Hong Kong 7s 2014 - BC Rugby News

CANADA’S MEN’S TEAM MOVES TO SEVENTH ON IRB SEVENS WORLD SERIES AFTER HONG KONG

Rugby Canada media release
posted March 30 2014

HONG KONG – Canada’s Men endured a tough final day at the Hong Kong Sevens as back-to-back defeats saw the team ultimately bow out at the Plate semi-final stage on Sunday. However, the topeight finish sees Canada gather 10 IRB Sevens World Series points to move to seventh on the Series circuit.

A last second try from Australia broke Canadian hearts in their first match, the Cup quarter-final, as a 12-14 defeat saw the team drop into the Plate competition where Wales were too hot to handle for Canada.

Canada will now regroup ahead of the IRB Series run-in, which sees legs in Scotland and England bring a close to the season.

Canada 12-14 Australia
Line-up: 3 Nanyak Dala, 4 John Moonlight, 5 Conor Trainor, 6 Sean Duke, 7 Phil Mack, 10 Ciaran Hearn, 11 Harry Jones

It was late heartbreak for the second week in a row on the Series for Canada on Sunday as they fell to a last minute converted try in their Cup quarter-final, as Australia edged to victory to knock the squad into the Plate semis in Hong Kong.

Like in Tokyo, Canada can hold their heads high after another strong performance saw them dominate most of the game but ultimately come up just short in the end.

Canada, who were without injured captain Nathan Hirayama, were leading 5-0 at the half-time break following a terrier like start from the squad that had Australia on the ropes. Good work at the breakdown from Phil Mack was the catalyst for Harry Jones finishing off the opening five-pointer, which was posted inside the first minute.

John would have wanted more of the same from his side after the turnaround as Michael O’Connor’s men couldn’t get their hands on decent ball nor territory, but in fact it was an eighth minute try from Australia’s Alex Gibbon that arrived soon after.

Cameron Clark’s conversion of that aforementioned try saw Australia hit the front for the first time in the match. But Canada launched a response soon after, showing intelligence to go quickly from a line-out on halfway before spreading possession to Ciaran Hearn who finished nicely for 12-7 with a minute left in the gripping contest.

But then came the sucker punch from the Australians as they struck with no time remaining on the clock, Paul Asquith with the try as Clark’s kick won the game to send the side wearing gold into the Cup semi-final and Canada towards the Plate.

Canada 14-31 Wales
Line-up: 3 Nanyak Dala, 4 John Moonlight, 5 Conor Trainor, 6 Sean Duke, 7 Phil Mack, 10 Ciaran Hearn, 11 Harry Jones

Canada had their three-day Hong Kong Sevens campaign brought to an end by Wales on Sunday, with the 14-31 result a disappointing finish to the weekend.

Five tries were scored by the Welshman with Canada’s efforts arriving via Sean Duke and Harry Jones as they now regroup ahead of the penultimate tournament of the Series in Scotland on May 3-4 before the Twickenham finale the following week.

Wales opened the contest in impressive fashion, crossing inside a minute when the busy Samuel Cross went over, with Lee Williams kicking the two points for 0-7.

The deficit grew in size two minutes later when James Davies scored as Canada struggled to repeat their impressive performances of the previous two days.

One small glimmer of hope arrived before the break, however, as following another Welsh score, Duke finished off a superb handling move across the backline to send the teams into their respective huddles with the scoreline delicately poised at 7-19.

Unfortunately for Canada the second-half was a similar story to the first though as further tries from Will Price and Alex Webber put Wales in an unassailable position at the Hong Kong Stadium, with an early exit from the tournament looming large.

Jones would hand the never-say-die Canadians a consolation score with a try in the fourteenth minute but the result was already settled at that point as Canada head home with another ten IRB World Series points in the bank, putting them on 63.

Canada’s Men’s Hong Kong Sevens
March 28-30

Day One

Canada 35-7 Portugal

Day Two

Canada 14-7 Argentina
Canada 12-14 England

Day Three

Canada 12-14 Australia
Canada 14-31 Wales

Canadas Roster for Hong Kong – (Club, CRC Team) Hometown, Province

Nanyak Dala – (Castaway Wanderers RFC/Prairie Wolf Pack) Saskatoon, SK
Sean Duke – (UVic Vikes/BC Bears) Vancouver, BC
Lucas Hammond – (Toronto Nomads/Ontario Blues) Toronto, ON
Ciaran Hearn – (Castaway Wanderers RFC/The Rock) Conception Bay South, NL
Nathan Hirayama, Captain – (UVic Vikes/BC Bears) Vancouver, BC
Harry Jones – (Capilano RFC/BC Bears) North Vancouver, BC
John Moonlight – (James Bay AA/Ontario Blues) Pickering, ON
Chauncey OToole – (Castaway Wanderers/Atlantic Rock) Belleisle, NB
Mike Scholz – (Castaway Wanderers RFC/Ontario Blues) Oakville, ON
Conor Trainor – (UBCOB Ravens/BC Bears) Vancouver, BC
Sean White – (James Bay AA/BC Bears) Victoria, BC
Phil Mack – (James Bay AA/BC Bears) Victoria, BC

