remarkable Women. If you’re at your local, make sure they put it up on the big screen, and let’s get this critical game front and center of everybody’s sporting attention in this country from Tofino to St. John’s. France and England also do battle in the second Semi-Final on Saturday, but there’s no denying that in terms of quality, Canada’s tussle with New Zealand is likely to be the highlight of the weekend. Both New Zealand and Canada are performing at their peak, as is England, but sadly, France look a long way off the mark required to get past the tournament hosts.
Meanwhile, in the Men’s game, Canada play for 3rd or fourth place honors in the Pacific Nations Cup against Tonga, while Japan and Fiji fight it out for the trophy this year. Unfortunately, apart from that epic win in Calgary over the USA and with it qualification for the World Cup, Canada has sadly turned in a relatively lackluster performance since then against Japan and Fiji. The tournament’s Finals now being played out in the USA, have sadly failed to capture the imagination, especially when you compare it to the quality and excitement of Canada’s Women in the World Cup in England these past few weeks. The rows and rows of empty seats at all the games last weekend in Colorado, even for the USA’s World Cup qualifier against Samoa, highlighted how in the case of the Men’s game rugby has failed to really gain any traction in the USA. It doesn’t bode well for the Americans hosting the World Cup in six years’ time.
The same could not be said for a thrilling weekend of Rugby Championship action, which once again saw the table get flipped upside down as South Africa and Argentina came storming back from their defeats in the previous Round last weekend. As each of the four teams now have two losses and two wins, this is shaping up to be the most exciting Rugby Championship in the tournament’s history, making us bemoan it’s demise next year even more.
Our resident scribe is back from his training course but is about to head off on a well-earned vacation with his family, so we’ll need to keep this short and sharp. So, without any further ado, here’s what got us talking over some rushed but animated pints!
Canada lights the afterburners and goes storming into the Rugby World Cup Semi-Finals!
We’ll shamelessly admit our bias here. After all, we are a Canadian rugby blog at the end of the day, even if there is a range of nationalities representing our merry band. But yes, we are buzzing with excitement about what is without a doubt the most important fixture in Canadian rugby history in the last ten years in either the Men’s or Women’s game.
Canada’s Women will do battle on Friday in Bristol with New Zealand’s mighty Black Ferns for a spot in the World Cup Final at Twickenham a week later. New Zealand are the defending World Champions with a pedigree in the tournament that is second to none. Canada are the upstarts who have always been competitive and full of surprises. This time around, though Canada are no longer underdogs – they are genuine contenders plain and simple. Oh and just to add extra spice to the contest despite being reigning back to back World Champions and having won 6 of the 9 tournaments to date, New Zealand are still only the third best team in the world. Not that we place a huge amount of meaning or weight on the World Rankings, but there is that little side note that on Friday the World Number Two plays the World Number Three, and it’s Canada who have the number 2 on their jersey not New Zealand.
However, it’s time to put the hype aside and let the rugby do the talking. Many are rightly billing this as THE biggest game in the tournament so far. Sure, there’s another Semi-Final Saturday between Tournament hosts and favorites England and a rather controversial France. Nevertheless, it’s Friday’s clash that everyone can’t stop talking about, and rightly so. Both New Zealand and Canada have produced some mesmerising rugby this tournament. We’d argue that New Zealand have had the slightly harder road to Friday’s encounter than Canada, with two tough games against Ireland and South Africa leading up to this Semi-Final. For Canada, each game has got progressively harder since that Pool opener against Fiji, but they’ve never really had to batten down the hatches, dig deep and do a genuine rethink at half time, something which New Zealand had to do and then some in last week’s Quarter-Final with South Africa as they headed into the sheds at half time with the scores tied 10-10.
