News

Posted: 2013-05-20

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Canadian Women Shine in Amsterdam

Canada's Women's Sevens team fulfilled their goal and came close to completely upsetting core leader New Zealand in Round 4, the final round in the Women's Sevens World Series, held at the NRCA Stadium in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

The Canadian women resolved to fight back after stumbling in Houston in February and have steadly climbed in standings from 6th place to 3rd as they prepare to head to Moscow in June and contend for the World Cup.

Saturday was especially sweet as the Canadian squad fought their way to a 19-5 victory over the United States and upset Cup contender England 12-7 to enter the final against current point leader, New Zealand.

And the final was no walk in the park for the women's All Blacks team. Canada's Bianca Farella set the tone opening the first half with a try forty-three seconds after the starting whistle. Mandy Marchak nailed the conversion. Jennifer Kish rattled the New Zealand bench by scoring a try less than ten minutes later with Marchak splitting the uprights to post a 14-0 lead. New Zealand's Kayla McAllister followed with two trys - each followed by Kelly Brazier's boot to tie the score. Magali Harvey came close to scoring a try when All Blacks' Honey Hireme grappled the Canadian by the neck, taking her down. As Hireme was sent to the Sin Bin, Canada's Farella would have none of it and finished the first half diving over the New Zealand try line ending the half with Canada leading 19-14.

The second half opened with Jennifer Kish increasing Canada's lead to 24-14 at the twenty-four second mark. Despite a fantastic effort on the part of the Canadian women, the New Zealand defence was defiant while All Blacks Kelly Brazier, Portia Woodman and Vaine Greig scored trys and Brazier and Tyla Nathan-Wong successfully scored conversions, ending the match 33-24.

The Canadian women came close to taking the Amsterdam Cup and sent a clear signal to New Zealand, England and the United States that Canada is focused on winning in Moscow.

 

Canadian Women's Amsterdam Team

Arielle Dubissette-Borrice	Toronto Scottish RFC	Toronto, ON
Bianca Farella	Town of Mount Royal RFC	Montreal, QC
Julia Greenshields	Sarnia Saints RFC	Sarnia, ON
Magali Harvey	Club de Rugby Quebec	Quebec City, QC
Jennifer Kish (Captain)	Edmonton Rockers RFC	Edmonton, AB
Mandy Marchak	Capilano RFC	Winnipeg, MB
Kayla Moleschi	Williams Lake Rustlers	Williams Lake, BC
Heather Moyse	Toronto Scottish RFC	Summerside, PEI
Karen Paquin	Club de Rugby Quebec	Quebec City, QC
Cheryl Phillips	Toronto Scottish RFC	Scarborough, ON
Kelly Russell	Toronto Nomads	Bolton, ON
Brittany Waters	Meraloma Athletic Club	Vancouver, BC

 

Canadian Coaches and Staff

John Tait	Head Coach	National Women's Sevens
Sandro Fiorino	Assistant Coach	National Women's Sevens
Tyler Goodale	Strength and Conditioning Coach
Meaghan Howat	National Women's Manager
Adrienne Stinson	Physiotherapist

 

Women's Sevens World Series Amsterdam, Netherlands
Canadian Individual Points

Mandy Marchak	29	Kayla Moleschi	5
Bianca Farella	20	Brittany Waters	5
Kelly Russell	15	Heather Moyse	5
Jennifer Kish	10	Magali Harvey	4
Karen Paquin	5	Total	98

 

Posted 2013-05-19 07:35h

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NLRU Fixtures/Results Schedule Posted

2013 NLRU Fixtures/Results Schedule

Posted 2013-05-17 04:25h

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Rugby Canada - Focus on Player Welfare and Rugby Ready

Following the tragic death of seventeen year old high school rugby player Rowan Stringer, Rugby Canada has restated it's number one priority - to care for and protect the health of all particiapants in the sport of rugby.

Rugby Canada has worked closely with the International Rugby Board (IRB) regarding injury prevention and management, diligently promoting IRB injury protocols throughout Canada. John Cowan, President of the Newfoundland and Labrador Rugby Union (NLRU), reminded attendees at the union's 2013 AGM on April 7th, that risk management and player safety is also the NLRU's number one priority.

Maintaining currency of St. John Ambulance certification should be a prerequisite for coaches, managers and first-aiders. Do you know what SCAT2 is?

IRB Player Welfare - Putting Players First
IRB Rugby Ready - Do it right .. be Rugby Ready
SCAT2 - Sport Concussion Assessment Tool 2
Pocket SCAT2 - FIFA - IIHF - IRB

Caring for Kids
Sport-related concussion: Information for parents, coaches and trainers

Posted 2013-05-15

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Ottawa Mourns Death of Teen Rugby Player

 

Rowan Stringer carries ball during 2012 match

Seventeen year old Rowan Stringer was captain of the John McCrae Secondary School girl's rugby team in Nepean, Ontario. In addition to playing for John McCrae Secondary School, Rowan was a member of the Barrhaven Scottish Rugby Football Club in 2012 and intended to re-register with Barrhaven this summer. This was her second year playing rugby - she was talented and loved the game.

On Wednesday, May 8th, she struck her head on the ground following a tackle. She sat up and then collapsed, losing consciousness. Rowan was rushed to hospital and treated for head trauma. Despite the efforts of a team of neuro specialists to save her life, she remained in a coma until Sunday when she was taken off life support.

Her family reported that prior to Wednesday's injury, she complained of having a headache following a match on the previous Friday. The injury occurred during the second of three matches that Rowan played on the same day. That evening she complained of a slight postevent headache but indicated that she was fine on the following morning. On Monday, May 6th, she played in a match involving several rough impacts and mentioned to one of her friends on the following day that she was not feeling well but intended to play on Wednesday, May 8th. She apparently did not report her post trauma symptoms to the school's coaching staff.

Seemingly minor head injury and concussion is not uncommon in contact sport and warrants immediate disengagement and professional medical assessment. Players are often reluctant to report head injury for fear of being sidelined and it is therefore important for coaches and support staff to be vigilent. Rowan Stringer's death is a tragic reminder of our need to maintain a high professional standard towards the welfare of our players in all sporting events.

Members of the Vandals RFC extend sincere condolences to Rowan's parents, Gordon and Kathleen Stringer, and to her family and friends.

Obituary: Rowan Kerry Stringer

Updated 2013-05-16

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Canadian Men Struggle at Glasgow Sevens

Canada opened Round 8 of the HSBC Men's Sevens World Series with promise as they defeated Samoa 19-17 in their first round in Pool A. The second match pitted Canada against South Africa, winners of the Tokyo Sevens Cup and favorites to win in Glasgow. It was a tough fought game with the Springbok Sevens team taking the win by only 3 points for a 17-14 finish. The Canadians were fired and ended day one with a 21-10 win over Kenya, placing second in their pool behind South Africa.

The first match on day two was a quarter-final Cup challenge against the Pool D leader, Wales. Both teams stumbled in Tokyo and both were hungry to move up in standings. The Welsh made their mark 1:15 minutes into the first half with a try by James Davies. Garth Davies converted and went on to score a try and conversion shutting out Canada in the half. Canadian Conor Trainor scored a try at the 1:29 minute mark of the second half and Nathan Hirayama pocketed two points with a sound boot. The Welsh would have none of it and fired back with twelve additional points to end the match with a 26-7 win.

Canada finished the tournament with a 7-22 loss to Argentina. Tyler Ardron scored for Canada at the 5:56 mark of the opening half and Hirayama nailed the conversion. Canada remains in 11th place in the standings with a total of 64 points.

South Africa took the Cup from New Zealand, England placed third, the United States won the Plate, Australia won the Bowl, and France went home with the Shield. The teams move on to London for Round 9, the final round of the series which opens on Saturday, May 11th.

Men's HSBC Sevens World Series Glasgow, Scotland
Canadian Individual Points

Tyler Ardron	5	Ciaran Hearn	5
Nanyak Dala	5	Nathan Hirayama	23
Sean Duke	10	Conor Trainor	10
Jeffrey Hassler	5	Taylor Paris	5
		Total Points	68

 

See Glasgow Fixtures/Results
See HSBC Men's Sevens Standings

Posted 2013-05-06

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King's-Edgehill School on Tour

The Senior Boy's rugby team from King's-Edgehill School (KES), Winsor, Nova Scotia, will be competing on-tour with U17 Rock players on Sunday, April 28th, and Monday, April 29th, at the Mount Pearl Arena's all-weather pitch, Smallwood Drive. The games will be followed by a traditional post-match dinner on Monday at the Swilers Rugby Complex.

KES is not new to Newfoundland rugby turf, having tested the waters in 2011 against the Rock's U16 and U18 teams. Founded in 1788, the private institution transformed in 1980 to become a popular International Baccalaureate School. In addition to the International Baccalaureate program, King's-Edgehill School has a junior school (Grades 7-9) and a senior school (Grades 10-12).

Athletics play a big role at KES with Senior Boys and Senior Girls rugby teams competing with other schools throughout the Maritime Provinces. The Senior Boys rugby team is led by Head Coach Jason Verryn-Stuart, while the Rock's Head Coach, Pat Palfrey, Coach Simon Blanks and A/Coach Peter Densmore will be the host representatives for the NLRU.

Match Times
April 28 - Sunday: 4:30 PM
April 29 - Monday: 3:00 PM

Weather forecast

Updated 2013-04-28

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Canadian Women Heading for Twickenham

Canada's Women's Sevens team is preparing to leave for London, England, in hopes of continuing their quest to cement their international core standing. The invitational Marriott London Sevens tournament is being held May 11 - 12 at Twickenham Stadium, with Canada facing Russia, the United States and Ireland in Pool G.

The contest will permit Coach John Tait to further assess his pool of players in preparation for Round 4 of the IRB Women's Sevens World Series in Amsterdam, May 17th. Canada faces France in their opening match in London.

In China, Canada took third place over the United States while New Zealand defeated England for the Cup. Japan claimed the Bowl from China and Ireland took the plate from the Netherlands.

Canada's Women's Sevens Marriott London Team
Jessica Dovanne – (Velox Rugby Club) Victoria, BC
Bianca Farella Magali – (Town of Mount royal RFC) Montreal, QC
Magali Harvey – (Club de Rugby Quebec) Quebec City, QC
Jennifer Kish – (Edmonton Rockers RFC) Captain – Edmonton, AB
Ghislaine Landry – (Toronto Scottish RFC) Toronto, ON
Mandy Marchak – (Capilano RFC) Winnipeg, AB
Karen Paquin – (Club de Rugby Quebec) Quebec City, QC
Kelly Russell – (Toronto Nomads) Bolton, ON
Ashley Steacy – (Lethbridge Rugby Club) Lethbridge, AB
Brittany Waters – (Meraloma Athletic Club) Vancouver, B.C.
Julianne Zussman – (Town of Mount Royal RFC) Montreal, PQ

John Tait [Head Coach]
Sandro Fiorino [Assistant Coach]
Tyler Goodale [Strength & Conditioning Coach]
Meaghan Howat [National Women's Manager]
Adrienne Stinson [Physiotherapist]

See Marriott London Sevens Polls/Fixtures

Posted 2013-04-25

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Hearn Prepares for Scotland Sevens

Ciaran Hearn and Canada's Men's Sevens team are preparing to travel to Glasgow for Round 8 of the HSBC Men's Sevens World Series which opens on May 4th. Canada is in Pool "A" with South Africa, Samoa and Kenya - all strong contenders.

The Canadian team suffered a 17-5 loss when matched with Kenya in the QF Bowl in Tokyo, and South Africa defeated New Zealand 24-19 to win the Cup. Samoa stole the Plate from Canada by one try in Hong Kong. Canada ranks eleventh, Kenya fifth, Samoa fourth and South Africa second in the current standings.

Coach Geraint John and his team know that they are in the toughest pool of this round, but the Canadians are defiant, feisty and determined. It will be a tough two days of rugby, the toughest for Canada so far in the series.

Canada does lead the series in terms of top point scorer Nathan Hirayama with 206 points. Sean Duke is in seventh place with 150 points. Duke is in third place as a top try scorer with 30 to his credit. The complete Glasgow schedule is posted here

Canada's Men's Sevens - Glasgow, Scotland Team
 
Tyler Ardron (21 yrs) – (Brantford Harlequins/Ontario Blues) Peterborough, ON
Nanyak Dala (28 yrs) – (Castaway Wanderers/Prairie Wolf Pack) Saskatoon, SK (C)
Sean Duke (24 yrs) – (University of Victoria) Vancouver, BC
Jeff Hassler (21 yrs) – (Okotoks RFC/Prairie Wolf Pack) Okotoks, AB
Ciaran Hearn (30 yrs) – (Castaway Wanderers/The Rock) Conception Bay, NL
Nathan Hirayama (24 yrs) – (University of Victoria) Richmond, BC
Harry Jones (23 yrs) – (Capilano RFC/Pacific Tyee) Vancouver, BC
Phil Mack (27 yrs)– (University of Victoria/Pacific Tyee) Victoria, BC
John Moonlight (25 yrs) – (James Bay AA/Ontario Blues) Pickering, ON
Chauncey O'Toole (27 yrs) – (Brigend Ravens/Atlantic Rock) Belleisle, NB
Taylor Paris (20 yrs) – (Glasgow Warriors/Ontario Blues) Barrie, Ontario
Conor Trainor (23 yrs) – (Western University/BC Bears) Vancouver, B.C.

Geraint John [Head Coach]
Kieran Crowley [Assistant Coach]
Brian Hunter [Manager]
Isabel Grondin [Therapist]

Posted 2013-04-21

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Women's Sevens World Series Guangzhou, China
Canadian Individual Points

Mandy Marchak	51 pts	Elissa Alarie	20
Ghislaine Landry	15	Karen Paquin	15
Julianne Zussman	15	Magali Harvey	13
Ashley Steacy	10	Cheryl Phillips	6
Jessica Dovanne	5	Kelly Russell	5
		Total Points	155

See Guangzhous Results

Men's HSBC Sevens World Series Tokyo, Japan
Canadian Individual Points

Sean Duke	30 pts	Nathan Hirayama	29
John Moonlight	15	Taylor Paris	15
Tyler Ardon	10	Mike Fuailefau (s)	5
Harry Jones (s)	5	Chauncey O'Toole (s)	5
		Total Points	114

See Tokyo Results

Posted 2013-04-01

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Canadian Sevens Women Climb

Canadian women continued to shine in the Women's Sevens World Series at Guangzhou, China on Sunday, finishing the tournament in third place behind New Zealand and England. Following a trend set in Houston, Texas, the Canadian's continue to improve their standing in the international core circle exhibiting strong offensive and defensive tactics with a 4-0-1 overall tournament stat.

On Saturday the women took Ireland (33-5), Japan (52-5), and Australia (20-10) in their Pool "B" matches. Boosted by individual commitment and team determination the women defeated Brazil (33-0) in the quarter-final for the Cup. Pitch conditions were not ideal with rain, at times heavy, which persisted throughout the weekend.

