Author Archive: BCRN

Editorials – December 2022

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Gary Gold Steps Down as USA Coach; Eddie Jones Sacked by England… Meanwhile in Canada

There have been a spate of coaching changes made in the rugby world recently. Last week Eddie Jones was sacked by England and Gary Gold “stepped down” from the USA job, the week started with Wales parting company with Wayne Pivac. They were all related to on field performance of the teams involved, England and Wales were not happy with their team performances leading into a World Cup year. The USA situation was more relatable to Canada, the coach didn’t make the Rugby World Cup, therefore he had to go, there were performance expectations.

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BC Rugby Weekend of December 10th 2022

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Pacific Pride Win McKechnie Cup for 2nd Time in Cup’s 127 Year History; Abbotsford Claim Girls U18 Title

The Pacific Pride defeated the Island Crimson Tide 54-25 to win the McKechnie Cup for the 2nd time in the cup’s 127 year history. The Pride won it the for first time in 2002, a few years before the program was cancelled in 2005. The Pacific Pride program was reintroduced again in 2019.

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Cape Town 7s – 2022

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Cape Town 7s Women Finish 8th; Men Finish 14th: MATCH VIDEOS

The Cape Town 7s wrapped up with NZ winning the women’s tournament and Samoa winning the men’s tournament. The top four teams in the women’s standings are Australia, NZ, USA and France, for the men it’s Samoa, South Africa, NZ and USA. That’s important as the top four teams in the standings at the end of the season qualify for the 2024 Olympics in Paris. It doesn’t look like Canada will be in the running for one of those four spots but if USA qualify then Canada’s road in the regional tournament will be much easier.

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BC Junior Club Finals

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Provincial U16 Club Finals Wrap Up with Langley Winning Girls and Bayside Winning Boys: U18 Girls Final This Coming Weekend at Cowichan

The four Provincial championships were originally to be held Dec 4th at Cowichan but freezing weather and snow north of the Malahat changed plans. The U16 titles were able to go ahead in Oak Bay and were won by Langley (girls) and Bayside (boys). The BCRU write up on the day is posted below.

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Canadian University Men’s Rugby Championship 2022

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UBC Dominate Again at Men’s University Championships With 3-0 Record and +116 Point Differential

One point to come out of the Men’s University Championships is that UBC are in a class of their own in Canadian University Rugby. They amassed a +116 point differential over the three rounds to win the title for the 4th time in 5 years. They defeated McGill 48-5 in the 60 minute match and took their foot off the gas for the last 20 when they were ahead 41-0.

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Dubai 7s – December 2022

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Men Finish 14th in Dubai, Women Finish in 9th, Series Moves to Cape Town Next Weekend

The Canadian men dropped from 10th place to 12th place in the series standings with a 14th place finish in Dubai. Probably the most concerning for new coach Sean White is how they were humbled by the Spanish, 38-7, in the 13th place final match. Spain is ranked 13th in the series, Kenya 14th and Japan 15th. The 15th place team will be dropped at the end of the series, the 12th to 14th place teams will play a repechage tournament along with the winner of the Sevens Challenger Series to determine who stays in the series for 2023-24. Canada also lost to Kenya in Dubai.

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BC Rugby Weekend of December 3rd 2022

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Weather Conditions Cancel McKechnie Cup and Dunbar Keg Matches

The McKechnie Cup and Dunbar Keg matches scheduled for this weekend at Abbotsford and Capilano have been cancelled due to weather and field conditions. The last round continues next weekend, weather permitting, Vancouver v Fraser Valley, North Island v South Island (Dunbar Keg) and Pacific Pride v Island.

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World Rugby 7s Series – 2023-24

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Big Changes Planned for World Rugby 7s Series in 2023-24: Men’s Series to be Reduced to Twelve Teams

Starting in December 2023 there will be only 12 teams in the men’s World Rugby 7s series, reduced from 16. There will then be parity with the women’s series who are currently at 12 teams. Both the men and women will play 7 tournaments over 7 months at “super” events, hosts and dates to be announced in the coming months.

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BC Rugby Weekend of November 26th

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McKechnie Cup and U20 Dunbar Keg Results: Wave Late Surge Over Tide; Pride Dominate Valley; North Island U20 Defeat Valley U20

[ed. photos from the Dunbar Keg match North Island v Fraser Valley can be viewed here.]

The BC Premier has closed down for the Dec/Jan break and it’s the McKechnie Cup and U20 Dunbar Keg regional matches now. It took a while to get the rosters but they’re in now. Vancouver weren’t able to put together a U20 team and the South Island win that match be default.

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