Consequently, heading into this match, New Zealand know what pressure means, but Canada, perhaps less so. Will that ultimately be the linchpin that separates the two sides at the full-time whistle? In short, it is impossible to say, and all we can do for now is base our opinions on form heading into this Semi-Final. Canada have shown they can be adaptable and fix things on the fly when they need to, while at the same time, their offloading and handling skills have to be seen to be believed. What’s more remarkable is the sheer mobility and tempo of their forward pack. Canada’s forwards are hitting the rucks at speed, winning the collisions, and then managing an outrageous run of phases to ultimately release their lightning backs. Canada’s counterattack has been one of the best of the tournament, while their setpiece work has provided a consistent and powerful platform to work off.
Much has been said of New Zealand so far this tournament not being able to start well but finish strongly, whereas Canada have tended to start all guns blazing only to then have a much more conservative finish. Some have labeled this as a liability that sides like New Zealand, once they get into their stride, will punish. There may well be some truth to such arguments, but watching Canada play, we are not overly concerned. After going into the sheds at half time last week in their Semi-Final against Australia with a comfortable 31-5 lead, we’ve seen some commentary suggesting that Canada’s lack of a killer instinct to put a monster score up against Australia in the second half leaves them vulnerable. We’d argue differently. In the second half Canada still managed to put another 16 unanswered points on the Australians without having to really break a sweat while at the same time keeping the Wallaroos scoreless from the sixth minute of the game onwards. Whichever way you cut it, that’s pretty impressive both in terms of defense and how you manage a game with an eye to what lies ahead after the final whistle. Furthermore, why put a 60 point score on a side that essentially has no way back into the match, and in the process run the risk of injury for a much bigger fixture you’ve already booked your tickets for by the 50th minute? We’d argue that’s pretty savvy game management from Coach Kevin Rouet and his charges. Unlike New Zealand, Canada head into their Semi-Final with a clean bill of health.
However, despite all the positives and the optimism buzzing around the table over our pints, there is no denying that Friday’s Semi-Final against New Zealand will be a massive milestone in the remarkable story of Canadian Women’s Rugby, and they will be facing one of the World’s best on its biggest stage. New Zealand are back to back Champions for a reason – they know better than anyone else what these big pressure moments feel like and how to handle them. Canada are no longer in awe of New Zealand but know that whatever successes they’ve had recently against them, on a World Cup stage, this is New Zealand’s comfort zone. The Black Ferns have been here before six times over and know what it takes to get the job done. While Canada have an incredible collective cohesion, the Black Ferns have an unrivaled collective history of how to perform and the results to prove it at World Cups.
Can Canada win on Friday? Absolutely! Will they win? Only the scoreboard at the final whistle will be able to give us the answer to that multilayered question. We can’t wait to find out, but from all of us here at the Lineout, and we’re sure we speak for every Canadian rugby fan on this one, whatever happens Ladies we know you will have made us unbelievably proud! So give it your all and very best of luck – we’ll be cheering you on every second of the way!
New Zealand vs Canada – Friday, September 19th – 1:30 PM (Eastern) – TSN 1, TSN4 and Stan Sport Australia (live and on demand)
New Zealand and England look to be the teams to beat while barring a miracle France prepare to exit stage left
So, as much as our focus is centered on our remarkable Canadian Women, there are three other teams all vying for a shot at glory at Twickenham on September 27th. New Zealand face Canada in a match that is impossible to call. New Zealand may have a far more established and successful World Cup pedigree than Canada, but in terms of ability and skill, there is little if anything separating the sides. New Zealand have had the benefit of facing the sternest possible Test in their Quarter-Final clash with South Africa. The Black Ferns headed into the changing rooms at half time with it 10 apiece, but came out in the second half and switched several gears in the blink of an eye and simply never looked back. It seems to be a trend so far this World Cup that they have started poorly but ultimately finished at full throttle and completely in charge of proceedings. Against Canada, they will know that they will have to start and finish strong, as if they have to chase the game Canada have the potential to never let them back in.
