CHILE 44 CANADA 14
It was another men’s Test match and another wake up-call for Langford-based Rugby ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ as Chile overpowered the Canadian national team 44-14 on Saturday in Bucharest, Romania.
Although the next World Cup isn’t until 2027 in Australia, the qualifying process begins next year. World No. 21 Chile is in the range of teams No. 22 ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ will need to beat to get back into the World Cup after missing the last planetary showcase in 2023 in France. ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ qualified for the previous nine World Cups.
“We gifted four tries from open play, that’s the disappointing part,” ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ head coach Kingsley Jones of Sooke said following the game in Bucharest.
“We knew it would be physical. There were a number of head collisions, that shook us a little bit, rattled us. But it’s how we react to that, and how we respond to that, and we’ve got to be better. Ultimately Test rugby is about contact areas and collisions, and Chile came out on top in that area.”
Jones said ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ was always looking up at a long field ahead: “We worked very, very hard, but we never had field position. It shows that to be able to get field position, to be able to win collisions, get game line, is really important.”
There were a few positives, the ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ bench boss noted: “To score a try at the end and keep working — the replacements that came on did a good job. They put their hand up.”
Captain Lucas Rumball scored a try for ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ and Peter Nelson kicked for the other points.
ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ plays No. 20 Romania next Saturday in Bucharest in another Test against a second-tier national side that ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ needs to match-up against to stay relevant.
ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ beat Romania 35-22 in July in Ottawa. But the year went downhill from there, in the Pacific Nations Cup, with ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ losing 28-15 to world No. 19 USA, 55-28 to No. 14 Japan and 30-17 to No. 16 Tonga.
SCRUM NOTES : The Langford-based Canadian women’s sevens team will play for the first time, next Sunday in Portland, since winning the silver medal in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Also taking part in the Premier Rugby Sevens Tournament at Providence Park will be the Paris Olympics bronze-medallist American team.
“We’re thrilled to partner with both USA Rugby and Rugby ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ to celebrate Olympic medallists that captivated fans during the Paris Olympics,” said Owen Scannell, CEO and founder of Premier Rugby Sevens.