*Canada Make Cup Round in 4th Consecutive Tournament with Win Over Argentina*

posted March 29 2014
Rugby Canada media release

Canada achieved Cup qualification for a fourth successive tournament on Saturday after a day that saw them defeat Argentina 14-7 before losing to England 12-14.

In wet weather, Geraint John’s side claimed a hard-fought win over Los Pumas in their second pool game, as they backed up yesterday’s 35-7 win over Portugal.

However, top spot in the group eluded them as they fell to England in their final match of the day, which means they face Australia in Sunday’s Cup quarter-final.

All games on the HSBC Sevens World Series can be watched LIVE at www.irbsevens.com!

Canada 14-7 Argentina
Line-up: 3 Nanyak Dala, 4 John Moonlight, 6 Sean Duke, 7 Phil Mack, 9 Nathan Hirayama, 10 Ciaran Hearn, 11 Harry Jones

Canada secured Cup qualification for a fourth successive tournament after they claimed a come-from-behind 14-7 win over Argentina in wet weather conditions.

It wasn’t pretty and took real character to recover from going 0-7 down just after the half-time break, but the result was all that mattered at Hong Kong Stadium.

As mentioned, the game against Argentina was hampered by the conditions and in fact was delayed due to a thunderstorm that left the pitch in something of a state. Consequently the style of all competing nations was limited as errors increased.

Because of the surface and greasy ball, the contest remained scoreless at the break before the second period moved up a level straight from the kick-off. Unfortunately for Canada it began with Ciaran Hearn’s restart going straight into touch, which led to Diego Palma sprinting over on the left wing from the resulting passage for 0-7.

Canada were now up against it but showed maturity in the way they fought their way back into the contest, with a patient play on ten minutes seeing Nanyak Dala finish off on the left wing. Crucially, the difficult extras were superbly converted by Nathan Hirayama as the absorbing group game was locked up at seven apiece.

The momentum had now shifted in Canada’s favour as time ticked on and when captain Hirayama reached out to score close to the uprights with only seconds remaining, John’s men had the lead and would ultimately see out a critical win.

Canada 12-14 England
Line-up: 3 Nanyak Dala, 4 John Moonlight, 6 Sean Duke, 7 Phil Mack, 9 Nathan Hirayama, 10 Ciaran Hearn, 11 Harry Jones

Canada were pipped to top spot in Pool C as two tries from pace man Dan Norton against the run of play saw England seal a 12-14 victory at Hong Kong Stadium.

Despite enjoying the lion’s share of both possession and territory in the opening half, Canada only had one try to show for their efforts as Phil Mack finished off a sustained period of pressure on England’s line. Hirayama converted the score.

The first-half continued with Canada well-and-truly on top but without a second try on the board, which came back to haunt them when a breakout from the English saw Norton use his incredible speed to good effect for a levelling seven-pointer.

Canada regrouped admirably after the break and came out firing once again, with Moonlight once again showing his worth to the team with a try just 30 seconds into the second-half. Unfortunately Hirayama was off-target with the attempted kick.

And those two points proved to be key in the end as when Norton went over in the eleventh minute while Hirayama was down struggling with a hand injury, England captain Tom Mitchell stepped up to kick what was the match-deciding conversion.

Canada though can take great heart from this showing as they again pushed England all the way, with their Cup quarter-final against Australia requiring the same intensity when Day Three begins at the Hong Kong Stadium on Sunday.

Canada’s Men’s Hong Kong Sevens
March 28-30
Day One

Canada 35-7 Portugal

Day Two

Canada 14-7 Argentina
Canada 12-14 England

Day Three

Canada vs. Australia at 12:34pm local
Sunday, March 30 – 12:34am ET
Saturday, March 29 – 9:34pm PT

Canadas Roster for Hong Kong – (Club, CRC Team) Hometown, Province

*Canada Men Win Opening Game vs Portugal: Women Win Invitational Tournament: VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS*

posted March 28 2014

Canada Women Win Invitational Tournament – Rugby Canada media release

Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team electrified a near-sold out Hong Kong Stadium on Friday night by defeating France 24-0 to capture back-to-back Hong Kong Invitational Sevens Championships.