Some have argued that New Zealand’s depth is not what it needs to be this World Cup, but we’ve haven’t seen any evidence of this. The loss for this all important Semi-Final of one of the undisputed stars of the tournament back rower Jorja Miller, will be a serious cross for New Zealand to bear on Friday but her replacement Kennedy Tukuafu is certainly no slouch. Meanwhile, winger Braxton Sorensen-McGee has become one of the standouts of the tournament and is its leading try scorer and will put Canada’s Asia Hogan-Rochester’s defensive skills under the sternest of examinations. Canada’s forward pack will need to starve New Zealand of ball out wide and thus ensure that the Black Ferns Portia Woodman-Wickliffe and Sorensen-McGee don’t feature on the post match highlight reels. Meanwhile, keeping Stacey Waaka quiet in the center channels will be key for Canada. The battle between Canada’s Sophie de Goede and the Black Ferns Alana Bremner in the second row looks set to be one for the ages. In short, some of the one on one micro contests in this game look set to be some of the most fascinating of the entire tournament.
As a result, Saturday’s encounter between England and France doesn’t quite have the same gloss to it as that between Canada and New Zealand for the neutrals. For French and English supporters, it’s clearly do or die stuff in a bitter rivalry. In our concerns mentioned above that perhaps Canada hasn’t quite been tested to the degree necessary so far, we’d argue the alarm bells are ringing louder for England on that front. They have essentially breezed through this tournament, and even when they haven’t looked all that convincing the result has never looked in doubt. As a result, we’re not really sure if we’ve seen the real England yet, and for Canada and New Zealand, that is concerning. Furthermore, France really aren’t playing all that well, and let’s be brutally honest, must surely consider themselves lucky to be in this Semi-Final in the first place.
For England, we’re just not sure they are as good as everyone makes them out to be. Furthermore, will the pressure and expectations of a World Cup at home expose some cracks in the setup? Let’s face it at Twickenham this year in front of 37,500 expectant fans, England almost didn’t get the job done against France and only managed a one point win.
Meanwhile, France look nowhere near the quality of the team that almost tripped England up earlier this year. They have had some good performances in this World Cup, but consistency has not been their strong point. Furthermore, they look a tad disorganised, especially under pressure. We don’t want to labor the point, but Ireland were the better side last weekend, and France can consider themselves very lucky to grind out a win. In addition, their discipline has been really poor at times, with the ultimate insult being back rower Axelle Berthoumieu’s use of cannibalism in the now infamous biting incident on Ireland’s Aoife Wafer, which remarkably saw no sanction whatsoever during the match – Berthoumieu has now received a post game citing and a twelve match ban.
There was definitely a slip up from referee Aimee Barrett-Theron and her officiating team, given that they somehow were able to see the tiniest infringements that you had to use a microscope to see at other times in the game, and yet somehow the sight of a player blatantly trying to gnaw an opponent’s arm off escaped their attention. Hopefully, there will be a more observant performance from Barret-Theron and her team, who are usually excellent, when they officiate the Black Ferns/Canada Semi-Final this Friday.
We can’t see any other result than England going through to the Final unless France somehow fix all their demons and put in the performance of the tournament. They do have the ability to pull it off if they can get their mindset right, but we’d argue that is one aspect of this French team that is not where it needs to be. Either way, even though we think the England/France game will be the poorer cousin of this weekend’s Semi-Finals we can’t wait to find out if there isn’t a shock to the system lurking in blue jerseys on Saturday.
New Zealand vs Canada – Friday, September 19th – 1:30 PM (Eastern) – TSN 1, TSN4 and Stan Sport Australia (live and on demand)
France vs England – Saturday, September 20th – 10:10 AM (Eastern) – TSN 1, TSN3 and Stan Sport Australia (live and on demand)
South Africa learn how to reinvent themselves while the All Blacks look increasingly confused and unhappy with life in general
First of all, what a game! Secondly, and more importantly, a heartfelt apology from all of us here at the Lineout to Coach Rassie Erasmus and his team regarding some of our doubts about their abilities after the first Test at Eden Park. We’ve always said that Erasmus is probably the smartest man in International Rugby and has no equal in getting the most out of his players. Perhaps most of all, we all feel a slight degree of collective guilt for raising questions regarding whether or not legendary Captain Siya Kolisi still has it in him for the big pressure moments. Just watch his extraordinary line break at the start of the second half, which we’d argue was the catalyst that turned on all the lights in the Springbok camp. A point from which they simply never looked back and put an absolute stranglehold on the game in a 36 unanswered point, five try romp over an utterly outclassed All Black side. If there ever was a better example of what a difference a week makes, then we can’t think of one.
