Sally Dennis Becomes First Woman to Chair the Rugby Canada Board: Rugby Canada 2020 Financial Statements

The 2016-2021 years might be referred to as the Newfoundland era of Canadian Rugby in future generations. It was marked by the three most influential positions in Canadian rugby being held by Newfoundlanders, a remarkable accomplishment considering the province represents less than 2% of the national population. Dr Pat Parfrey, is the Canadian representative on the World Rugby Council, Allen Vansen is the CEO and Tim Powers was the Chair of the Board. Dr. Parfrey has been a driving force in Canadian rugby for years and was the leader of the “agents of change” who took control of the Rugby Canada Board in 2001. Both Powers and Vansen took on their role in 2016. Tim Powers is Chairman of a public affairs consulting firm, Summa Strategies and Allen Vansen is a former ski coach and golf resort Managing Director who held operational management positions for both the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and the 2015 PanAm Games.

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Maple Leaf Academy Application Process Open Until April 7th – Available to Female Athletes 18 to 22

from Rugby Canada

The Rugby Canada Maple Leaf Academy serves to facilitate the Development of future Olympians and National Team Athletes. Aspiring female athletes from across the country are recruited through various talent identification pathways, coming together to train full time in Rugby Canada’s high-performance environment at the Al Charron National Training Centre in Langford, BC.

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Rugby Canada Adds More Welsh Expertise to Coaching Staff: Marc Carter Analysis Coach

A month after announcing a shared deal with the MLR Toronto Arrows to bring Welsh coach Rob Howley to Canada, Rugby Canada have struck another deal with the MLR LA Giltinis. This time it’s to bring on board Marc Carter as Performance Analyst.

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Rugby Canada Cuts Staff Including Mark Lemmon, Al Charron, Alana Gattinger and Nathan Abdelnour Citing Financial Impact of COVID-19 According to Canadian Press Article

from CBC – Rugby Canada cuts staff, citing ongoing financial impact of COVID-19

15 of organization’s 46 staff affected, including 5 terminations, effective Oct. 1

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Rugby Canada/Toronto Arrows Hire Rob Howley – First Coaching Post After Being Suspended for Betting on Rugby Matches

Rugby Canada in partnership with Toronto Arrows have hired Rob Howley as assistant coach to fellow Welshman Kingsley Jones. It’s a decision sure to raise a few eyebrows. Rob Howley was the assistant coach of Wales before he was caught up in a gambling scandal and removed from the position prior to the 2019 World Cup and given an 18 month suspension from rugby, it was dated back to September 16th 2019 when he was removed from the Wales coaching staff. The sentence was reduced by 9 months so in effect it was a 9 month suspension allowing him to work in rugby again as of June 16th 2020. The charge against him was breaching the anti-corruption and betting regulations set in place by World Rugby. He was betting on games, including games with Wales, while he was in a position of influence as assistant coach. The following from Wales Online summarizes the situation.

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Phil Mack Announced as Men’s Development Academy Assistant Coach; Dr. Maria Gallo Announced as Recipient of World Rugby Coaching Internship for Women’s 2021 World Cup

from Rugby Canada

Rugby Canada is pleased to confirm coaching appointments for two former Canadian international players, Dr. Maria Gallo and Phil Mack.

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Rugby Canada Issues 2019 Financials – Less Red Than 2018, Cuts in Staff and Admin, Locked into Langford Until 2034

As usual there’s good news and bad news. The good news is Rugby Canada shaved over a million off “Staff Salaries, Commissions and Benefits”. They went from $2.4M in 2018 to $1.2M in 2019. They also cut “National Office and General Administration” in half from $1M to $500K.

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Update on Rugby in Canada: Rugby Canada Report Plus Update on Club Rugby Across the Provinces: UPDATED

[ed. updated the Rugby Canada Report appended below]

Rugby Canada issued an update on their status after they completed their 2019 AGM (virtually) this past weekend, the financials should be out by Wednesday. That report is posted below. Also we’ll add a few background notes in a paragraph below.

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