GAME ONE: Canada 19 – 5 Hong Kong

Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team opened the 2014 Hong Kong Invitational with a 19-5 victory over the hosts, Hong Kong. Canada jumped out to an early lead when Ghislaine Landry broke through three would-be tacklers to score under the posts. After an Ashley Steacy conversion, Canada led 7-0.

Captain Jen Kish was next to touch down, as she took a pass from Bianca Farella and ran 60 metres to further Canada’s lead. Steacy added another conversion.

In the second half, Farella finished off a Canadian scoring play to bring the score to 19-0. Hong Kong, supported by a loud home crowd, got on the board with a late try, but Canada’s defense held on to open the tournament with a win.

GAME TWO: Canada 33 – 0 Kazakhstan

Canada continued their dominant efforts in their second game of the Hong Kong Invitational by defeating Kazakhstan 33-0.

Tries were scored by Mandy Marchak, Kayla Moleschi, Nikki Case, Karen Paquin and captain Jen Kish, while Ashley Steacy added four conversions.

GAME THREE: Canada 38 – 0 Japan

John Tait’s Canada side has advanced to the Hong Kong Invitational Sevens Finals after defeating Japan 38-0 in the semi-finals.

Mandy Marchak and Karen Paquin each scored two tries and Ashley Steacy added another in the dominant victory.

CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL: Canada 24 – 0 France

Nikki Case, (Yeoman Lions) Toronto, ON
Hannah Darling – (Peterborough Pagans RFC/Shawnigan Lake School) Warsaw, ON
Bianca Farella, (Town of Mount Royal RFC) Montreal, QC
Julia Greenshields, (Sarnia Saints) Sarnia, ON
Sara Kaljuvee (Toronto Scottish RFC) Ajax, ON
Jennifer Kish, (Edmonton Rockers RFC) Edmonton, AB (Captain)
Ghislaine Landry, (Toronto Scottish RFC) Toronto, ON
Mandy Marchak, (Capilano RFC) Winnipeg, MB
Kayla Moleschi, (Williams Lake Rustlers) Williams Lake, BC
Karen Paquin, (Club de Rugby Quebec) Quebec City, QC
Kelly Russell, (Toronto Nomads) Bolton, ON
Ashley Steacy, (Lethbridge Rugby Club) Lethbridge, AB

Canada Men Defeat Portugal – Rugby Canada media release

HONG KONG – Canada’s Men’s side got their Hong Kong Sevens campaign off to a strong start on Friday as they overcame Portugal 35-7, with tougher tests to come on Day Two.

Geraint John’s outfit were impressive as they put five tries past their opponents and will enter that aforementioned pool run-in, against Argentina and England, with good confidence as they look to make a fourth straight Cup appearance on the Series.

Canada 35-7 Portugal
Line-up: 3 Nanyak Dala, 4 John Moonlight, 5 Conor Trainor, 6 Sean Duke, 7 Phil Mack, 9 Nathan Hirayama, 11 Harry Jones

Canada opened their pool account in Hong Kong with a healthy 35-7 victory over Portugal, with a +28 points return a key positive alongside the Day One triumph. It wasn’t easy and in the second-half the game was scoreless for six minutes, but Canada had arguably done enough in the opening stanza to secure the victory.

Tries came via John Moonlight (2), Nanyak Dala and Conor Trainor before Sean White had the final say in the match, scoring in added time to give the scoreline more weight going into Day Two when Canada will take on Argentina and England. Moonlight had got the ball rolling inside a minute when his power and pace came to the fore 25 metres out, with Nathan Hirayama’s successful extras making it 7-0.

Canada’s second try arrived two minutes later as superb phase play led to Dala slipping through Portuguese clutches before running in close to the left upright. It was now 14-0 before the impressive Trainor continued his great form of last week in Tokyo with a crossing of his own, bouncing off several tacklers to make it 21-0. However, Portugal’s Pedro Bettencourt cut the gap to 14 at the half-time break.

Canada regrouped in the interval and it was Moonlight who set them on their way once again, this time using his strength from close range to claim a brace near the posts. Hirayama’s conversion put John’s charges into a comfortable 28-7 lead. Then followed a period whereby neither team could cross the whitewash. That was until the Canadians’ persistence saw reward as replacement White got in on the act with a late try that put the icing on their opening day cake at Hong Kong Stadium.

Day Two

Canada v Argentina:
Saturday, March 29 – 12:18 local time (00:18 ET, 21:18 PT)

Canada v England:
Saturday, March 29 – 18:32 local time (06:32 ET, 03:32 PT)

All games on the HSBC Sevens World Series can be watched LIVE at www.irbsevens.com

Canadas Roster for Hong Kong – (Club, CRC Team) Hometown, Province