We’ve consistently said that so far, this Rugby Championship South Africa have looked uncertain about exactly what type of game they want to play and how to go about it and with what personnel. We’d argue that after Saturday’s fabulous display in Wellington, the blurred vision is gone, and they are playing in 4K resolution. There are still some tweaks needed here and there, with there still being a flashing red warning light over the Springboks’ lineout but overall everyone finally seems to know their roles and responsibilities and how to play Springbok rugby version 2025.0.
The proof of the pudding will still be in the eating with two challenging encounters with Argentina to conclude their Rugby Championship campaign and a November Tour of Europe requiring them to test their new skill sets against the three Northern Hemisphere Horsemen of the Apocalypse, France, Ireland and England. Consistency also doesn’t seem to be an area that the Springboks have quite managed to master yet, but we’d argue that after last weekend’s Wellington performance they now know what they need to do to hang on to that cherished ranking of World Number One and two back to back World Championships in the trophy cabinet.
As for New Zealand, despite the country seeming to be in a state of national mourning, we really don’t think things are as bad as they seemed. Yes, they are going through some teething issues, and no, they are not world beaters right now in their current shape. But this is New Zealand we’re talking about. They will get there. Their problems seem to stem from a touch of inconsistency and all the problems associated with blooding new players at this stage in their World Cup cycle. We don’t think that at this stage, radical moves like sacking new Coach Scott Robertson will solve anything. His lack of International experience may be an Achilles Heel, but by the time the end of the year rolls around, he’ll hardly be short of it. There could be some justification to look at some of his Coaching support staff especially in the forwards department, as they’ve been in the job since the last World Cup cycle, but this all smacks of a knee jerk reaction.
New Zealand simply have to accept the fact that with the way the International game has developed, they are simply not the all conquering invincible top dogs anymore, nor are they ever likely to be again. Even South Africa’s current dominance will not go on forever. New Zealand and South Africa’s targets in a World Cup year should be to win 75% of the games they play and learn from the 25% they lose. Any side that can do so can realistically consider a place in the next World Cup Final. To be honest, that is going to be the reality of any of the Top 10 countries for the foreseeable future. Does that mean your team is in chaos? Absolutely not, but the navel gazing and self analysis currently going on in New Zealand circles is a little bit over the top, in our opinion. The All Blacks lost a match, and will lose plenty more between now and the next World Cup, but it certainly doesn’t mean that they still aren’t one of the very best sides on the planet and more than capable of lifting the Webb Ellis Cup in two years time.
On that note, yes New Zealand does have some issues which they will need to work through and which they probably will in time for their first Bledisloe Cup clash with Australia at Eden Park in a fortnight’s time. One interesting statistic from the Wellington match was how poor New Zealand’s tackle success rate was at a paltry 59%. However, South Africa’s wasn’t much better at only 62%, but when South Africa were dominating territory and possession as they did in the second half, they were able to get away with it while New Zealand were not, especially when the Springboks made three times the number of metres in the game that the All Blacks did. Despite all the fuss made about New Zealand’s lack of success in the forward battles, on the setpiece side of things, things were better. However, although their lineouts were woeful, once again, South Africa’s weren’t much better, and their scrum success was actually 11% better than South Africa’s at 89% compared to the Springboks 79%.
Where New Zealand came short was the physical battles in the loose, and once South Africa’s rampaging mobile forwards were able to get license to roam, New Zealand just weren’t winning the collisions. Missing almost 50 tackles really doesn’t aid your cause when you’ve got monsters like RG Snyman running at you. South Africa in the second half found a tempo and pace with which they were able to dictate how the game unfolded and put them firmly in the driver’s seat. New Zealand simply had no answers to it, but we’re fairly sure they’ve developed some by now. If the trend continues for the remainder of the Rugby Championship and then into the November Test window, then fair enough maybe it is time to make some changes starting with the Coaching Box.