The semi-final Cup match against England proved pivotal in the team's eye for gold.
The English team struggled with the Netherlands in their quartet-final Cup match, winning by seven points (19-12). Having proved their tenacity in Houston, hoisting the Cup after defeating the United States (29-12), the English women demonstrated their centre podium right.

And Sunday's match proved no different. Catching the Canadian's completely off guard, England's Alexandra Matthews touched down a mere twenty-five seconds into the first half. Kat Merchant and Katy McLean went on to respectively score two trys and two conversions finishing the match with a (19-0) shut-out.

The United States has been gaining ground in these Sevens World Series, placing second in Houston. But the Canadian's came back strong in the 3rd-4th match contest with Mandy Marchak scoring a try at the thirty-nine second mark of the opening half. Elissa Alarie opened the second half with a try followed by Mandy Marchak with a conversion and a try. Vanesha McGee of the United States scored a try in the closing minutes of the match - finalizing a 17-5 win for the Canadians.

Canada has moved from 6th to 7th to 5th in Women's Sevens World Series Standings - on track for Amsterdam's Round 4 tournament May 17-18.

See Round 3

Posted 2013-03-31

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Rock U18 Team in Wales

 

Fullerians U17 Team at Watford, U.K.

The Rock U18 lads are having a great tour in the United Kingdom and report that their hosts have exhibited generous and warm hospitality to the team and coaching staff.

On Thursday the Rock played Watford RFC and today they played Old Fullerians RFC. The twenty-five Old Fullerians U17 team; John Barson, Evan Powell, Jake Howard, Adam Woolf, Jack Bateson, Jack Burke, Jonny Waller, Joe Higgins, Jackson Allen, Jack Longbottom, Myles Finnegan, James Pidding, Conor Devine, Josh Hancock, Gareth Jones, Craig Duncan, Ben Meyers, David Beddall, Michael Beddall, Kieran Cavanagh, George Selwood, Max Jimminson, Matt Wright, Conor McCarthy and Ollie Jimminson embraced their brothers in rugby for a great day on the pitch followed by an afternoon of entertainment at the club's facilities.

The Rock travelled to Wales early this evening and will be taking a break tomorrow to attend Judgement Day at Millennium Stadium. Judgement Day will see the four Welsh regional teams contest for standings - Newport Gwent Dragons vs. Scarlets and Cardiff Blues vs. Ospreys. A forty-thousand capacity crowd is anticipated to watch the event.

Posted 2013-03-29

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All Eyes on Canadian Women in Guangzhou

 

As Round 3 of the Women's Sevens World Series opens in Guangzhou, China the international rugby community considers the Canadian women's team as a serious contender for the 2013 cup final.

Canada entered the first Sevens Challenge Cup series in 2011 at Dubai, United Emerates, defeating Brazil, Spain, the United States and finally England to take gold. Twelve nations competed: England, South Africa, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Russia, Portugal, Australia, France, United States, China and Canada. It was no small feat.

In 2012 the IRB Women's Sevens World Series was initiated, again in Dubai. The tournament saw South Africa, England, Spain, Brazil, Russia, New Zealand, China, Australia, Netherlands, United States, France and Canada contend. The Canadian team struggled, losing their first pool match to Russia, winning their second against China and tieing their third with New Zealand. Qualifying for the Plate SF, Canada defeated England but suffered a close 10-14 loss to Russia and a 10-14 loss to Australia in the quarters.

Head Coach John Tait and his team came back with vengence in Hong Kong with a 4-0 record scoring 144-0. The high level of offensive and defensive skill demonstrated by the Canadian women in each of their matches did not go unnoticed. Canada is in seventh place in the Sevens World Series Standings.

See Fixtures - Results
Current Time & Weather in Guangzhou, China

Posted 2013-03-29

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Rock U18 Arrive in United Kingdom

The Newfoundland Rock U18 men's team will be spending Easter in the United Kingdom, testing their skills against teams in England and Wales. Dr. Pat Parfrey and Coach Simon Blanks have planned a busy agenda for the team which arrives in Watford, England today.

The Vandals RFC is well represented on the tour with players Guðbjartur ("G") Bjarnason, Mark Connolly, Patrick "Paddy" Dalton, Sam Newhook and Peter Walsh for the Blue & Gold.

Schedule
2013-03-28 Match: vs. Watford RFC
2013-03-29 Match: vs. Old Fullerians
2013-03-29 Travel to Cardiff, Wales
2013-03-30 Free Day - Newport Gwent Dragons vs. Scarlets
2013-03-30 Free Day - Cardiff Blues vs. Ospreys - Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
2013-03-31 Match: vs. Newport High School Old Boys RFC
2013-04-01 Match: vs. Bargoed RFC
2013-04-02 Free Day
2013-04-03 Match: vs. Risca RFC
2013-04-04 Depart Cardiff for St. John's [ETA 16:50hr]

 

Current London, England Time & Weather
Current Cardiff, Wales Weather

Update 2013-03-29 (05:05h)

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Canadian Men Fall Short of Silver in Hong Kong Sevens

After an impressive first day win of 31-7 against Spain, Canada opened Saturday with a close 14-12 win over Hong Kong. The tenacious Canadian team drew their third match against Fiji, the one team that oddsmakers set high as probable winners of the Hong Kong Sevens Cup, and it came as no surprise that the Fijians left the pitch with a 26-5 win. The fourth match, with Wales, cut deep with a 28-14 finish against in the Cup quarter-final.

Spirits rose with a 19-14 win over Portugal in the Plate semi-final. After two hours rest the Plate final saw a very close and tough match against Samoa. Samoa placed third following Round 5 at Las Vagas in February. Canada's hope to take home silver teeter-tottered up to the final whistle which saw Samoa grab a 12-7 win. Fiji won the Cup Final, defeating Wales (26-19), New Zealand and Kenya placed 3rd and 4th (36-5), England defeated Hong Kong (42-7) for the Bowl and France took the Shield from Argentina (19-14).

Canada added 12 points for a total of 51 for the series moving up another notch to nineth place in the Sevens World Series standings. The team has moved on to Tokyo to repair, rest and practice for Round 7 - Saturday's opening match against the host team, Japan.

Japan won three of their four qualifying matches in Hong Kong with impressive scores. After defeating Georgia 26-7 on Saturday, Japan was punished by the Georgians in the qualifying quarter-finals on Sunday, 17-0.

See Results

Posted 2013-03-24

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Canadian Women Dominate Hong Kong Sevens

Canada's Women's Sevens team finished the Hong Kong Sevens tournament on Friday with a straight 4-0 record - 144-0 score. The Canadian women were impressive with scores of 33-0 vs Hong Kong; 54-0 vs Japan; 28-0 vs France; and 29-0 in the final against Australia. Ireland win the Bowl, South Africa the Plate and the Netherlands took 3rd Place.

The Canadian team will travel to Guangzhou, China, for their first match next Saturday, March 30th, facing Ireland in Round 3 of the 2013 IRB Women's Sevens World Series. Canada is in Pool B with Australia, Japan and Ireland. The tough Canadian squad fell short in Round 2 at Houston, Texas, placing seventh after defeating South Africa 33-0. England won the tournament, with the United States placing second and Australia, third. See Round 3

Hong Kong Sevens Results

TEAM	SCORE	TEAM
Australia	42-0	International Select
Kazakhstan	40-5	International Select
Australia	19-12	Kazakhstan
Hong Kong	0-33	Canada
Hong Kong	5-24	Japan
Canada	54-0	Japan
South Africa	19-14	Ireland
France	19-7	Ireland
South Africa	7-24	France
Netherlands	66-0	Singapore
China	50-0	Singapore
Netherlands	31-10	China
International Select	36-10 Bowl SF	Singapore
Hong Kong	5-33 Bowl SF	Ireland
Singapore	5-40 Bowl SF	Hong Kong
International Select	0-28 Bowl Final	Ireland
Kazakhstan	17-15 Plate SF	China
Japan	5-26 Plate SF	Kazakhstan
China	14-5 Plate SF	Japan
Kazakhstan	5-26 Plate Final	South Africa
Australia	17-5 Cup SF	Netherlands
Canada	21-0 Cup SF	France
Netherlands	14-0 3rd Place	France
Australia	0-29 Cup Final Final	Canada

 

Posted 2013-03-22

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Canada's Women's Sevens Hong Kong - Tokyo Team
 
Elissa Alarie – (Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue Rugby Club) Trois Rivieres, QC
Jessica Dovanne – (Velox Rugby Club) Victoria, BC
Magali Harvey – (Club de Rugby Quebec) Quebec City, QC
Jennifer Kish – (Edmonton Rockers RFC) Captain – Edmonton, AB
Ghislaine Landry – (Toronto Scottish RFC) Toronto, ON
Mandy Marchak – (Capilano RFC) Winnipeg, AB
Karen Paquin – (Club de Rugby Quebec) Quebec City, QC
Cheryl Phillips – (Toronto Scottish RFC) Toronto, ON
Kelly Russell – (Toronto Nomads) Bolton, ON
Ashley Steacy – (Lethbridge Rugby Club) Lethbridge, AB
Amanda Thornborough – (Brandon Barbarians RFC) Brandon, MB
Julianne Zussman – (Town of Mount Royal RFC) Montreal, PQ
International Barbarians
Arielle Dubissette-Borrice – (Toronto Scottish RFC) Toronto, ON
Megan Gibbs – (Markham Irish) Barrie, ON

John Tait [Head Coach]
Sandro Fiorino [Assistant Coach]
Tyler Goodale [Strength & Conditioning Coach]
Meaghan Howat [National Women's Manager]
Brad Curry [Physiotherapist]

Current Guangzhou, China Time & Weather
See Fixtures

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Canada's Men's Sevens Hong Kong - Tokyo Team
 
Tyler Ardron (21 yrs) – (Brantford Harlequins/Ontario Blues) Peterborough, ON
Nanyak Dala (28 yrs) – (Castaway Wanderers/Prairie Wolf Pack) Saskatoon, SK
Sean Duke (24 yrs) – (University of Victoria) Vancouver, BC
Jeff Hassler (21 yrs) – (Okotoks RFC/Prairie Wolf Pack) Okotoks, AB
Ciaran Hearn (30 yrs) – (Castaway Wanderers/The Rock) Conception Bay, NL
Nathan Hirayama (24 yrs) – (University of Victoria) Richmond, BC
Harry Jones (23 yrs) – (Capilano RFC/Pacific Tyee) Vancouver, BC
John Moonlight (25 yrs) – (James Bay AA/Ontario Blues) Pickering, ON
Chauncey O'Toole (27 yrs) – (Brigend Ravens/Atlantic Rock) Belleisle, NB
Taylor Paris (20 yrs) – (Glasgow Warriors/Ontario Blues) Barrie, Ontario
Conor Trainor (23 yrs) – (Western University/BC Bears) Vancouver, B.C.

Geraint John [Head Coach]
Kieran Crowley [Assistant Coach]
Brian Hunter [Manager]
Isabel Grondin [Therapist]

Joining in Tokyo - Thyssen de Goede (24 yr) – (James Bay AA) Victoria, BC

Current Hong Kong Time & Weather
See Fixtures

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Irish women defeat Italy 6-3 at Milan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Canada U13-U14 Attend Invitational in Bermuda

Twenty-three U13-U14 players from across Canada are in Bermuda for a four day invitational with the Bermuda Beyond Rugby Kids Program - the first U13-U14 international youth tournament that Canada has participated in. The team arrived in Bermuda on Friday and practiced under Coach Patrick Calow. Calow is the Bermuda Rugby Football Union (BRFU), Youth Development Officer, Beyond Youth coach and promoter, and is well known in Ireland and Texas as a former rugby coach and youth program builder in Ulster and Austin.

UBC Old Boy Ravens Mini Rugby Coach Rick Bourne, Canada's North American Caribbean Rugby Association (NACRA) representative and immediate Past Chairman of Rugby Canada, along with Graham Brown, Rugby Canada's Chief Executive Officer, created the opportunity for some of Canada's future hopefuls to get a taste of what might lay ahead at the international level. Both accompanied the boys to the event.

Four athletes: Mark Oake, Seth and Saul Bryant (Dogs RFC), and Thomas Hickman (Swilers RFC) represent Newfoundland and Labrador's Rock rugby team.

The boy's schedule includes a two day mixed tournament, beach rugby and family group events. The team returns to Canada on Tuesday, March 19th.

Canadian Itinerary
[2013-03-15] 16:00r Practice under international youth Coach Patrick Calow
[2013-03-16] 10:00h - 12:00h Seven's Tournament - U13 (2 teams) and U14 (2 teams)
[2013-03-16] 14:15h - 14:45h U14/U12 Bermuda vs Canada (12-aside* match)
[2013-03-17] 14:00h Beach Rugby - Horseshoe Bay, volleyball, tennis, barbecue
[2013-03-18] 16:30h U13/U14 Canada vs. Dellwood Middle School

(*12-aside - basically 15 aside without flankers or number 8)

Canadian Players
01 Agyagos, Ryan (Capilano RFC) - British Columbia
02 Bourne, Jacob (UBC Old Boy Ravens) - British Columbia
03 Brown, Aiden (Aurora Barbarians RFC) - Ontario
04 Bryant, Saul (Dog's RFC) - Newfoundland and Labrador
05 Bryant, Seth (Dog's RFC) - Newfoundland and Labrador
06 Cooper, Liam (Vancouver Rowing Club) - British Columbia
07 Crossfield, Simon (UBC Old Boy Ravens) - British Columbia
08 von Dadelszen, Piers (Meraloma RFC) - British Columbia
09 Hickman, Thomas (Swilers RFC) - Newfoundland and Labrador
10 Jansen, Brohan (Chilliwack Crusaders RFC) - British Columbia
11 MacDonald, Dexter (Meraloma RFC) - British Columbia
12 Mallinder, Jacob (Vancouver Rowing Club) - British Columbia
13 Mort, Alex (Capilano RFC) - British Columbia
14 Nakhleh, Michael (Meraloma RFC) - British Columbia
15 Oake, Mark (Dog's RFC) - Newfoundland and Labrador
16 Parkins, Daniel (Capilano RFC) - British Columbia
17 Sauder, Nicholaus (Vancouver Rowing Club) - British Columbia
18 Scher, Jack (Vancouver Rowing Club) - British Columbia
19 Senger, Hans (Vancouver Rowing Club) - British Columbia
20 Slater, Michael (Meraloma RFC) - British Columbia
21 Terry, Matthew (Meraloma RFC) - British Columbia
22 Ward, Caden (Meraloma RFC) - British Columbia
23 Young, Nolan (Campbell River Athletic Association Rugby) - British Columbia

Bermuda Time and Weather

Posted 2013-03-16

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Hearn and Company Travelling

Ciaran Hearn of the Rock/Baymen RFC and ten teammates are preparing to fly to Hong Kong, arriving on Friday, March 15th in preparation for Round 6 of the 2013 IRB Sevens World Series. The team will practice and climatize before taking on Spain on opening day, March 22nd. The two teams last met on February 2nd at Wellington, NZ, vieing for a position in the Bowl final. The Canadians won that match 31-7 moving on to take the Wellington Bowl, defeating Fiji 28-19.

