A reader sent in a request to put together Damian McGrath’s 7s coaching record in Canada and compare it to the current coach, Henry Paul. We didn’t go down to the match by match results but used a more accessible tournament points record and end of year standings and points.
The Canadian men finished 13th out of 24 teams, the women finished 6th out of 16 teams.
It’s a good thing relegation was off the table for this season with Great Britain absorbing England, Wales, Scotland next season. Japan would have been relegated and then the tie breaking rules would have been brought into play as Canada and Wales finished in the second relegation position, both tied with 34 points.
The Canadian men and women put in strong performances in their last matches of the tournament, however both ended up in losses.
Canada finished the tournament in 13th place but more importantly finished ahead of Wales and Japan in the relegation zone. Canada are now 3 points ahead of Wales, four points if the adjustment is made for dropping the two worst results which is allowed this season. It’s all to play for in LA in August however and Canada need a big performance to stay in the series.
The women had a fairly successful tournament to end the series, finishing in 6th place. They defeated rivals USA in the 5th place semi but lost to France in the 5th place final. The women finish the series in 7th place.
from Rugby Canada
Canadas Senior Womens and Mens Sevens teams were both crowned RAN Sevens Qualifiers Cup winners on Sunday, confirming their places at the Rugby World Cup Sevens 2022 in the process.
Canada claimed 7 series points at home, one of their best results of the season, and the best result with all the teams attending. They claimed 10 points at the Malaga, Spain tournament but Fiji, NZ and Samoa were absent.
In the “about time” department, a Canadian player and coach has been named to the senior men’s coaching team. It’s as assistant coach but hopefully it’s just a matter of time before he takes over the top job in sevens. Next step will be to name an assistant XVs coach to take over Kingsley’s job when he leaves.
Canada ran out to their worst result this season finishing last, tied with Scotland for 15th/16th place. They receive only one series point. Fiji won the tournament defeating NZ in the final.