However, at this stage we’d argue it’s far too premature. Of the eight Tests New Zealand played so far this year, they’ve won 5 and lost three with six remaining. If for example they lose to Wales this November, then we’d agree that it’s time to man the lifeboats but otherwise it’s a case of playing all the cards in their deck and seeing what kind of hand they want to hold as the countdown to the next World Cup starts in earnest next year. Right now, if we take that World Cup benchmark percentage of a 75% win rate this year, New Zealand are at 63%, which is perfectably respectable, especially in a year devoted to retooling the squad.
Australia and Argentina are just so much fun to watch right now regardless of the scorelines – champagne rugby at its best!
As we’ve said repeatedly over the last four weeks, this Rugby Championship has been the best in the Tournament’s history, which makes the lack of one next year all the more gutting as South Africa and New Zealand have decided to play in their own sandbox together and forfeit the Rugby Championship. Former World Rugby Vice-Chairman Agustin Pichot has called the decision by South Africa and New Zealand to forego the Rugby Championship next year in favor of an old school All Blacks Tour to New Zealand selfish. While that perhaps may be too strong a term, it’s understandable how it can be perceived as such. What Argentina and Australia will do without the competition next year, which has been so beneficial to their development, especially this year, is as yet still to be determined. You can also argue given New Zealand’s current wobbles, that they would get more out of playing South Africa, Argentina and Australia twice next year in the Rugby Championship than the questionable benefit of an extra Test against the Springboks and a collection of probably one sided matches against South African provincial sides. Look at the interest levels in the recent Lions Tour to Australia as a case in point, it was only the actual three Tests where there was genuine competition and corresponding big money revenues in terms of bums on seats in the stands.
All that said, though, the die has been cast, so we will just have to celebrate this year’s extraordinary edition of the Rugby Championship for what it is. It’s been a competition where the standings on the table change every week, and if a team wins one week, then it’s almost a dead ringer that they will lose the next. In short, it’s riveting stuff. Australia and Argentina have played some fantastic and genuinely silky running rugby these past two weeks. Argentina ultimately won this second Test comfortably and pushed Australia hard in the first, which saw the Wallabies come out on top. We say comfortably as that last try by Australia in the second Test should never have been awarded, as the last pass from Andrew Kellaway to Filipo Daugunu was clearly forward, so in reality, the score was actually 28-19.
However, that doesn’t take away from an absolutely outstanding second half from Australia who found themselves trailing 19-7 at half time. Argentina dominated the first half and Pumas fly half Santiago Carreras kept the scoreboard ticking over with a 100% success rate off the tee. Some genuinely poor discipline from Australia along with an opportunistic try from the Pumas Captain fantastic Julian Montoya in the seventh minute gave Argentina the edge. In the second half, Australia found a way around Argentina’s physical dominance and scored two superb tries. Even the lead up to the controversial third try by the Wallabies was spectacular until that forward pass that somehow got overlooked by all the officials.
One thing the Wallabies have definitely proved to their critics this Rugby Championship is that they are the undisputed Kings of the comeback. However, as enthralling as it is, there is no denying that Joe Schmidt and his Coaching staff would prefer that they don’t rely on it as a talent. Their failure to gain any ascendancy in the first half and their lack of discipline in the second meant they were essentially having to play catch-up rugby with one hand tied behind their back. Not a trait you want to go into a World Cup with.
As for Argentina, they now face the daunting prospect of a trip to face a Springbok side brimming with confidence. Although the two South African game legs of this final stage of the Rugby Championship have traditionally been split between the two countries, the home game for the Pumas will not be played in Argentina this year but instead at Twickenham. You could argue that it’s a slightly unfair advantage for the Springboks as Twickenham has become, for all intents and purposes, an additional home ground for them, given the huge number of South Africans living in the UK. However, from a revenue point of view, the attraction for both teams is clearly a lure hard to ignore.