The Canadian men's team has made it's mark during the series, carrying a chest full of silver back to Langley, B.C. from the Wellington and Las Vagas tournaments.

Thyssen de Goede (24 yr) - (James Bay AA) Victoria, BC, will be joining the team in Toyko when Canada contests Round 7 on March 30th. See Round 6

Posted 2013-03-13

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Hearn Heading for Hong Kong

Ciaran Hearn of the Rock/Baymen RFC is heading to Hong Kong for Round 6 of the 2013 IRB Men's Sevens World Series. Hearn joins eleven athletes from across Canada set to face off against Spain in the team's first match on March 22nd.

Hearn's team will remain together following the Hong Kong series to contest Round 7 in Tokyo, Japan. That series opens on March 30th.

Canada's Men's Sevens Hong Kong - Tokyo Team
 
Tyler Ardron (21 yrs) – (Brantford Harlequins/Ontario Blues) Peterborough, ON
Nanyak Dala (28 yrs) – (Castaway Wanderers/Prairie Wolf Pack) Saskatoon, SK
Sean Duke (24 yrs) – (University of Victoria) Vancouver, BC
Jeff Hassler (21 yrs) – (Okotoks RFC/Prairie Wolf Pack) Okotoks, AB
Ciaran Hearn (30 yrs) – (Castaway Wanderers/The Rock) Conception Bay, NL
Nathan Hirayama (24 yrs) – (University of Victoria) Richmond, BC
Harry Jones (23 yrs) – (Capilano RFC/Pacific Tyee) Vancouver, BC
John Moonlight (25 yrs) – (James Bay AA/Ontario Blues) Pickering, ON
Chauncey O'Toole (27 yrs) – (Brigend Ravens/Atlantic Rock) Belleisle, NB
Taylor Paris (20 yrs) – (Glasgow Warriors/Ontario Blues) Barrie, Ontario
Conor Trainor (23 yrs) – (Western University/BC Bears) Vancouver, B.C.

Geraint John [Head Coach]
Kieran Crowley [Assistant Coach]
Brian Hunter [Manager]
Isabel Grondin [Therapist]

Joining in Tokyo - Thyssen de Goede (24 yr) – (James Bay AA) Victoria, BC

See Fixtures

Updated 2013-03-07

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Van Gulick Returning to Shawnigan Lake School

Oliver Van Gulick of the Vandals RFC/The Rock U20 is headed back to the Shawnigan Lake (rugby) School in British Columbia. Van Gulick joins thirty other contenders for spots on the Canadian JWRT team which will travel to Antofagasta, Chile. Canada's opening match will be against Tonga on May 28th.

Van Gulick attended the first training camp held in January at the Canadian Rugby Centre of Excellence at Langford along with forty-three other players from across Canada. As a result of that camp, thirty-one athletes were invited back to allow the national coaching staff to draw on twenty-six who will continue training and prepare to travel to Chile.

The second round, seven day (March 3-9, 2013) camp will be an intensive training and selection process under the watchful eyes of Kieran Crowley, Canada's Senior Men's Head Coach, U20 Head Coach Mike Shelley and A/Coach Graeme Moffat. The University of Victoria Vikes will test candidates during the assessment.

Following the team's final selection on March 9th, the team will move to the National Training Camp, University of Minnesota, to continue training in preparation for Antofagosta. Fifteen of the select twenty-six man team will be chosen to open play against Tonga's National U20 team .

Eight teams, consisting of Canada, Chile, Namibia, Italy, Japan, Tonga, Portugal and Urugay, will contest. The winner will contend for the Junior World Rugby Championships to be held in New Zealand in 2014.

Canada will not contend in the 2013 JWRC. The United States won the 2012 IRB JWRT and will be in France on June 5th to face South Africa, France and England in Pool A. Canada has participated in the JWRT since 2010, placing 6th in 2010, 5th in 2011 and 6th in 2012.

JWRT and JWRC fixtures posted JWRT and JWRC fixtures webpage.

Posted 2013-02-25

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Hong Kong Sevens Pools Drawn

The IRB - HSBC Men's Sevens' World Series - Round 6 - Hong Kong Sevens pools were drawn today. Canada drew Pool D with Fiji, Hong Kong and Spain.

The Canadian team will face Spain on March 22nd. The two teams last met on February 2nd at Wellington, NZ, vieing for a position in the Bowl final. The Canadians won that match 31-7 moving on to take the Wellington Bowl, defeating Fiji 28-19.

See Hong Kong Sevens Pools
See Canada vs. Spain [1st Half Bowl] and Canada vs. Spain [2nd Half Bowl]

Posted 2013-02-21

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Canadian Sevens Men Preparing

Canada's carded Men's Sevens players are in Langford, British Columbia, preparing for their next challenge - Round 6 in the HSBC Men's Sevens World Series. The Sevens training camp opened on Monday and is scheduled to continue to March 10th, when selected players will prepare to travel to Hong Kong for their opening match on March 22nd.

In the meantime, the 2013 Rugby Canada National Invitational University Sevens Championship is being held at Langley, March 1st - 2nd. Competiting players will be closely watched by the Sevens coaching staff for potential future recruits.

Fixtures for the event are being finalized and will be posted on the Vandals Fixtures webpage, soon.

Posted 2013-02-20

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Canadian Sevens Men Bring Home Vagas Plate

Canada's Men's Sevens team took another trophy from the HSBC Sevens World Series by defeating Scotland 22-5 in Round 5 at Las Vagas on Sunday. The new silverware will stand next to the Wellington Bowl that the Canadian lads brought out of New Zealand on February 2nd, and firmly places Canada as a core IRB - HSBC international team.

Canada is now preparing for Round 6 which will take place March 22-24, 2013 in Hong Kong, China. Round 5 - individual points:

vs. Kenya	Nanyak Dala	5 pts
	Jeffrey Hassler	5
	Sean Duke	5
	Nathan Hirayama	4
vs. South Africa	John Moonlight	5
vs. Uruguay	Jeffery Hassler	15
	Nathan Hirayama	6
	John Moonlight	5
	Lucas Hammond	5
	Taylor Paris	5
vs. New Zealand	[no points]	0
vs. United States	Nathan Hirayama	9
	Nanyak Dala	5
	John Moonlight	5
	Jeffrey Hassler	5
vs. Scotland	John Moonlight	5
	Conor Trainor	5
	Nanyak Dala	5
	Harry Jones	5
	Nathan Hirayama	2

 

Finals
Cup - South Africa 40-21 New Zealand
Third Place - Samoa 36-31 Fiji
Plate - Canada 22-5 Scotland
Bowl - France 17-12 Argentina
Shield - Australia 41-0 Uruguay

See Vagas Fixtures/Results
See HSBC World Series Standings

Updated 2013-02-12

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Rock Women - Vagas Open 7's

Newfoundland Rock Women's Sevens Team

 

 

Newfoundland's Rock Women's Sevens team was in the thick of the 2013 Las Vagas Invitational Tournament, competiting with ninteen teams in the Women's Open 7's Division. The Rock was placed in Pool A with the Edmonton Rockers, Melbourne Sharks, and the Seattle Breakers.

The tournament opened with the Newfoundland women falling 5-19 to the Seattle Breakers and 5-33 to the Melbourne Sharks - both highly competitive teams. In their third match of the day the feisty Newfoundlanders locked out the Edmonton Rockers with a 33-0 win.

On day two, Newfoundland challenged the Eh Team (Pool C) in the quarter-final Bowl. It was a hard fought match and a 14-15 narrow loss for the Rock.

The tournament was a great experience for the participating players and for the Newfoundland Women's Development Rugby program. See Newfoundland Women Travelling

Finals
Cup - Standford Coaches (31-0) Education 1st Hawaii
Plate - BYU (26-7) University of Guelph
Bowl - Philippine Halo-Halo (15-10) The Mighty Rucks
Shield - Bermuda (27-5) Thoms
Spoon - Las Vaga Slots (14-0) 7 Deadly Sins

Posted 2013-02-09 (13:32h)

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Canadian Men's Sevens in Vagas - Round 5

Canada's Men's Sevens team proved their capability in New Zealand and are recognized internationally as a core in the 2013 HSBC Sevens World Series. And Friday proved no different with a 19-12 opening win over Kenya. Sean Duke came out early in the first half with a try at the 3:22 mark followed by Nathan Hirayama with a solid conversion. Kenya retaliated with 7 points three minutes later. The second half saw Jeffrey Hessler enter the match, quickly scoring a try followed by Hirayama nailing his kick for a 14-7 lead at the 2:05 mark. Kenya came back with a try .. missed the conversion and watched as Nanyak Dala scored a match final try for the win.

The second Canadian match of the day saw the Canadians face-off against South Africa. Canada defeated South Africa in the New Zealand quarter-finals 26-15. But the strong South Africians came onto the pitch with vengence scoring their first try at 4:08 minutes into the first half. Tyler Ardron was sent to the sin bin for having hands in the ruck at 5:38, quicky followed by a SA try taking the score to 10-0. The second half saw a South African try and conversion two minutes in. The South African's managed to fend off a Canadian comeback until John Moonlight scored 5 at the 6:37 minute mark, ending the match 17-5 for the Springboks Sevens team - a tough loss for the Canadians.

Canada takes on Uruguay on Saturday in their final quarter-final match of the tournament. Uruguay lost to Kenya (12-7) and South Africa (45-0) on Friday.

Canada's Men's Sevens Las Vagas Team
 
Tyler Ardron (21 yrs) – (Brantford Harlequins/Ontario Blues) Peterborough, ON
Nanyak Dala (28 yrs) – (Castaway Wanderers/Prairie Wolf Pack) Saskatoon, SK
Sean Duke (24 yrs) – (University of Victoria) Vancouver, BC
Thyssen de Goede (24 yr) – (James Bay AA) Victoria, BC
Jeff Hassler (21 yrs) – (Okotoks RFC/Prairie Wolf Pack) Okotoks, AB
Lucas Hammond (19 yrs) – (Toronto Nomads) Toronto, Ontario
Ciaran Hearn (30 yrs) – (Castaway Wanderers/The Rock) Conception Bay, NL
Nathan Hirayama (24 yrs) – (University of Victoria) Richmond, BC
Harry Jones (23 yrs) – (Capilano RFC/Pacific Tyee) Vancouver, BC
John Moonlight (25 yrs) – (James Bay AA/Ontario Blues) Pickering, ON
Taylor Paris (20 yrs) – (Glasgow Warriors/Ontario Blues) Barrie, Ontario
Conor Trainor (23 yrs) – (Western University/BC Bears) Vancouver, B.C.

Geraint John [Head Coach]
Kieran Crowley [Assistant Coach]
Brian Hunter [Manager]
Isabel Grondin [Therapist]

Updated 2013-02-09 (09:09h)

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Brits Take Cup at Houston

England's Women's Sevens Team defeated the Unitied States with a 29-12 win in the Round 2 segment at Houston on Saturday to claim the IRB Women's Sevens World Series Cup. England barely led the first half with 3 tries while the USA scored 2 tries and a conversion. The American team was shut out in the second as England's Joanne Watmore scored two tries and Alice Richardson scored two converions to seal the match. Australia placed 3rd while Russia took the Plate and Brazil won the Bowl.

Canada went into the quarters tied in second place with the United States but lost their first match of the day in a close 10-12 (QF Cup) match with New Zealand. The first half ended 7-5 against while the second saw both teams score a try each. It was a tough loss. The second match ended in a 19-5 (SF Plate) loss to the Netherlands. Mandy Marchak scored Canada's only try. In the third and final match, Canada shut out South Africa with a 33-0 win to place 7th in the tournament. Canada dropped from 6th place to 7th in the series standings. Individual points:

vs. United States	Magali Harvey	5 pts
	Brittany Waters	5
	Mandy Marchak	2
vs. Argentina	Mandy Marchak	7
	Jess Dovannek	5
	Bianca Farella	5
	Kelly Russellk	5
	Brittany Waters	5
	Magali Harvey	4
vs. South Africa	Bianca Farella	5
	Kayla Moleschi	5
	Jennifer Kish	5
	Jess Dovanne	5
	Magali Harvey	4
vs. New Zealand	Kayla Moleschi	10
vs. Netherlands	Mandy Marchak	5
vs. South Africa	Magali Harvey	13
	Bianca Farella	10
	Jennifer Kish	5
	Julianne Zussman	5

Posted 2013-02-03

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Newfoundland Women Travelling to Vagas

Twelve members of Newfoundland's Rock women are travelling to Las Vagas to participate in the 2013 Las Vagas Invitational (LVI) Rugby Tournament (February 7-9) which is being held along with the USA Sevens International. The event will see 225 teams consisting of eight Men's Divisions, five Women's Divisions, and seven Boys and Girls Youth Divisions - over 2,500 players in competition.

Newfoundland is competiting in the Women's Open 7's with nineteen international teams: Edmonton Rockers; Education-1st Hawaii; Beavers Las Vagas; Eh! Team; Melbourne Sharks; Thorns; Bermuda; Grand Prairie Sirens; University of Guelph 2; Seattle Breakers; The Mights Rucks; University of Colorado; 7 Deadly Sins; Brigham Young Univeristy; Stanford Coaches; American Sin Bin; Philippine Halo-Halo; Las Vegas Slots and the Lady Blackjacks.

Newfoundland Women's Sevens Team:
Jessica Todhunter (Captain)
Lauren Humby (Assistant Captain)
Carolyn Woolridge (Assistant Captain)
Rachel Winsor
Katherine Stevenson
Samantha Major
Gillian Forward
Sarah Newhook
Kayla Mosher
Victoria Whitten
Lindsay Dwyer
Alanna Scammell

Posted 2013-02-02

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Canadian Men Win Bowl at Wellington

The Canadian Men's Sevens Team won the HSBC Sevens Bowl at Wellington on Saturday, defeating Tonga in the quarter (28-5) and Fiji in the final (28-19). England takes home the Cup with a 24-19 win over Keyna while New Zealand grabbed Third Place with a 17-7 win over Samoa. Australia won 22-7 over Scotland for the Plate and Wales snatched the Shield from Tonga with a score of 26-21.

In the final match against Fiji, Canadian Taylor Paris scored two tries for 10 points, Nathan Hirayama scored four conversions for 8 points and Sean Duke and John Moonlight scored a try each for 5 points. Individual points:

vs. Wales	Nathan Hirayama	7 pts
	John Moonlight	5
	Tyler Ardron	5
vs. South Africa	Nathan Hirayama	11
	Sean Duke	10
	John Moonlight	5
vs. Samoa	Sean Duke	5
	Philip Mack	5
	Nathan Hirayama	2
vs. Tonga	Nathan Hirayama	13
	Tyler Ardron	5
	Conor Trainor	5
	Sean Duke	5
vs. Spain	Taylor Paris	10
	Nathan Hirayama	6
	John Moonlight	5
	Conor Trainor	5
	Sean Duke	5
vs. Fiji	Taylor Paris	10
	Nathan Hirayama	8
	John Moonlight	5
	Sean Duke	5

 

Posted 2013-02-02 (07:05h)

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Day 1 - Canadian Women 2-1-0 at Houston

Canada's women came out strong on Day 1 at Houston, Texas, in the first day of Round 2 of the 2013 IRB Women's Sevens World Series, defeating South Africa (24-14) and Argentina (31-0). Their biggest and test of the day however was against the feisty United State squad which, like Canada, fielded a strong team. The match ended in a 12-12 tie.

