Canada gloom heading into Rugby World Cup

It is 24 long years since Canadian rugby enjoyed its finest hour, battling through to the quarter-finals of the World Cup where they suffered a 29-13 defeat to mighty New Zealand.

The two decades since that memorable campaign have not been kind to the Canucks, who will arrive at this year's World Cup on the back of a miserable run of results that gives little cause for optimism.

Canada lost seven straight games in a row this year, including every game of the Pacific Nations Cup, which concluded with a defeat to old adversary the United States, who have now supplanted their neighbours as the pre-eminent force in North American rugby.

On current form, Canada will be lucky to secure a solitary victory in England, where their first round opponents are Six Nations giants Ireland and France, Italy and minnows Romania.

Any momentum generated by back-to-back wins over the Glasgow Warriors and Georgia during the build-up was punctured by a comprehensive 47-18 defeat to Fiji in their final warm-up match on Sunday.

Coached by former All Black fullback Kieran Crowley, Canada will hope that captain Tyler Ardron can maintain his fitness to give the side a rallying point against vastly superior opposition.

The 24-year-old Ospreys back row has been nursing a knee injury this year which have restricted his appearances for the national team, although Canadian officials are confident he will be fit to play a full part in the tournament.

Ardron will be supported in the forwards by the likes of gnarled veteran Jamie Cudmore and Brett Beukeboom, although whether it will be enough to give Canada a reliable forward platform remains to be seen.

If Canada can win enough ball, they possess talent in the backs to be competitive, with the likes of Nathan Hirayama, Nick Blevins and Liam Underwood all capable of causing problems.

Yet whether the pack is capable of delivering sufficient possession is a big if.

Crowley also believes his team need to learn how to close out victories.

In the Pacific Nations Cup they threw away winning positions against Samoa and the United States, losing in the last minute on both occasions.

"It's just learning how to win those games," said Crowley. "It's about being put in those positions and knowing how to react. Hopefully, we've learned from it."

Former Canada star Gareth Rees, who played in four World Cups for the Canucks, including the successful 1991 campaign, believes his country has failed to keep pace with the rest of the emerging rugby world.

"We're doing well for Canada, but the rest of the world has got a lot better," said Rees, who is now Canada's manager.

Rees believes the key to Canada's dream of establishing themselves in the top 10 of world rugby is a professional league in North America.

"If we had a pro league in North America, there's no reason we couldn't be up there," Rees said in a recent interview.

"But right now, we're struggling to get our top players top games."
Source: AFP