Still, if Argentina’s passing and kicking game is as anything as polished as it’s become during the course of this Rugby Championship, there is no reason to suspect that they won’t be able to hold their own against the Springboks. That allied to a physicality that should be able to match anything South Africa throws at them and increasing prowess at scrum time, which until recently has been a weak link in the Pumas armory, should ensure two very competitive contests. Whichever way you cut it, Argentina look set to have one of their best finishes ever, making the sense of injustice that they won’t be able to build on such a momentum in the Championship next year all that much harder to swallow.
In conclusion, though, hats off to both teams for giving us an exquisite demonstration of glorious fast-paced running rugby over the last two weeks, and we look forward to more.
Men’s Rugby in North America doesn’t fire the imagination the way the Women’s game does, and perhaps some harsh realities need to be faced
Watching the Pacific Nations Cup last weekend, in a depressingly empty Stadium in Denver, didn’t exactly fill us with confidence about the future of the Men’s game in this part of the World. Sure both Canada and the USA have now qualified for the next Rugby World Cup in Australia in 2027, but looking at the rows and rows of empty seats you couldn’t help get the feeling that does anyone really care – especially in the USA? To be honest if we hear one more rugby journalist or media platform tout the US as the next sleeping giant in World Rugby and a market about to explode, excuse us if we all fall off our collective bar stools in absolute mirth. Sadly a reality check is needed, and World Rugby also needs to stop thrashing a dead horse and hope that somehow all the sporting financial excesses so prevalent in so many American sports will suddenly find their way into World Rugby’s coffers. If they are genuine about growing the global game, then invest in emerging countries in South America and Europe while at the same time supporting the efforts of struggling traditional rugby countries like Samoa and Tonga. We’d argue there is a bright and immediate future for Rugby in North America and particularly Canada, but to be honest, it’s in the Women’s game and should be funded accordingly.
None of this is to imply that we don’t want to see the Men’s game in Canada develop or that for a second, we don’t appreciate the efforts of Canada’s Men’s team. We have seen some genuine progress this year from the Men after the horror show of the last five years, but in the grand scheme of things, it’s sadly still a drop in the ocean. However, as we said in an earlier piece, the path for our Men’s players is fatally flawed, and quite frankly, the MLR as the primary destination for most players is making things worse. Simply put, it’s just not a high-quality competition. Is it fun and entertaining? Yes. Is it at a standard that can equip our players to genuinely compete at an international level? No and unlikely to become so. If more of our players were playing professionally in Europe or the Southern Hemisphere, then we’d feel a lot more optimistic. Look at the impact of Evan Olmstead and Tyler Ardron who both play professionally in France on Canada’s performance against the USA last month, and then compare it to Canada’s efforts without them against Japan and Fiji.
We recoiled in horror recently when one set of commentators during one of Canada’s Women’s matches at the ongoing World Cup suggested the development of a Women’s MLR. Canada’s Women are as good as they are due to a skilful integration of the International experience that some of the team are getting on the Sevens circuit, coupled to a player base plying their trade professionally in top flight leagues like England’s PWR and France’s Elite 1. So thanks, but no thanks. As much as we recognise the value of Canada’s Women being able to be based at home to play their rugby, we think they would all agree that it would not further their professional development and as a result we think there would be few who would want to sign up for it.
So OK, you lot we hear you say, you’re great at bashing it but what’s your solution? We agree it’s easy for us as armchair critics to point fingers, but we do so because we genuinely care and want the feel good factor that everyone saw on our Men’s faces at the end of that epic win over the US in Calgary back in August to be something we see on a regular basis. We have no idea if any of this is feasible, but it’s worth a shot. So here’s the Lineout’s plan to fix Canadian Men’s rugby.