Both Canada (2-1-0) and the United States (2-1-0) are tied in second place with 8 points each and move on to the Cup Quarter-Finals on Saturday. South Africa (5 pts) and Argentina (3 pts) round out Pool B. England and Australia are tied in first place with 9 points.

Canada plays New Zealand (2-0-1) at 1:26 pm (4:56 pm NT). See Houston

Posted 2013-02-02 (01:50h)

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Day 1 - Canadian Men 1-0-2 at Wellington

Canada dropped their first match 26-17 to Wales today at Wellington. The team regrouped for a 26-15 win over South Africa in their second match, but suffered their second loss of the day to Samoa , 26-12, ending the day with 5 points.

Canada is tied with South Africa and Wales in Pool C. Samoa leads the pool with 9 points and is tied with Kenya (Pool B) and Australia (Pool D).

See Wellington

Posted 2013-02-01 (05:32h)

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Hearn .. Canada's Men's Sevens in Wellington

Ciaran Hearn and the rest of the Men's Canadian Seven's Team are in Wellington, New Zealand, preparing for their first match on Friday against Wales. Canada is in Pool C with South Africa, Wales and Samoa. Sixteen countries are contending in Round 4 of the 2013 IRB Men's Sevens World Series.

Centre, Jeff Hassler of the Foothills Lions/Prairie Wolf Pack suffered a hamstring strain injury during practice and has been sidelined. Carded eighteen year old Justin Douglas of the Abbotsford RFC was flown to Wellington to replace the injured twenty-one year old. Douglas previously capped at the U18 level during the Isle of Man, 2012 Youth Commonwealth Games. See Round 4 - Fixtures - Wellington Time - Weather

Canada's Men's Sevens Wellington Team
 
Tyler Ardron (21 yrs) – (Brantford Harlequins/Ontario Blues) Peterborough, ON
Nanyak Dala (28 yrs) – (Castaway Wanderers/Prairie Wolf Pack) Saskatoon, SK
Justin Douglas (18 yrs) – (Abbotsford RFC) Abbotsford, BC
Sean Duke (24 yrs) – (University of Victoria) Vancouver, BC
Thyssen de Goede (24 yr) – (James Bay AA) Victoria, BC
Jeff Hassler (21 yrs) – (Okotoks RFC/Prairie Wolf Pack) Okotoks, AB [Injured]
Ciaran Hearn (30 yrs) – (Castaway Wanderers/The Rock) Conception Bay, NL
Nathan Hirayama (24 yrs) – (University of Victoria) Richmond, BC
Harry Jones (23 yrs) – (Capilano RFC/Pacific Tyee) Vancouver, BC
Phil Mack (27 yrs)– (University of Victoria/Pacific Tyee) Victoria, BC
John Moonlight (25 yrs) – (James Bay AA/Ontario Blues) Pickering, ON

Posted 2013-01-30 23:41h)

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6 Nations

The Men's 6 Nations Championship, also known as the RBS 6 Nations, is an annual international rugby union tournament between England, Ireland, France, Wales, Scotland and Italy. The current series was introduced in 2000, however it was preceded by the Five Nations (1940-1999), Home Nations (1932-1939), Five Nations (1910-1931), and the original Home Nations (1883-1909) series of annual tournaments.

In 1996, the Women's Home International Championship, consisting of teams representing England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, was initiated with France (1999) and Spain (2000) joining to form the current Women's Six Nation Championship.

The Men's Six Nations Under 20's Championship was initiated by the IRB in 2008 with England Ireland, Wales, Scotland, France and Italy competing.

Posted 2013-01-29

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Van Gulick .. Rogers at Shawnigan Lake School

Oliver Van Gulick, of the Vandals RFC, and Alex Rogers, of the Dogs RFC, both members of The Rock, spent this past week training in British Columbia. Contenders for spots on the Canadian JWRT team which will travel to Antofagasta, Chile, in late May, the Newfoundlander's joined forty-two U20 players from across Canada at Shawning Lake School and Canadian Rugby Centre of Excellence at Langford. The next camp will be held in March with invitations being sent to approximately thirty players.

The intensive four day training and assessment camp represents the first round in the selection process which will eventually form a twenty-six player team to represent Canada for the IRB Junior World Trophy. Preliminary pool matches in Chile are scheduled for May 28 - June 9, 2013.

Eight teams, consisting of Canada, Chile, Namibia, Italy, Japan, Tonga, Portugal and Urugay, will contest. The winner will contend for the Junior World Rugby Championships to be held in New Zealand in 2014.

Canada will not contend in the 2013 JWRC. The United States won the 2012 IRB JWRT and will be in France on June 5th to face South Africa, France and England in Pool A. Canada has participated in the JWRT since 2010, placing 6th in 2010, 5th in 2011 and 6th in 2012.

JWRT and JWRC fixtures posted JWRT and JWRC fixtures webpage.

Posted 2013-01-26

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Duke .. Hirayama Top Canadian Sevens Scorers

Canadian's Sean Duke and Nathan Hirayama currently place fifth and sixth in the 2012-2013 HSBC Sevens world stats with 75 and 74 points respectively. Tomasi Cama of New Zealand leads with 116 points.

Duke is in second place as a top scorer with 15 trys to his credit - only one behind the leader Pedro Martin of Spain.

Philip Mack is Canada's all time sevens point leader, placing twenty-first internationally with 672 career points. England's Ben Gollings leads the world with 2,652 points.

Posted 2013-01-26

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Heineken Quarterfinalists Celebrate, Prepare

Following three days of fantastic rugby, the Heineken Cup quarterfinalists have been determined and move on to prepare for April. Hopeful Leinster failed to qualify, leaving Ireland's Munster and Ulster teams to vie for the semi-finals. Harlequins, Leicester Tigers and Saracens are in along with France's Clermont Auvergne, Montpellier and Toulon. See Heineken

Posted 2013-01-20

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Hearn Carded - Canadian Men's Sevens

Newfoundland's Ciaran Hearn is carded for Canada's Men's Sevens Team. Rugby Canada released the names of the men and women representing Canada on Thursday. Hearn is the only Newfoundlander currently carded.

Men’s Sevens Carded Athletes
 
Tyler Ardron – (Brantford Harlequins/Ontario Blues) Peterborough, ON
Connor Braid – (James Bay AA/Pacific Tyee/Doncaster Knights) Victoria, BC
Nanyak Dala – (Castaway Wanderers/Prairie Wolf Pack) Saskatoon, SK
Justin Douglas – (Abbotsford RFC) Abbotsford, BC
Sean Duke – (University of Victoria) Vancouver, BC
Thyssen de Goede – (James Bay AA) Victoria, BC
Mike Fuailefau – (University of Victoria) Victoria, BC
Lucas Hammond – (Toronto Nomads) Toronto, ON
Jeff Hassler – (Okotoks RFC/Prairie Wolf Pack) Okotoks, AB
Ciaran Hearn – (Castaway Wanderers/Atlantic Rock) Conception Bay, NL
Nathan Hirayama – (University of Victoria) Richmond, BC
Harry Jones – (Capilano RFC/Pacific Tyee) Vancouver, BC
Phil Mack – (University of Victoria/Pacific Tyee) Victoria, BC
Clayton Meeres – (James Bay AA/Pacific Tyee) Chilliwack, BC
John Moonlight – (James Bay AA/Ontario Blues) Pickering, ON
Mike Scholz – (Castaway Wanderers/Ontario Blues) London, ON
Sean White – (James Bay AA/Pacific Tyee) Victoria, BC

Women’s Sevens Carded Athletes
 
Andrea Burk – (Capilano RFC) North Vancouver, BC
Jess Dovanne – (Velox RFC) Victoria, BC
Arielle Dubissette-Borrice – (Toronto Scottish RFC) Toronto, ON
Bianca Farella – (Town of Mount Royal RFC) Montreal, QC
Megan Gibbs – (Markham Irish) Barrie, ON
Julia Greenshields – (Sarnia Saints) Sarnia, ON
Magali Harvey – (Club de Rugby Quebec) Quebec City, QC
Jennifer Kish – (Edmonton Rockers) Edmonton, AB
Ghislaine Landry – (Toronto Scottish RFC) Toronto, ON
Mandy Marchak – (Capilano RFC) Winnepeg, MB
Barbara Mervin – (Velox RFC) Peterborough, ON
Kayla Moleschi – (Williams Lake Rustlers) Williams Lake, BC
Karen Paquin – (Club de Rugby Quebec) Quebec City, QC
Cheryl Phillips – (Toronto Scottish RFC) Scarborough, ON
Frederique Rajotte – (Markham Irish RFC) Markham, ON
Kelly Russell – (Toronto Nomads) Bolton, ON
Ashley Steacy – (Lethbridge Rugby Club) Lethbridge, AB
Amanda Thornborough – (Brandon Barbarians) Brandon, MB
Brittany Waters – (Meraloma Athletic Club) Vancouver, BC
Kelsey Willoughby – (Lethbridge Rugby Club) Lethbridge, AB
Julianne Zussman – (Town of Mount Royal RFC) Ottawa, ON

Posted 2013-01-12

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Houston Pools - Fixtures Posted

The IRB Women's Sevens Round 2 Pools and Fixutres are now posted - here

Posted 2013-01-12

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Wellington Pools - Fixtures Posted

The IRB Men's Sevens Round 4 Pools and Fixutres are now posted - here

Posted 2013-01-06

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Canadian Men's Sevens at Camp - Preparing for Round 4

Canada's Sevens team is gearing up for the next tournament in the IRB Sevens World Series competition while Wellington, New Zealand, completes final preparations as host for Round 4. Canadian injured players are healing and a pre-tournament training camp is underway this weekend at Shawnigan Lake School and the Rugby Canada Centre on Vancouver Island. Player selection will follow.

Thirty-two athletes have been invited, including Patrick Parfrey of The Rock. Veteran Ciaran Hearn was one of five players sidelined with injuries last month in South Africa. Most will be attending the camp, some with limited participation.

Eleventh place Canada competes in Pool C with South Africa (4th), Wales (8th) and Samoa (5th). Fixtures for the tournament are posted on the Vandal's website. See Pools and Standings

 

Updated 2013-01-06

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Belgium - 2012 Cup of Nations Champions

Belgium won all three of their matches at the Cup of Nations Championships held in Dubai. Hosted by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the competition saw the last tournament for 2012 for the tier 3 teams representing the UAE, Belgium, Hong Kong and Zimbabwe. Initially six teams were scheduled to compete however Mexico and Papua New Guinea were unable to finance the trip and withdrew.

1st Belgium - 14 pts
2nd Hong Kong - 9 pts
3rd Zimbabwe - 5 pts
4th UAE - 0 pts

 

Posted 2012-12-17

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Canada Sevens Team Battered in South Africa

Coach Geraint John knew that his Canadian squad was in trouble before the first whistle of Sunday's match againt Samoa. A number of players had not played for over a month and his twelve man team was down to eight players, with four injured and taken out of play on Saturday. Therapist Carlas Barsh was busy. The team struggled and ultimately fell to defeat, winning only one match in the tournament. Canada slipped from 9th place to 11th in the series standings. Read Adam Kyriacou's report to Rugby Canada.

Posted 2012-12-10

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Gold Coast South Africa - Round 3 of Men's Sevens

The Port Elizabeth Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, is packed and the fray is on in Round 3 of the 2012 Men's Sevens World Series. Ciaran Hearn and the Canadians are about to take to the pitch against Zimbabwe as Portugal and the United States round out the second half of their match with Portugal posting a 21-12 lead.

It should be a great rugby day and the Canadian's are fired up. It's 22c, cloudy with light winds and 83% humidy at 1:00 PM local time.

Fixtures/Results posted on Fixtures page

 

Posted 2012-12-08

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Hearn .. squad .. arrive at Gold Coast

Ciaran Hearn, and the rest of Canada's Men's Sevens team, is settling in and readying for their first match against Zimbabwe followed by the United States and Portugal through Saturday. The complete tournament schedule is posted on the Vandals Fixtures page.

Posted 2012-12-05

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Pools Set for 2015 World Cup

POOL A	POOL B	POOL C	POOL D
Australia	South Africa	New Zealand	France
England	Samoa	Argentina	Ireland
Wales	Scotland	Tonga	Italy
Oceania 1	Asia 1	Europe 1	Americas 1
Playoff Winner	Americas 2	Africa 1	Europe 2

 

Posted 2012-12-04

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Dubai 7's - Hearn Ready

Newfoundland's Ciaran Hearn has been on tour for over a month but is ready for Friday's kick-off against France, Australia and the United States. This will be Round 2 of the HSBC Sevens World Series. The fixtures and results will be posted on the Fixtures Webpage

Posted 2012-11-29

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Dogs RFC Win Deacy Cup

The Dogs RFC Senior women are the 2012 winners of the Deacy Cup.

Scheduled as a three match play-off between the Dogs RFC and the Swilers RFC, the senior ladies were unable to complete the round. The Dogs RFC led by 5 points, clinching the cup with a 63-19 win over the Swilers in the final match.

Corinne Humby photo
Posted 2012-11-24

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Canadian Men Winding Up Tour

Canada's men's team wind up their European Tour today as they face off with the New Zealand Maori All Blacks in Oxfordshire, England. For Canadian fullback James Pritchard it will not be a counter match. Todate, Pritchard has earned 462 points, just 25 points short of Canadian legend Garth Rees' record, however today's match is not an internetional test match and none of Pritch's points will count towards catching Rees' mark.

Highly regarded by Rees, Pritchard, Ciaran Hearn, Aaron Carpenter and the rest of the Canadian pack are looking forward to today's match. Canada suffered a 42-12 loss to Samoa and a 35-3 win over Russia, while the Moari All Blacks took a 33-24 loss to Leicester and won their match 52-21 over England's RFU Championship XV on November 17th.

Late Thursday there was word that TSN would be re-scheduling their line-up and televising the match live, however it was not posted on TSN's schedule as of early today.

Canadian Lineup.

1 Hubert Buydens (Saskatoon Wild Oats/ Prairie Wolf Pack) Saskatoon, SK
2 Ryan Hamilton (Capilano/ Pacific Tyee) West Vancouver, BC
3 Jason Marshall (Aurillac) North Vancouver, BC
4 Jebb Sinclair (London Irish) Charter's Settlement, NB
5 Tyler Hotson (London Scottish RFC) Vancouver, BC
6 Tyler Ardron (Brantford Harlequins/ Ontario Blues) Lakefield, ON
7 Chauncey O’Toole (Bridgend Ravens) Belleisle, NB
8 Aaron Carpenter (Plymouth Albion RFC) Brantford, ON (C)
9 Phil Mack (UVic Vikes/ Pacific Tyee) Victoria, BC
10 Connor Braid (James Bay AA/ Pacific Tyee) Victoria, BC
11 Taylor Paris (Glasgow Warriors) Barrie, ON
12 Phil Mackenzie (London Welsh) Oakville, ON
13 Ciaran Hearn (Castaway Wanderers/ the Rock) Conception Bay, NL
14 Jeff Hassler (Okotoks RFC/ Prairie Wolf Pack) Okotoks, AB
15 James Pritchard (Bedford Blues) Parkes, NSW, Australia

Replacements

16 Andrew Tiedemann (FC Auch Gers) St. Albert, AB
17 Ray Barkwill (Niagara, Oakville Crusaders/ Ontario Blues) Niagara Falls, ON
18 Doug Wooldridge (Lindsay RFC/ Ontario Blues) Lindsay, ON
19 Brett Beukeboom (Plymouth Albion RFC) Lindsay, ON
20 John Moonlight (James Bay AA/ Ontario Blues) Pickering, ON
21 Eric Wilson (Meraloma RC) Vancouver, BC
22 Nathan Hirayama (UVic Vikes/ Pacific Tyee) Vancouver, BC
23 Sean Duke (UVic Vikes/ Pacific Tyee) Victoria, BC

Posted 2012-11-23

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Women's 2012-2013 Training Schedule

The Provincial Women's schedule for the winter and spring program is now posted on the women's webpage

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Canada vs Russia - Wales

Canadian men, fresh from a tough match against Samoa, face Russia today at Parc Eirias, Wales. All eyes will be on center Ciaran Hearn and fullback James Pritchard. Pat Johnston has some interesting comments on today's match - Rugby Canada preview. See SkyBet preview

Posted 2012-11-17

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Ireland vs. South Africa Match - YouTube

The November 10th Ireland - South Africa match at Dublin is now availabe here on YouTube

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French Stun Wallabies - Major Upset

Fresh from huge wins against South Africa and Argentina, Australia's Wallabies were high favorites entering the Stade de France's packed stadium just outside Paris on Saturday. But all that changed following first whistle as Fredric Michalak, still tasting France's humbling 2010 defeat from the lads in the green and gold jerseys, led the charge that set the Aussies into a defensive posture and ultimate painful loss.

The French plays were synced and their defence impenetrable - shutting down the Wallabies and allowing only two successful penalty kicks. To add insult to injury, at the 64 minute mark the referee called a scrum misconduct against Australia and awarded France a penalty try.

The packed stadium erupted as the final whistle signalled a 33-6 win for France and a sobering defeat for the gold jerseys.

The match was keenly followed in England as the Brits face off with Australia next Saturday at Twickenham. See Fixtures

Posted 2012-11-12

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Rock Players Leave Mark in Ireland

Following a big win on Monday in Dublin against the Lansdowne Rugby Club's U14 squad, the Rock lads pushed on to Cork to face Cork Constitution FC on Wednesday. The word was out that Newfoundlander's had arrived and recalling Shane McClafferty's tough Vandals team that visited in 2011, the word is that the Constitution pressed their U15 team into service.

Talk of "cheeky" and "..dirty style of play," abounded. Blood ran aplenty .. the rucks were brutal and the lineouts tedious. Nevertheless our far younger lads exhibited true Rock tenacity to the very end. It was a loss for our boys but battle scars were proudly displayed by Newhook, Bryant, Hickman and Henley following a tough but well fought test. After a good laugh and a handshake, the teams mustered and embraced the match as brothers in rugby do. Ben Newhook was declared Man of the Match.

Kissing the Blarney Stone rejuvenated the team, many of whom have roots in Irish soil. Energized, and true to Rock form, they played an outstanding match on Friday, carrying a close but well fought game to a 22-19 win over a tough U14 Clontarf RFC squad in Dublin. Vandals' Ben Newhook was voted Team Player of the Tour.

The boys had a great rest and today they get to support their host country - Ireland's national team against the South African Springboks at 2:00 PM NT in Aviva Stadium. Outfitted in new all-black kits, the Irish lads face a formidable adversary. The match is available via Live Stream LiveRugbyTv (subscription) and should be available later on YouTube.

As always, our Irish kin were great hosts and we thank them for their warm and generous hospitality. Go raibh maith agaibh.

Posted 2012-11-10

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The Rock U14 Men play Clontarf FC

The Rock's U14 team is re-settled in Dublin today and looking forward to their tour match against the Clontarf Football Club at Castle Avenue in Clontarf this afternoon.

The lads are hyped for tomorrow when they are scheduled to see Ireland play South Africa at Aviva Stadium in Dublin. The match is scheduled to be televised on TSN for Canada.

Posted 2012-11-09

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Men's U14 Team Travel For Clontarf Match

The Rock U14 Men's team have a rest day and travel to Blarney this morning to visit Blarney Castle where the famous Blarney Stone is located.

Following the tour of Blarney Castle, the team travels back to Dublin to prepare for tomorrows match with Clontarf FC.

Current Dublin Time & Weather

Posted 2012-11-08

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Women's Sevens - New Dedicated Website

The Women's Sevens World Series has a new dedicated website

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U14 Mens Team vs. Cork Constitution RFC

The Rock U14 lads face Cork Constitution RFC on the Emerald Isle at 12:30 PM today (Newfoundland time). The Rock lads play their second tour match after a decisive win over Lansdowner RFC on Monday, November 5th. Ben Newhook, Seth Bryant, Thomas Hickman and Mark Oake are designated team Captains.

On Wednesday the team toured Cork and visited His Excellency Loyola Hearn, the Canadian Ambassador to Ireland. The team overnight at Cork, returning to Dublin tomorrow.

Posted 2012-11-07

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The Rock's U14 Team Face Lansdowner RFC

Newfoundland's U14 team face the Lansdowner RFC lads in Dublin, Ireland, today - their first exhibition match on their Ireland tour. It is clear and sunny with temperatures expected to peak at 9c. The lads arrived in Dublin on Saturday and visited the Xtreme on Sunday. This morning they visited the Canadian Embassy. This evening they're off to Cork. The ten day trip winds up next Sunday.

Dublin - Cork Map

Posted 2012-11-05

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Bishops College Girls - 2012 High School Champions

Red jerseys flooded Nugent's Park in Conception Bay South on Thursday, November 1st as Roncolli Central High and Bishops College girls faced off for the 2012 St. John's High School Championship match. Referee John Saunders, known for his patient adjudication behind the whistle and persistence as a player, unravelled the rucks of scarlet and called a balanced play of thirty minute halves.

In the first, Roncalli consistantly kept the ball within striking distance of the Bishops goal line, each time fought off by the strong St. John's team's defence. But the Bishops' girls demonstrated carrying speed and breaking out, scoring two tries and two conversions.

As misty rain, darkening skies and strengthening winds faced Roncalli in the opening second half, at the 40:47 minute mark the tenacious Avondale school gals came back with a drive to goal and well executed try.

Bishops retaliated at the 52:05 and 56:05 minute markers with two tries and their third match successful conversion to seal the win.

As the Bishop's gals celebrated their 26-5 win amidst a throng of fans bused in for the event, the Roncalli gals vowed to return and claim the 2013 trophy. See School Photo Gallery

Posted 2012-11-03
Updated 2012-11-07

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Holy Spirit Boys Take St. John's High School Championship

The Spirit spoke on Tuesday as members of Holy Spirit High School boys rugby team carried the St. John's Boys High School Championship Trophy off their home field - the Sgt. Ned Nugent's Park Rugby Pitch, surrounded by cheering fans.

Following a first half tie, and under the under the watchful eye of Coach Basil Crosby, the lads toughened their play in the second to take the match over Bishops College by a 17-5 win. The competition was one of the best in the city and metro series of matches which opened on September 18th. Bishop's left their mark - demonstrating fast plays and good hands throughout a hard fought game.

On November 1st, Roncalli High and St. Kevin's High School ladies will meet on Nugent's CBS pitch to decide who takes home the St. John's Girls High School Championship Trophy. More to follow.

Posted 2012-10-31

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Canadian Men Travel to UK

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ciaran Hearn is back - fresh from the Gold Coast Sevens where "that Hearn," became a term frequently used by sportcasters covering Hearn's outstanding plays during the two day tourney. Hearn is now packing his cleats and readying for the United Kingdom where Canada's senior men face Samoa on November 9th and Russia on November 17th in the continuing IRB International Series. Ciaran will be the only Newfoundlander travelling.

Going into the competition, Canada stands 13th, Samoa 10th and Russia 19th in IRB World Rankings. The Vandals will be covering both matches. See Fixtures

Canadian Men Travelling
Tyler ARDRON (Brantford Harlequins/Ontario Blues) Lakefield, ON
Ray Barkwill (Niagara, Oakville Crusaders/Ontario Blues) Niagara Falls, Ontario
Nick BLEVINS (Calgary Hornets - Prairie Wolf Pack) Calgary, Alberta
Connor BRAID (James Bay Athletic Assoc - Pacific Tyee) Victoria, British Columbia
Brett BEUKEBOOM (Plymouth Albion RFC) Lindsay, Ontario
Hubert BUYDENS (Saskatoon Wild Oats - Prairie Wolf Pack) Saskatoon, SK
Aaron CARPENTER (Plymouth Albion RFC) Brantford, Ontario
Nanyak DALA (Castaway Wanderers - Prairie Wolf Pack) Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Matt EVANS (Cornish Pirates) Duncan, Britich Columbia
Ryan HAMILTON (Capilano RFC - Pacific Tyee) West Vancouver, Britich Columbia
Jeff HASSLER (Okotoks RFC - Prairie Wolf Pack) Okotoks, Alberta
Ciaran HEARN (Baymen RFC - The Rock) Conception Bay, Newfoundland
Tyler HOTSON (London Scottish RFC) Vancouver, Britich Columbia
Harry JONES (Capilano RFC - Pacific Tyee) North Vancouver, British Columbia
Phil MACK (University Victoria Vikes - Pacific Tyee) Victoria, British Columbia
Phil MacKENZIE (London Welsh RFC) Oakville, Ontario
Jason MARSHALL (Aurillac Fr) North Vancouver, British Columbia
John MOONLIGHT (James Bay Athletic Assoc - Ontario Blues) Pickering, Ontario
Chauncey O'TOOLE (Brigand Ravens, South Wales) Belleisle, New Brunswick
Taylor PARIS (Glasgow Warriors) Barrie, Ontario
Jon PHELAN (Ste-Anne-de-Bellvue - The Rock) Montreal, Quebec
James PRITCHARD (Bedford Blues RFC) Parkes, New South Wales, Australia
Jebb SINCLAR (London Irish RFC) Charters Settlement, New Brunswick
Andrew TIEDEMANN (Football Club Auch Gers) St. Albert, Alberta
Sean WHITE (James Bay Athletic Assoc - Pacific Tyee) Victoria, British Columbia
Doug WOOLDRIDGE (Lindsay RFC - Ontario Blues) Lindsay, Ontario

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Swilers RFC win Goodyear Cup
Swilers RFC win Sully Cup

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Argentina wins Americas Rugby Championship

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Gold Coast Sevens - Canada - Round 1

Full series results for Canada in Round 1 at Gold Coast, Australia - October 13-14, 2012. Canada ended the round tied in 11th place with Wales after a close match with England. The Baymen RFC's Ciaran Hearn was outstanding throughout.
See Rugby Canada

Results:

[October 13]
vs. South Africa - 0-38 loss
vs. New Zealand - 21-28 loss
vs. United States - 22-21 win
[October 14]
vs. Portugal - 31-0 win
vs. England - 19-24 loss

IRB Sevens Fixtures here

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Teenage Girls - Provincial Practice Invitation

A special practice is being held on Saturday October 13th at the Swilers lower pitch for all teenage girls in the city and metro areas from 10:00 AM to 12:00 Noon.

Inquiries - Roxanne Butler - E-mail

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IRB Women's Sevens World Series

Round 1 of the IRB Women's Sevens World Series gets underway in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, November 30th, at the Sevens Stadium . Introduction of the Women's Sevens World Series was announced earlier this month by the IRB and will see twenty top international teams competiting. Canada is well placed winning the IRB Women's Sevens Challenge Cup in Dubai in 2011 and is part of the six internationally recognized women's sevens core teams - Canada, Australia, England, Netherlands, New Zealand and the United States of America.

Schedule
Round 1: Dubai, UAE - November 30 - December 1, 2012
Round 2: Houston, Texas USA - February 1-2, 2013
Round 3: Guangzhou, China - March 30-31, 2013
Round 4: Amsterdam, Netherlands - May 17-18, 2013

As they are released, fixtures and results for this series will be posted on the Vandals Fixtures page.

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2012 Men's Eastern Club Tournament

The Men's Eastern Club Tournament gets underway on Friday, October 12th with the Ottawa Irish RFC facing off with the Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue RFC at 3:00 PM at the Swilers Complex, Crosbie Road.

The Swilers RFC meet the Fredericton Loyalists RFC at the Complex with kick-off scheduled at 4:15 PM. The tournament winds up on Sunday afternoon. Fixtures for the tournament are here and results will be posted.

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Americas Rugby Championship

Friday, October 12th, will see the kick-off in round-robin play for the Americas Rugby Championship at Langford, British Columbia, with Argentina and the Unitied States facing off at 5:30 PM Pacific Time (10:00 PM NT) at Westhill Stadium.

Fixtures and results for the competition are posted here

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Australia takes Personal Championship
New Zealand reconfirms The Rugby Championship

2012-10-06

Australia's Qanatas Wallabies won the Personal The Rugby Championship trophy on Saturday, defeating Argentina 25-19. Despite being plagued by a roster of injured players and cited by scores of naysayers, the Australians ended the first half leading by 15-9, and while the Los Pumas made the second half a contest, the Aussies didn't look back.

South Africa and New Zealand met at Johannesburg in one of the season's most anticipated matches. The first half saw South Africa take the lead 16-12 in front of 80,000+ fans, however the All Blacks came back in the second, stalling South Africa and, with characteristic precision passes and plays, take a resounding lead finishing the match with a 32-16 win.

Key scorers for South Africa were Bryan Habana, Johan Goosen and Elton Jantjies. Sam Whitelock, Aaron Smith, Ma'a Nonu, Conrad Smith and golden boot Daniel Carter scored for the All Blacks.

After six rounds of play in the 2012 Rugby Championship, New Zealand led the pack 6-0-0 with 26 table points. Australia and South Africa followed with 3-0-3 and 12 points and 2-1-3 and 12 points respectively. Argentia joined the former Tri-Nations contest in 2012 ending with a 0-1-5 record and 4 points.

Extended 2012 The Rugby Cup standings posted here

Video streams of both matches will be posted on this site soon.

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Dogs RFC Women to Defend Deacy Cup

The Dogs Senior Women's team are looking to retain the Deacy Cup for a third consecutive year. After taking the first match last weekend, the team again faces off with the Swilers Senior Women at the Swilers Pitch on Saturday at 3:30 PM.

For young women in Newfoundland, rugby started with groups of high school players in the St. John's and Conception Bay South (CBS) regions, practicing and organizing rugby games - the latter under the watchful eye of Frank Deacy.

Francis John Deacy was born in Galway, Ireland on the 25th day of May 1945. Raised in the highly competitive world of Irish rugby, at age twenty-six, Frank immigrated to Newfoundland and eventually joined the faculty of Holy Spirit High School in CBS.