With no Canadian teams in the MLR, set up our own. Something along the lines of the Vancouver Highlanders model. Convince World Rugby to provide some funding for a small league say comprising five teams with one each from BC, Alberta, Ontario, Quebec and possibly the Maritimes, but with the caveat that the team has to generate 75% of its roster from a local player base. We appreciate this may be a significant roadblock but what we want to try and avoid is the tendency, as is prevalent in the MLR of drafting in overseas players to fill the ranks, many of whom are past their sell by date or looking for a way to ease into retirement. Have a limited season, say from April to June or mid August to mid-October, and pick suitable venues appropriate to crowd sizes. Ensure that a Canadian broadcaster has the rights to it on a mainstream platform. Have this league affiliated with some club competition in Europe such as the English Premiership, France’s PRO D2, or the URC so that should Canadian players meet the standards there is the opportunity for up to 25% of the league’s players to become eligible for professional contracts in a European league. A similar model is currently in place with the Quebec Women’s Union and France’s Elite 1 and has been hugely successful. Finally set up an annual match where the MLR champions play the Canadian League Champions, initially this may be slightly one sided in favor of the Americans but we’re confident over time it could become a positive fixture and one eagerly anticipated by the Canadian rugby public.
Next up, integrate a percentage of the Men’s Sevens team into this proposed Canadian league and also Canada’s International 15s program along the lines of what has been done with the Canadian Women’s program. Then, work with World Rugby to reinstate the annual Americas Cup competition with emerging countries from South America like Chile, Brazil, and more established nations like Uruguay. Finally set up an annual competition running in the International Test window in November in Europe, where the winner and runner up of Rugby Europe (the Second Tier of the Six Nations) plays the US and Canada.
We appreciate that all of this costs money and we are offering no solutions as to how to go about addressing the financial side of things as it’s not our forte, but we do feel that without some model along these lines, Men’s Rugby in Canada and even the USA will continue to flounder. The International Game is advancing at a rapid pace, and both countries are getting left behind. As delighted as we are that both Canada and our neighbours to the South have managed to qualify for the Rugby World Cup in Australia in 2027, the sad reality is that both teams are there in all likelihood to make up the numbers in a tournament that has been expanded from 20 to 24 teams. The participation of both countries will be valuable and important, but we fear that watching Canada and the USA get humiliated in the Pool stages will do nothing to further the Men’s game in North America in its current state.
Make it successful and the people will come. The number of girls and young Women taking up Rugby in Canada in the last five years has been truly impressive, and is all down to the growing success that Canada’s Women are having on the International stage. We’ve spoken to an increasing number of parents whose daughters are choosing rugby over other sports, and a large part of that is down to them being inspired by the efforts of Alex Tessier and her colleagues on their journey to World Cup glory. With the sporting landscape in Canada, especially in Men’s sports, so dominated by our American neighbours, Women’s Rugby has provided a genuinely exciting opportunity for Canada to shine at a sport with a rapidly growing global audience.
Like we say, we’re not sure if any of this is even remotely feasible, but we need to start somewhere. So on that note, regardless of the pitfalls of the current system and the trials and tribulations of our Men’s programme, we’ll be cheering them on against Tonga this Saturday in the Pacific Nations Cup and are sure you will be too. Whatever the problems rugby has in this country in the Men’s game, there is no denying the heart and committment of the players who don the red jersey and we salute them for it and will continue to stand by them. We simply want a better system to help all their hard work and commitment get the results they deserve. In short, we wouldn’t be saying all of this if we didn’t care.
Canada vs Tonga – Saturday, September 20th – 6:35 PM (Eastern) – TSN 5, TSN+ and Stan Sport Australia (live and on demand)
Well, that’s it for this week, folks. We simply can’t wait for Friday and all the very best of luck to our FABULOUS Women. As mentioned at the start of this instalment, our resident scribe is taking a leave of absence from all things rugby while on vacation with his family, with the exception of the Women’s World Cup Final for the next week or so. As a result there will be no more musings from us till the beginning of October, though we will keep the TV page up to date, at least listings wise for what is on during the weekend he’s away. So enjoy the weekend and GO CANADA GO!!!!!
P. S. Alexandre Tessier has got us a Doctor’s Note for anyone who needs one tomorrow š
The Lineout 
A great assessment and analysis!
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