He joined the Newfoundland provincial rugby squad and eventually became involved in promoting and organizing women's high school rugby - a highly successful undertaking involving young women from his adopted home town of Conception Bay South. This led to a senior women's league, initially consisting of players representing the Vandals and Baymen Rugby Football Clubs and, ultimately, the Swilers and Dogs clubs.

Frank or as he became affectionately known as "Deace" or "Deac" to his girls, coached the provincial women's senior team and watched with glee as the league continued to grow with increased interest and enthusiasm. He coached The Rock with Dr. Pat Parfrey and reached out to Dr. Joshua Foley in Burin, making numerous trips to Burin and the City of Corner Brook in an effort to energize the sport provincially.

Interest in the women's league grew and in 1987 Canada played its first women's international rugby competition in Victoria, B.C. against the U.S.A. In 1998 Canada's women moved to an impressive fourth place, a ranking they would retain until the 2010 World Cup. In December 2011, Canadian women made history by challenging eight countries and winning their first ever IRB Women's Sevens Challenge Cup in Dubai.

Starting with a team of 30 girls, women's provincial rugby has evolved into a highly competitive program. Since 2001, with the exception of one year, the province's women's league, consisting of Senior, U20 and U18 class players, has consistently sent teams to National competitions.

Frank Deacy was a major driving force behind the development of rugby in Newfoundland and Labrador. In 1973 he played for Canada against Wales. In the mid 1970's he was one of the founding members of the Newfoundland and Labrador Rugby Union as well as the Swilers Rugby Football Club. In 1996 Frank co-coached a junior provincial women's team and won bronze at the national championships. A sports legend in his own time, he dedicated a great deal of his life as a coach and referee to Newfoundland rugby and held positions on provincial and national rugby union executive councils. Frank founded the Baymen Rugby Football Club, was declared CBS Coach of the Year in 2004 and was ultimately inducted into both the CBS and the Newfoundland Sports Halls of Fame.

Never at loss for talent, Frank played the part of Father Joseph in the movie Love and Savagery, filmed in Newfoundland and Ireland and released in November 2009. He was a gifted painter and community builder.

Acclaimed by those who knew and loved him as having an amazing personality with an unabashed love of life, a positive attitude and a perpetual sense of good humour, Frank was perhaps best remembered for the extraordinary kindnesses that he exhibited to his students and athletes alike and for his love of playing, teaching and promoting the sport of rugby.

Sadly, on November 9, 2008, at age 63, Frank played his last scrum, passing peacefully at home. He will be long remembered by those he befriended and coached and, in the coming weeks especially, by the women involved in Newfoundland rugby as the Swilers and Dogs compete in memory of their mentor.

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Match Videos Now Online

The September 29th matches between South Africa and Australia, and between Argentina and New Zealand are now available on YouTube and are linked as follows:

South Africa vs. Australia
Argentina vs. New Zealand

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All Blacks win The Rugby Championship

The New Zealand All Blacks soundly defeated the Argentina Los Pumas with a 54-15 score on Saturday at the Pumas' Estadio Ciudad de La Plata stadium and get to carry The Rugby Championship trophy back to Wellington. Formerly known as The Tri Nations, the competition is contested between Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and, as of 2012, Argentina. The Rugby Championship, organized by SANZAR, is considered the elite of world rugby union competitions.

Australia, New Zealand and South Africa have dominated the Rugby World Cup (RWC) competition for the past six of the contest's seven championships. The RWC is played every four years with England to host the 2015 tournament.

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Canada A Team Selected

The final selection for the Canada A team has been made. Zac Coughlan, Owen Parfrey and Patrick Parfrey of the Swilers RFC made the cut as well as Jon Phelan and Toni Wodzicki of Montreal, also members of The Rock. The complete roster:

ARDRON,Tyler - Ontario Blues - Lakefield, ON
ARMSTRONG, Kyle - Ontario Blues - Whitby, ON
BARKWILL, Ray - Ontario Blues - Niagara Falls, ON
BLEVINS, Nick - Prairie Wolf Pack - Calgary, AB
BRAID, Connor - Pacific Tyee - Victoria, BC
BUYDENS, Hubert - Prairie Wolf Pack - Saskatoon, SK
CLARK, Alistair - Ontario Blues - Oakville, ON
COUGHLAN, Zac - The Rock - St. John's, NL
FLAGG, Aaron - Pacific Tyee - Abbotsford, BC
FUAILEFAU, Michael - Pacific Tyee - Victoria, BC
HART, Josh - Prairie Wolf Pack - Minitonas, MB
JOHNSTON, Creag - Ontario Blues - Woodbridge, ON
KAY, Pat - Pacific Tyee - Duncan, BC
LONG, Chris - Prairie Wolf Pack - Calgary, AB
MEERES, Clayton - Pacific Tyee - Chilliwack, BC
PARFREY, Owen - The Rock - St. John's, NL
PARFREY, Patrick - The Rock - St. John's, NL
PEARSON, Seb - Ontario Blues - Lindsay, ON
PHELAN, Jon Phelan - The Rock - Montreal, QC
RUMBALL, Jacob - Ontario Blues - Toronto, ON
UNDERWOOD, Liam - Ontario Blues - Toronto, ON
WHITE, Sean - Pacific Tyee - Victoria, BC
WILSON-ROSS, Jordan - Ontario Blues - Alliston, ON
WODZICKI, Toni Wodzicki - The Rock - Montreal, QC
WOOLDRIDGE, Doug - Ontario Blues - Lindsay, ON

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Americas Rugby Championship

The Americas Rugby Championship kicks off at Westhills Stadium in Langford, BC, on October 12th. The contest will see Canada, the United States, Argentina and Uruguay square off with matches on October 12th, 16th and 20th. Tonga, a 2010 competitor, was replaced in 2012 by Uruguay.

First held in 2009, the Americas saw regional teams from North and South America compete with the Angentina Jaguars taking the win from Canada's BC Bears.

In 2010 the regional team concept was replaced reducing the program to four teams with Canada entering a Canada "A" team consisting of players selected from the Canadian Rugby Championships. Argentina retained the trophy in the final, defeating the second place Canada "A" team. In 2011 no Americas tournament was held due to the Rugby World Cup which saw France fall to New Zealand with a razor sharp 8-7 finish. Wales took the bronze defeating Australia 21-18.

The Ontario Blues won the Canadian Rugby Championships at St. John's, NL on September 22nd. That match was attended by Rugby Canada officials scouting before making the final selection for the Canada "A" team to represent the nation at Langford just three weeks from the CRC final.

Schedules will be posted on the Vandals Fixtures site and the Canada "A" roster, which is expected to be released sometime next week, will also be exhibited.

All of the matches will be live streamed and links will be provided here on the Vandals website.

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Ontario Blues Take Title - 2012 Canadian Rugby Champions

The Ontario Blues walked off the Swilers Complex with the McTier Cup under arm in St. John's on Saturday. It was a bitter end to a hard fought match for The Rock who led the competition into the beginning of the second half, stopping the Ontario team cold. Bitter especially for the team's veteran players who outmatched the Ontario squad in the first forty. With the exception of a couple of costly ball handling errors, Simon Blank's Rock team was clearly in serious contention of stealing the McTier and handing the cup to the Prairie Wolf Pack.

No-one on the Newfoundland based team had any illusions that they'd beat the Ontario Blues by 51 points, but at half-time the team had their fans fully revved with a 13-11 point lead and anticipating a win. Top veterans like Frank Walsh, Ciaran Hearn and Pat Parfrey made outstanding plays, leading the charge with hard hits and on-target kicks between the Blues' goal posts.

The second half started with promise but the tough and tenacious Blues hit back with a penalty kick followed by four tries and three conversions. Hearn earned the only points scored for The Rock in the second half with a penalty kick, his third for the match.

Ontario Blues:
Tries - 5
Conversions - 3
Penatly kicks - 3

The Rock:
Tries - 1
Conversions - 1
Pentalty kicks - 3

Photos being added to gallery throughout the week - here
Rugby Canada coverage here

 

Fixtures and Results
Canadian Rugby Championships posted HERE

Live Streaming
Canadian Rugby Championship - September 22nd - 3:00 PM NT [1:30 PM ET] HERE

Officiating

Referee: Chris Assmus - British Columbia
Assistant Referee: Sean Clancy - Newfoundland
Assistant Referee: Andrew McMaster - Ontario

The Rock

1 Frank Walsh - Vandals RFC - St. John's, NL
2 Owen Parfrey - Swilers RFC - St. John's, NL
3 Bob Rogers - Dogs RFC - Mt. Pearl, NL
4 Brad Lester - Dogs RFC - Mt. Pearl, NL
5 Jon Phelan - St. Anne-de Bellevue - Montreal, PQ
6 Toni Wodzicki - Castaway Wanderers RFC - Montreal, PQ
7 Chauncey O'Toole - Belle Isle RFC - Victoria BC
8 Zac Coughlan - Swilers RFC - St. John's, NL
9 Mike Simpson - Swilers RFC - Sudbury, ON
10 Patrick Parfrey - Swilers RFC - St. John's, NL
11 Kyle McGuirk - Swiler RFC -St. John's, NL
12 Tyler Wish - Swilers RFC St. John's, NL
13 Ciaran Hearn - Baymen RFC - Conception Bay, NL
14 Shane Stratton - Dogs RFC - Goulds, NL
15 Robert Wilson - Swilers RFC St. John's, NL

16 Steve Cutliffe - Dogs RFC - Mt. Pearl, NL
17 Benoit Piffero - St. Anne-de Bellevue - Montreal, PQ
18 Justin Meyers - Swilers RFC - St. John's, NL
19 Mike Hansom - Tars RFC - Halifax, NS
20 Scott Forrest - Tars RFC - Halifax, NS
21 Llyr Morris - Mudmen RFC - Charlottetown, PEI
22 Patrick McNicholas - Swilers RFC - St. John's, NL
Alex Rogers - Dogs RFC - Mt. Pearl, NL

Simon Blanks - Coach
Pat Parfrey - Coach
Rick Graham - Manager

Ontario Blues

1 Doug Wooldridge - Kawartha Lakes RFC - Lindsay, ON
2 Ray Barkwill - Western Force "A" - St. Catherines
3 Tom Dolezel - Ontario Blues - London
4 Tyler Ardron - Peterborough Pegans - Hamilton, ON
5 Scott Dunham - Balmy Beach - Toronto, ON
6 John Moonlight - Golden Hawk - Ajax, ON
7 Alistair Clark - Oakville Trafalgar Red Devils - Oakville, ON
8 Sebastian Pearson - Lindsay RFC - Lindsay, ON
9 Jamie Mackenzie - Oakville Crusaders - Oakville, ON
10 Derek Daypuck - Castaway-Wanderers - London, ON
11 Ryan Macsween, Balmy Beach - Toronto, ON
12 Dan West - Crusaders - Oakville, ON
13 Jordan Wilson-Ross - Barrie RFC - Barries, ON
14 Dan Moor - Balmy Beach - Toronto, ON
15 Liam Underwood - Balmy Beach - Toronto, ON

16 Creag Johnston - Toronto Scottish RFC - Toronto, ON
17 Mike Blakey - Oshawa Vikings RFC - Oshawa, ON
18 Rob Brouwer - Lindsay RFC - Lindsay, ON
19 Andrew Crow - Balmy Beach - Yoronto, ON
20 Kyle Armstrong - Ajax Wanders RFC - Ajax, ON
21 Ryan Tomlinson - Barrie RFC - Barrie, ON
22 Rory Tomlinson - Barrie RFC - Barrie, ON

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Canadian Rugby Championship - Newfoundland - September 22nd

Coach Simon Blanks is fired up as The Rock prepare for Saturday's championship match against the Ontario Blues at the Swilers Rugby Complex in St. John's, Newfoundland.

Both teams head into the final with recent wins - The Rock defeating the Prairie Wolf Pack 29-26 at Calgary and the Blues upsetting the BC Pacific Tyee in Langford with a score of 32-17. The Pacific Tyee have retired their cleats for the season and are preparing for next year. But Calgary is not shedding any tears .. not yet.

Blues Coach Chris Silverthorn is looking to retain the MacTier Cup through either a tie or outright win against a tough, skilled and tenacious Newfoundland based team. However Coach Simon Blanks and The Rock - led by skilled rugby veterans Frank Walsh, Ciaran Hearn and Pat Parfrey intend to not let that happen.

Saturday's match will receive a great deal of attention from rugby fans across Canada. But outside of Ontario and the Atlantic Region, no greater interest will be found than in Calgary. With a round robin structure and a slightly complex method of scoring, the Prairie Wolf Pack are not, by any means, out of the running for the MacTier Cup. While The Rock is in the final CRC match, in order to take the cup from Chris Silverthorn and his Blues, the home team must walk away with 50 match points plus a bonus point. If The Rock defeat the Blues but earn less than 50 points, the Prairie Wolf Pack get to sip champagne from the coveted MacTier tasse.

A record turnout is expected for the match with the event being live streamed for those unfortunate fans who cannot attend.

Standings
Prairie Wolf Pack - 16 points
Ontario Blues - 15 points
The Rock - 11 points
Pacific Tyee - 5 points

How Points are Awarded - IRB Union Rules
4 points for a match win
2 points for a draw
1 bonus point for scoring 4 or more tries
1 bonus point for losing by 7 or fewer points
The maxium number of points that can be awarded in a match is 5.

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Elite Newfoundland Women Participate in High Performance Testing

Testing for elite female rugby players was conducted on September 3rd at the Swilers Rugby Complex by Rugby Canada's High Performance (HP) Manager, Les Gilson. Thirteen players participated in the session that included triple jumps, broad jump, sprint testing, and ball handling as well as a tackle assessment session.

Analysis of the data collected, utilizing video and check evaluation, is being conducted and will be used for skill comparison of players from across Canada in the U18, U20 and Senior categories. Players will continue to undergo periodic testing with their local provincial coaches and the results will be forwarded to the Canadian High Performance Manager for ongoing assessment.

See participants

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Girls & Boys High School Rugby - Avalon Region

At least five high schools in the Avalon Region are expected to field teams this year and organizers are in the process of conducting tryouts and initiating practices. It is anticipated that Holy Heart, Gonzaga and Bishops College will be fielding boys teams, while Holy Heart, Gonzaga, Bishops College, Booth Memorial and Prince of Wales will be fielding girls teams in the St. John's area. The Vandals RFC will be posting fixtures and results throughtout the 2012 season with a webpage dedicated to the school rugby program.

High School Webpage here

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CRC Matches - Fixtures and Results here

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Featured Videos - New Zealand All Blacks vs Australia Wallabies
South Africa Springboks vs Argentina Pumas

YouTube: New Zealand - Australia Full Match [1:45:20] - Video
YouTube: South Africa - Argentina Full Match [1:56:15] - Video

See Fixtures

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Fixtures and Results for the Sherbrooke tournament are posted here.

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Rugby Union World Championships Fixtures & Results

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IRB JWRT 2012 Game Analysis Statistical Report Released

The IRB has released their Game Analysis Statistical Report for the Junior World Rugby Trophy contest held June 18 - 30 at Salt Lake City, Utah. JWRT 2012 Report

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Level I Coaching Sevens Course - August 24th - Algonquin College

Rugby Canada is holding a Level I Sevens course and associated workshops for club and high school coaches at Algonquin College on Friday, August 24th, 2012. The cost of the course is $25.00 and is being held in conjunction with the NACRA Sevens World Cup Qualifier commencing August 25th. Registration will include an access pass to the qualifier. For further information regarding the course and registration enter here.

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Ontario Junior Team on Tour

Ontario's U15 Junior Blues team is on a ten day tour preparing for the U16 National Championships which will take place at Sherbrooke, P.Q., next week. The team played the Newfoundland Rock on August 1st and again on August 2nd, winning the first match 18-15, but dropping the second 22-17 in favour of the host team. The Newfoundland U16 and U15 teams are coached by Dr. Patrick Palfrey (Swilers RFC), Simon Blanks (Mt. Pearl Dogs RFC) and Basil Crosbie (CBS Baymen RFC).

The Ontario squad travel next to Nova Scotia where they will test Nova Scotia's U16 provincial team on August 4th. From there the boys travel to New Brunswick for a match before heading for the Junior Nationals at Lennoxville, Sherbrooke, Quebec. Ontario is entering two U16 and two U18 Men's Division teams and one U18 Women's Division team in the 2012 National Championships.

Parents accompanying the team managed to take in some whale watching, the Witless Bay Ecological Reserve, the St. John's Regatta and garden pary as well as some of St. John's George Street festivities.

Leo Pavone photo

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Vandals RFC News

 

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Watford Grammer School Rugby Teams on Tour

A representation of the Watford Grammar School for Boys junior rugby union teams was in St. John's on tour and had exhibition matches in the U17 division with The Rock on Thursday, July 19th and the U18 division on Saturday, July 21st at the Swilers rugby pitch.

The school has twenty-one rugby teams ranging from U18A's through to U12D's. Watford is located in Hertfordshire, approximately 30 km northwest of central London. The borough has a population of approximately 79,700. From St. John's, the Watford teams move on to Ottawa and Toronto for exhibition matches before returning to the UK. See: Wikipedia and Watford Grammar School for Boys.

The Vandals RFC joined the Avalon's other three clubs in welcoming the Watford Club to St. John's. Photos to be posted.

Watford U18 and U17 Roster
(in no order)

PLAYERS
THORGOOD, Harry (C)	McCOOKE, Jack
WELLS, Cameron(C)	DURN, Tom
HEBERTSON, Paul	SUMMERFIELD, Jon Luke
DONOVAN, William	HAYES, Jack
SILLWOOD, George	FINNEGAN, Myles
AKERS, Rory	MAHER, James
HAYES, Ryan	FRANKLIN, Tom
BOND, Tim	BYFIELD, Elliott
KING, Warren	PEPAJ, Ardit
McLEOD, Miles	FRANKLIN, Joe
TUNMORE, George	HERBERTSON, Gavin
MITCHELL, Charlie	AMARANANTH, Pranav
KOWALEWICZ, Adam	BULGER, Daniel
De LUCIA, Giorgio

STAFF
KEARSEY, Austin	Coach and Tour Manager
WALLIS, Giles	Coach
WILLIAMS, Stuart	Coach

 

Rock Men Prepare to Meet Ontario - MacTier Cup -

The Rock'c Men's Team take on the Ontario Blues, Saturday, August 25th, at Oakville, Ontario. Considered to be one of the toughest teams in the running for what very well might be their second MacTier Trophy win, Coach Simon Blanks and Pat Palfrey have seleced a very strong group of Atlantic athletes. A MacTier win for the Rock will set a CRC record. The team walked off the pitch in 2010 with the trophy and a 3-0 record only to stumble in 2011, however a 2012 win will establish the Rock as the first union team to kiss the trophy twice.

2012 The Rock CRC Roster

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Newfoundland Provincial Teams in Eight National Matches

The Rock's women's seniors, U20 women, U19 men (Atlantic Rock), U18 men and U16 men played in Alberta and Nova Scotia over the weekend.

At the Nor'Westers Athletic Association pitch in Edmonton, Alberta, the Atlantic Rock U19 team contested in four matches beginning on July 11th against British Columbia and ending Saturday, July 14th. The Rock succumbed in all four matches but participants exhibited some brillant plays throughout the Canadian Rugby Championship tournament and caught the eyes of Rugby Canada coaches scouting for 2013 prospects for the U20 team and the Junior World Rugby Trophy. British Columbia came out on top with four straight wins and 157 points. Ontario followed taking three matches and 153 points. The Prairie Wolfpack won two matches racking up 70 points and the ON PQ Voyageurs won one match and counted 75 points. The Atlantic Rock claimed 36 points.

In Truro, The Rock contested for the Senior Womens Gold and in three bronze medal divisions, carrying home U18 Men's bronze medals.

The Nova Scotia (NS) women claimed gold in the U18, U20 and Senior Women divisions. The NS Senior Women scored 190 points with 0 points against, sweeping that division.

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Canadian Rugby Championships - The Atlantic Rock U19 Men Drop Second

A powerful Ontario Blues squad ploughed through a rain soaked pitch to handily win their second match at the Canadian Rugby Championships being contested at the Nor'Westers Athletic Association's pitch in Edmonton, Alberta. Their opponents, the Atlantic Rock team, fought valiantly up to the last whistle but were unable to stave off the powerful Ontario Blues who finished the match with a 84-7 win. Atlantic Rock Roster:
 
Nick Allen NS
Chris Murray NL
Nathan Thomas AB
Alex Forrest PEI
Jack Thorburn NL
Brandon Starkey NS
Oliver Van Gulick NL
Chris Brown NL
Tommy Anstay NL
Luke Bedell NS
Kieran Lacey NL
Brandon Dillon NL
 
Garret Cullen NL
John Daley NL
James Mitchell NB
Aden Jack BC
Alex Rogers NL
Kurt Warford NL
Ben Bennett NB
Daniel Sinclair NS
Daniel Lantos NL
Scott Brown NS
Josh Nash NL
Evan Seale BC

Staff:
Simon Blanks
Brian Krawetz
Jack Hanratty

The Vandals RFC thank the Ontario Blues and Rugby Canada for play-by-play during the match and for contributing data for this report.

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Canadian Rugby Championships - The Atlantic Rock U19 Men Drop First Match

The Atlantic Rock U19 Men met the ON PQ Voyageurs at the Nor'Westers Athletic Association's pitch on Wednesday and dropped the 45-24 match after a tough first half. The Voyageurs' Charles Kijek set the ball on Edmonton turf with a try only thirty seconds after the opening whistle and the team continued to dominate ending the first half with a 42-7 lead. The Atlantic Rock came back in the second half and shut down the Voyageur offence allowing only a penalty kick, gaining 17 points but were unable to close the gap before game's end.

Christopher Brown, Jonathan Daley, Alex Forrest and Garrett Cullen scored singles, while Kurt Warford kicked true with two conversions for the Rock. Charles Kijek and Michael Corecky scored single tries while Sam Saylor and Eric Howard ran doubles for the Voyageurs. Nicholas Alexandre effected six conversions and the Voyageurs' second half penalty gain.

Today sees the Rock face Ontario while the Voyageurs test British Columbia.

The event offers U19 men the opportunity to demonstrate their best in hopes of being selected to play for the national U20 team competiting for the Junior World Trophy in 2013. It is considered a golden gate opportunity for young athletes to demonstrate their skill and knowledge of the game to Rugby Canada Junior Division coaches.

The competition winds up on Sunday, July 15th. See Vandals Fixtures page for times and results. The Vandals RFC thank the Voyageurs and Rugby Canada for play-by-play during the match and for contributing data for this report.

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Eastern Canada Championships
Provincial Men and Women Travelling

Newfoundland will be contesting the Eastern Canada Championships in four Divisions at Truro, Nova Scotia, this week. The tournament opens on Friday, July 13th and runs for three days with gold at stake in the Senior Women, U20 Women, U18 Women, U18 Men and U16 Men Divisions. Newfoundland is fielding teams in all but the U18 Women Division. In addition to Newfoundland, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Eastern Ontario will be hosted by the Truro RFC ("Truro Saints") at the club's Farnham Mill Rugby Park facility.

The 2011 tournament was held at Oromocto, New Brunswick and saw gold go to Nova Scotia Senior Women after a hard fought match against Newfoundland in the final. The tournament fixtures for the Newfoundland divisions are posted on the Fixtures page, with a full schedule. It is not believed that the tournament will be live streamed, however we will be receiving live updates and there will be Twitter traffic.

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Referees Clinic

The NL Rugby Union sponsored a Level I rugby referee clinic on Thursday, July 5th at Holy Heart School, and on Saturday July 7th at the NL Sports Complex, Crosbie Road. The clinic was conducted by John Saunders, principal presenter, and Sean Clancy, NLRU Senior Referee.

The program consisted of two parts: classroom instruction, which included key principles of refereeing as well as a review of IRB guidelines; and practical demonstations which required each candidate to assess plays and properly call and signal infractions.

The experience of the presenters and their constructive evaluation of different play situations and calls was invaluable to attendees. All of the candidates successfully completed training and will be qualified as rugby union referees. Those who attended commended the presenters on the high calibre of teaching skills exhibited and their professional mentoring throughout the course.

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Atlantic Selects Stand in for PQ ON Voyageurs v. The Rock

The PQ ON Voyageurs were unable to make the trip to Newfoundland for Saturday's scheduled match against The Rock. In their place, the NL Rugby Union arranged for players from around Atlantic Canada and Quebec to take up the challenge at the Swilers Complex upper pitch on Crosbie Road in St. John's. The provisional team gave The Rock a healthy workout in 25c temperatures and a 30 km/h breeze that tested even the best of boots under the watchful eye of referee Denis Murphy. It was an excellent match ending in a 45-22 score for the home lads.

Cancellation of the originally scheduled friendly match against the Voyageurs permitted the The Rock to bring in players who played with the team in British Columbia, forming an intersquad as part of the Canadian Rugby Championship (CRC) senior camp preparations. The attending crowd, who demonstrated their support and commitment to the NL Union and to the players associated to the respective clubs represented, by attending, were treated to witness some excellent plays and the continued formation of a powerful rugby team.

 

Referees: Frank Collins, Director of Referees; Denis Murphy, Senior Referee; Sean Clancy, Senior Referee

 

Atlantic Rock Camp

 

Atlantic Selects	Newfoundland Team
Steve Cutcliffe	Frank Walsh
Owen Palfrey	Jordan Power
Bob Rogers	Chris Burt
Jon Phelan	Brad Lester
Chris Mercer	Oliver Van Gulick
Jasmin Kukavica	Andy Nyenhuis
Mike Hamson	Brandon Dillon
Zac Coughlan	Stefan Barter
Scott Forrest	Dennis Maher
Morgan Lovell	Dean Blanks
Kyle McGuirk	Devin Lacey
Shane Stratton	Tyler Wish
Walker Blizzard	Geoff Warden
Ellis Grey	Evan Buckley
Patrick McNicholas	Robert Wilson

Reserves Both Teams
Alex Rogers	Josh Sellars
Matt Murphy	Chris Browne
Kyle Stanley	Grant Casey
Ryan Stratton	Matt Smallwood
Jack Thorburn	Garrett Cullen
Daniel Lantos	Chris Murray
Kieran Lacey

Thanks to Simon Blanks for providing background and rosters. We may have missed some reserve lads and injured players not included. A more comprehensive list will be provided once the roster is firmed up.

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IRB Updates Laws of the Game - Rugby Union

The international body governing rugby union has updated the Rules of the Game. The changes are of significant importance, especially with international matches in 2012, but apply to all levels by 2013. In ddition, two other areas of the game are being changed: five key areas of refereeing are changing to address issues that slow the pace of the game while a new initiative intended to improve the scrum is being introduced. See Rugby Canada's report here

IRB Rules of the Game - Enforcement - June 2012 - view
IRB Five Key Areas of Refereeing - June 2012 - view
IRB Improving the Scrum - the Three Point Cadence - Crouch, Touch, Set - view

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Referee's Sevens Tournament

The referee's annual Seven's tournament saw seven teams vie for the men's and women's championships under bright skies and warm temperatures on Saturday, June 23rd. The Dogs RFC women dominated the ladies side pulling off a 31-7 win over the Swilers RFC in the final match to take the Referee's Cup for 2012. Referee Matthew McKinley called the match which saw Newfoundland's two top women's teams at their best in the annual Sevens competition.

On the men's side, referee Sean Clancy called the men's championship match. The Dogs RFC fielded two teams, one of which made the final, and fans saw a variant of the Haka, a ceremonial Maori war dance sometimes performed by the New Zealand All Blacks rugby team, demonstrated by select members of the Dogs lead in an effort to strike fear into their opponents, the Swilers. In the final, the Swilers RFC stole the Referee's Cup with a score of 42-24, with six tries and six deadly conversions.

Frank Collins, Director of Referees for the NL Rugby Union, oversaw the Lukey's Boot Cup, a competition name unique to Newfoundland rugby. Approximately two dozen hopeful souls lined up to make goal attempts between the sticks in the three point competition from the 22 metre line. Amongst a healthy crowd of onlookers was a young bull moose which circled the upper pitch during the event but proved to be no distraction for Kurt Warford who made three outstanding kicks, nailing the target from the center and left and right 15 metre indictated markers, sweeping the competition. It was a great event and raised some funds to help finance kit/equipment and training to advance the referee program.

We have some photos of Saturday's events and these will be posted soon.

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Alex Marshall at Salt Lake City

Alex Marshall, of the Vandals RFC, and Ryan Monahan of the Baymen RFC, represented Canada as members of the Men's U20 Team contesting the 2012 Junior World Trophy. The U20 Team faced St. Andrew's University of Scotland at Bullen Park, Esquimalt, B.C. See Rugby Canada. The match was scheduled for live streaming; unfortunately, due to technical difficulties match video was lost. See Fixtures page.

Vandals History Site - New Feature Being Added

The Vandals RFC is expanding the club's history web page. The names of all individuals who played in the Blue and Gold uniform will be exhibited, beginning with the club's inception in 1983. The executive invites anyone with old photographs to contact the website's administrators to help facilitate the project.

Club president Paul Newhook stated that an important component of the undertaking will be a history of the women's program. Anyone with digital team photos or photograph prints that we can borrow to scan (no matter the photo's condition), is asked to contact us at:

E-mail: The Vandals History Project

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Ireland Tour

Shane McClafferty led the Vandals on the 2011 Ireland Tour, described by the Blackrock College RFC as, ".. a heavy aggressive Canadian pack." We asked Shane to share his take on the trip and his review is featured here

Blackrock College RFC vs Newfoundland Vandals

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Provincial Scene

 

[2012-06-02] The Rock 52 - NS Keltics 20
[2012-06-15] The Rock 31 - NS Keltics 16
[2012-06-17] The Rock 46 - PQ ON Voyageurs 13

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Canada 28 - 26 United States at Kingston

Friday saw two senior men's matches between The Baymen RFC and the Dogs RFC at Conception Bay South, while the Vandals RFC and the Swilers RFC went head to head at the Torbay pitch. The weather was atrocious with high winds, rain and four degree celcius temperatures. Both matches were tough to play but in the end blue lipped smiling faces and true grit form clearly exhibited what rugby players and the sport is all about, even under the most trying conditions.

Saturday's scheduled match between The Rock and the PQ ON Voyageurs at the Swilers Complex has been rescheduled to June 30th.

On the National/International scene, the much anticipated first match of the three Test Match Summer Series saw Canada and the United States compete at Richardson Stadium in Kingston, Ontario, with Canada pocketing a 28-26 win. Jim Pritchard, Ciaran Hearn and Aaron Carpenter played well with Carpenter, as team Captain, being presented with the CanAm Trophy at match end. The match was streamed live by Rugby Canada.

Canadian Men's U20 Roster

At 5:00 PM Pacific (9:30 PM NT) Canada's U20 Men face St. Andrew's University of Scotland at Bullen Park, Esquimalt, B.C. Founded in 1413, St. Andrews claims to be the third oldest university in the english speaking world. Alex Marshall of the Vandals RFC and Ryan Monahan of the Baymen RFC, both members of The Rock, represent Canada on the Men's U20. Esquimalt Weather Forecast: A mix of sun and cloud. Wind southwest 20 km/h except 50 near Juan de Fuca Strait in the afternoon. High 15. UV index 6 or high. This match may be viewed on SportsCanada.TV - here

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The Rock vs. Nova Scotia Keltics - Swilers Complex

A light Irish mist and a chilly six degrees celsius failed to slow two determined teams in a hard fought match at the Swilers Complex on Saturday. The first half saw the Nova Scotia Keltics take a convincing 18-10 lead over the Rock with a brisk breeze decidedly in favour of the visitors. However that changed in the second with The Rock pocketing eight tries and six conversions to take the match. This was the first home match of the season for The Rock following an outstanding performance on Vancouver Island with the team sweeping a four game series with wins over the Canada Maple Leafs, the Canada U20 Men, the Castaway Wanderers, and the James Bay Athletic Association. The 52-20 score exhibition/evaluation match permitted the Atlantic Rock coaching staff a further opportunity to assess players for final selection of the Atlantic Rock team. The next match in the series will see The Rock take on the PQ ON Voyageurs at St. John's on June 9th.

The Rock Roster

Forwards
Loosehead - Frank Walsh, Stephen Cutcliffe
Hooker - Owen Parfrey , Chris Burt
Tighthead - Bob Rogers, Jordan Power
2nd Row - Teddy Cadigan, Brad Lester, Oliver Van Gulick
Flankers - Justin Meyers, Alex Calon, Brandon Dillon
No. 8 -  Zac Coughlan

Backs:
Scrumhalf - Dennis Maher, Adam Paul
Outhalf - Dean Blanks
Center - Shane Stratton, Jason Picco, Evan Buckley
Wing - Kyle McGuirk, Patrick McNicholas, Devin Lacey, Daniel Lantos
Fullback - Robert Wilson, Alex Rogers

Staff:
Coach - Dr. Pat Parfrey
Coach - Simon Blanks
Strength and Conditioning Coach - Bob Thompson
Manager - Rick Graham

The Nova Scotia Keltics Roster

Forwards
Utility forward - Travis Chalmers, TARS RFC, Halifax, N.S.
Flanker, scrum half - Dave Cotterill - Truro, N.S.
Prop - Ryan Dickie, Enfield, N.S.
8/flanker - Greg Forrest - Dartmouth, N.S.
Prop - Jeremy Hepworth - TARS RFC, Halifax, N.S.
Flanker - Mike Hamson - TARS RFC, Halifax, N.S.
Flanker/lock - Taku (Jara) Jaravaza - TARS RFC, Halifax, N.S.
Flanker - Jasmin Kukavica - Fredericton Loyalists RC, Fredericton, N.B.
Lock - Chris Mercer - TARS RFC, Halifax, N.S.
Hooker - Luther Munzara - TARS RFC, Halifax, N.S.
Hooker - Vince Malley - Halifax, N.S.
Lock - Andy Nyenhuis - Fredericton Loyalists RC, Fredericton, N.B.
Flanker/prop - Tapiwa Rabwi - TARS RFC, Halifax, N.S.
Colin Wicks, Calgary Stampeders RFC, Calgary, Alberta

Backs
Wing/centre - Ian Armour - Winsor, N.S.
Centre/wing/fullback - Eric Arts - TARS RFC, Halifax, N.S.
Wing - Walter B. Nolan Blizzard - Saint John Trojans RFC, Saint John, N.B.
Wing/fullback - Stewart Cooke - Enfield, N.S.
Fullback/10/wing - Paul Forrest - Dartmouth, N.S.
Scrum Half - Scott Forrest - TARS RFC, Halifax, N.S.
Centre - Kevin Gauthier - Halifax, N.S.
10/fullback - Ellis Gray - TARS RFC, Halifax, N.S.
Centre/wing - Jeremy Lonely - Enfield, N.S.
Wing/centre - Adam Pottie - Halifax, N.S.
Wing/scrum half/fullback - Evan Taras - Halifax, N.S.

Staff
Coach - Brian Krawetz
Coach - John White
A/Coach - Joel Corcoran
GM/Director of Rugby - Dr. John Gillis
Physiotherapist - Jeff Walsh
Managers - Chris Kingwell, John Hughes

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NLRU Recruiting Women

Rock Rugby's provincial U18 and U20 women's rugby teams are actively recruitng players in preparation for the U18 and U20 Eastern Championships in July. Those matches will be held in Nova Scotia. The U18 team will also be participating in the National Rugby Championships this August in Quebec.

The women's teams train at the PowerPlex, located at 90 Crosbie Road, St. John's on Saturday's between 4:00 and 6:00 pm., and plan to additionally train outdoors soon. If you are between 13 and 19 years of age, or turned 20 after January 1, 2012, and have an interest in learning about and possibly participating in the provincial women's rugby program, contact Roxanne Butler, Head Coach, via e-mail here, and drop by the PowerPlex during training on Saturday.

Women's Rugby - Fascinating History

Women's rugby union has been around for over 125 years. According to historians, it made it's start in Ireland. Here are some interesting links offering insight into what has become one of the world's most challenging and increasingly popular women's sport:

 

 

History of Women's Rugby Union - Wikipedia
Women's International Rugby Union Rankings - Wikipedia
Women's RWC
International Rugby Board

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2015 Rugby World Cup

In preparation for the 2015 Rugby World Cup, the Vandals RFC is dedicating a webpage to this important event with emphasis on the Canadian team.

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Ciaran Hearn - Ferd Hayward Senior Male Athlete of the Year

Ciaran Hearn was declared Senior Male Athlete of the Year at this year's Provincial Annual Awards announced at the 2012 Stars and Legends Gala at the Sheraton Hotel Newfoundland Saturday, April 14th.

A member of the Baymen RFC and The Rock Rugby Team, Hearn was nominated for the Ferd Hayward Senior Male Athlete of the Year Award, while Patrick Parfrey of the Swilers RFC and The Rock Rugby Team was nominated for the Joe Mullins Junior Male Athlete of the year award. Owen Daly of the St. John's Legends Swim Club took the Junior Athlete award

Hearn is from Conception Bay South, where he is a member of the Baymen Rugby Football Club and a member of The Rock Rugby Team that competed in the International Rugby Board Canadian Rugby Championship in 2011. He was recognized as a stellar influence in the win versus the Canada Select Team at the start of the season. Since 2006, Ciaran has been a member of Canada's National Senior Men's Rugby Team, where in 2011 he was a starting player in all World Cup warm up international matches. Ciaran was a starting member of Rugby Canada's National Senior Men's Sevens Team competing in all six International Rugby Board World Sevens International Circuit. He was a gold medalist at the Pan American Sevens with Team Canada, while also starting two of four games at the 2011 Rugby World Cup held in New Zealand.

Patrick Parfrey, of St. John's, helped lead his Senior Swilers A Rugby Team to winning both the Goodyear Cup and the Aliant Cup in 2011. Provincially, Patrick was a gold medalist with The Rock Under 20 Men's Rugby Team at the Eastern Canadians and also played with the Senior Rock Rugby Team winning the Atlantic Championships and the Senior Canadian Championships. As a fierce competitor, Patrick was an integral member of the Rugby Canada Under-20 International Rugby Board World Trophy Team, where he was the starting inside center playing every minute of all four games against Georgia, Japan, USA and Russia. Patrick is a Rugby Canada Academy Member and a member of the Canadian Sport Centre Atlantic High Performance Training Group, while also playing on the Atlantic Under-20 Rugby Squad.

Congratulations to Ciaran and Patrick.

Sport NL and Vandals RFC

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Dean Blanks - 2011 Player of the Year

Newfoundland's Dean Blanks, along with Josefa Dolesau (British Columbia)
share 2011 national title

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National Scene

NACRA 7s International Regional Qualifier - Ottawa

The North American Caribbean Rugby Association's (NACRA) Sevens 2012 Regional Qualifier for the 2013 Rugby World Cup (RWC) will be hosted by Canada on August 25th and 26th. The contest will take place at the Twin Elms Rugby Park, Ottawa. Two Men's teams and one Women's team will qualify for the finals being hosted by Russia in 2013.

This may be the last Rugby World Cup as the 7s enters the 2016 Olympic Summer Games.

The United States Women's team qualified for the finals following the RWC Sevens competition in Dubai, UAE. South Africa, Russia and Australia are also direct qualifiers for the finals allowing an additional eleven qualification positions for a total of 16 teams. England, Spain, France, Netherlands and Ireland secured positions through the European tournament. Canada enters the tournament as a favorite facing Guyana, Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Mexico, Barbados, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and a strong team representing Trinidad & Tobago.

On the Men's side, both Canada and the United States are favorites entering the tournament but face stiff competition from Guyana, Bermuda, Bahamas, Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Mexico, Trinidad & Tobago, Barbados and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Schedules will be out shortly and will be posted in Fixtures

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Canadian Women Win at Amsterdam Sevens Championship

The Canadian Women's Sevens team defeated the United States to take the world championship Amsterdam Sevens competition on Sunday. Behind after the US scored early in the game, the Canadian team trailed a determined American squad down to literally the last two minutes of the second half. The US opened with a 7-0 lead which was increased to 14-5 at half-time. Canada fell further behind 19-5 early in the second-half leaving images of another London loss fresh in the minds of many observers. The Canadian's pulled it together rearing up to 19-17 with only three minutes left on the clock. Mandy Marchak and the rest of the Canadian team would have none of it and closed the match pulling into the lead in the dying two minutes with a score of 26-19.

The 2012 Amsterdam Seven's is touted by many as the most important Women's Seven's international challenge. In 2011, Canada came out on top in the competition which saw twenty-eight teams vie for the cup. This year the top twelve international teams competed: England, Netherlands, Canada, Australia, United States, Spain, South Africa, France, Germany, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Canada entered the Netherlands captial fired up to erase their loss in London and leap to the top of each pool, as they did last year. London proved to be a bitter experience leaving the Canadian's in third place going into the Amsterdam competition. Sunday's win was brilliant and demonstrated just how resilient and deadly these Canadian gals really are on the pitch.

See Amsterdam Sevens

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Early Bird Tickets for Canada vs Georgia Game - ended April 30th

Early Bird Tickets for the June 23rd match at Burnaby's Swangard Stadium ended April 30th. Tickets may still be purchased online.

Early Bird Tickets for Canada vs Italy Game - ended April 30th

Early Bird Tickets for the June 15th match - ended April 30th. A high turnout is anticipated for this match. Tickets may be purchased through a Ticketmaster outlet, the BMO Field box office or online. The last day for early bird ticket sales was April 30th.

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Canadian Rugby Championship Matches

The first game of the Canadian Rugby Championship will take place on August 18th with the Prairie Wolf Pack testing British Columbia at Calgary Rugby Park. Schedule posted in Fixtures

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Crowley contract extended through 2016

Canadian senior men's coach Kieran Crowley's contract has been extended through the 2015 World Cup. The former All Black had his contract extended through June 2012 before last year's World Cup - a new extension now has him locked up through February 2016. See story

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Ottawa Hostng NACRA Sevens tournament

Rugby Canada will be hosting the 2012 North America Caribbean Rugby Association (NACRA) Sevens tournament, which will also act as a finals qualifier for the 2013 Rugby Sevens World Cup.

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Men's Senior - Canada to Host Three International Rugby Matches in June

2012-06-09: Canada vs USA - Richardson Stadium, Kingston, Ontario
2012-06-15: Canada vs Italy - BMO Field, Toronto, Ontario
2012-06-23: Canada vs Georgia - Swangard Stadium, Burnaby, BC

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International Scene

U20 - Salt Lake City - Canada v. Zimbabwe

Canada's U20 Team took their first win at Salt Lake City on Tuesday against Zimbabwe with a 66-45 score. Zimbabwe fought hard down to the last second of the match. Canadian scorers were Jon West (2 tries); Cam Stones (2 tries); Conor McCann (1 try); Taylor Paris (1 try); Clayton Meeres (1 try); Lucas Hammond (1 try); Andrew Ferguson (1 try) and Gradyn Bowd (1 try). Conor McCann, the lad with the silver boot, scored seven conversions. Canada will face Chile in the finals on Saturday, June 30th. Coach Mike Shelley will be reviewing video of Canadian player performance before compiling Saturday's roster. See Rugby Canada

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North America (NACRA) IRB Training Courses + Events

2012-07-13 IRB Level 3 Match Officiating course - Part 1 - Bolder, Col, USA - 3 days
2012-07-21 NACRA Annual General Meeting - Miami, FL, USA
2012-08-09 IRB Match Official Educator course - Nashville, TN, USA - 4 days
2012-08-23 IRB Match Official Educator course - Long Beach, CA, USA - 4 days

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Ireland's Leinster RU takes the Heineken - Defeats Ulster in Final

Leinster created, what Brian O'Driscoll termed, a dynasty on Saturday by defeating Ulster 42-14 and once again taking the Heineken Cup in a well fought match. O'Driscoll, touted arguably next to Mike Gibson as Ireland's greatest ever player, is adamant that Leinster is on the way to becoming the greatest rugby union team in European history. This is Leinster's third Heineken in four years. See: BCC Final
and Leinster Rugby

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IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy - Age Grade - Salt Lake City, Utah

The IRB JWRT start date is nearing with kick-off on Monday, June 18th. The host venue, Murray Field, Salt Lake City, will see Canada, USA, Russia, Chile, Tonga, Japan, Georgia and Zimbabwe vying for the title and a place in the 2013 IRB Junior World Championships in France. Canada is in Pool B facing Japan, Georgia and Zimbabwe. See Fixtures

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Coming soon - VRFC page dedicated to 2015 World Cup

In preparation for the 2015 Rugby World Cup, the Vandals RFC is dedicating a webpage to this important event with emphasis on the Canadian team.

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IRB 2012-07-30  Full List