Canada Finish 3rd in Hong Kong with Win Over France: Pools Announced for Singapore
Canada have risen to fourth in the World Rugby 7s series with a bronze medal win in Hong Kong. They now have 56 points, tied with USA, with one more tournament in Singapore before the championship tournament in LA.
Canada defeated France 21-17 in the Bronze medal match. NZ won the women’s tournament Gold with Australia claiming the Silver. World Rugby have gone with 4 pools of 3 teams for the Singapore tournament, Canada are in a pool with USA and Great Britain.
Canada 21 – France 17
Scorers: Shalaya Valenzuela (1T), Olivia Apps (1T, 2C), Sabrina Poulin (1T), Taylor Perry (1C)
NZ 41 – Canada 0
Canada 26 – Fiji 17
Scorers: Fancy Bermudez (1T), Carissa Norsten (2T), Carmen Izyk (1T), Olivia Apps (1C), Taylor Perry (1C), Breanne Nicholas (1C)
from World Rugby
Argentina and New Zealand crowned Hong Kong Sevens champions
New Zealand women and Argentina men claimed the Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens titles to back up their victories in Vancouver last month and extend their leads in the HSBC SVNS 2025 standings
- Argentina’s men and New Zealand’s women win Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens to back up their victories in Vancouver and extend their leads in the HSBC SVNS standings after five rounds
- New Zealand overcame Australia 26-19 in a drama filled women’s final, Canada claim bronze with 21-17 win over France
- A tight men’s final saw Argentina secure their first Hong Kong title with a 12-7 win against Olympic champions France, while Australia beat Fiji 22-21 to take bronze
- More than 110,000 fans across three days created an incredible atmosphere to begin the new era at Kai Tak Stadium in style
- Eight men’s and six women’s teams qualify for the HSBC SVNS World Championship in Los Angeles
- Pools for the final regular season round of HSBC SVNS 2025 in Singapore next weekend allocated, tickets available from Ticketmaster
New Zealand women and Argentina men claimed the Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens titles to back up their victories in Vancouver last month and extend their leads in the HSBC SVNS 2025 standings after five rounds.
New Zealand beat rivals Australia 26-19 in another epic encounter as Jorja Miller produced two moments of magic to make it three Hong Kong titles in a row for the Black Ferns Sevens. Although she had her team-mates to thank for not only surviving but scoring during her time in the sin bin for a tip tackle.
HSBC Player of the Final Miller said: “We knew we had to come out for finals footie and I’m so proud of the group. We love Hong Kong and the history of it. The crowd and the atmosphere here, it gets us going, it brings out the best rugby.”
Argentina added a third successive title win of the SVNS season with a 12-7 victory over France. Los Pumas Sevens made it 16 games unbeaten as they edged out Olympic champions France to win their maiden Hong Kong Sevens crown and extend their lead at the top of the series table to 12 points, ahead of Fiji.
HSBC Player of the final Marcos Moneta scored the crucial second try in the final and said: ‘It’s amazing to win here, it means so much to us as Hong Kong is a really historic tournament. I got my debut here and last year I broke my fibula here before the Olympic Games, so it was a mixture of emotions. My parents decided to be here with me. These are the things I was thinking about at the anthem. It is the perfect day.”
Canada claimed the women’s bronze with a 21-17 win over France while Australia beat Fiji 22-21 with a last gasp try from 19-year-old Sidney Harvey to take the men’s bronze.
New Zealand’s route to the final saw them comprehensively beat Canada 41-0 in a repeat of the Paris 2024 Olympic final, while Australia were made to work hard in a 28-5 defeat of France.
In the men’s semi-finals Argentina proved too strong for Australia with a 31-7 win and France scored with the clock in the red to break Fijian hearts and secure their place in the final by a 24-17 scoreline.
More than 110,000 fans were treated to exceptional entertainment on and off the pitch at the impressive new Kai Tak Stadium, where the Kaiser Chiefs were Sunday’s headline act.
World Rugby Chairman Brett Robinson was in attendance and said: “This is one of the great sevens events of the global calendar, and it has been for 50 years. So for me, personally, to be here for the first time is a great privilege. It’s also fantastic to be here at this incredible new stadium, uniquely designed for rugby sevens. We’ve had over 110,000 fans in attendance and seen some great rugby played over the last three days, showcasing the best of sevens.”
Alongside Hong Kong glory, teams were also playing for vital ranking points in the race to finish in the top eight positions at the end of the sixth round of HSBC SVNS 2025 in Singapore next weekend in order to qualify for the HSBC SVNS World Championship in Los Angeles on 3-4, May.
The results in Hong Kong mean that all eight of the men’s teams and six of the women’s teams have already secured their places in the World Championship. The men’s teams are Argentina, Fiji, Spain, South Africa, France, New Zealand, Australia and Great Britain. The six confirmed women’s teams are New Zealand, Australia, France, USA, Canada and Japan.
New Zealand women and Argentina men continue to lead the current SVNS standings after five rounds, going in to the final regular season round in Singapore on 5-6 April. New Zealand head to the Singapore tournament with an eight-point lead over Australia while Argentina are 12 points ahead of Fiji and in pole position to become HSBC SVNS 2025 league winners.
The pools for HSBC SVNS Singapore were allocated following the Hong Kong final and produced some mouthwatering match-ups. The competition format involves four pools of three teams each, replicating the format used in Cape Town during the second round of HSBC SVNS 2025.
Olympic champions and SVNS leaders New Zealand are in women’s Pool A with Brazil and China. Reigning SVNS champions Australia will face Japan and Spain in Pool B. Pool C sees Olympic medallists Canada and the USA together with Great Britain. France, Fiji and Ireland compete in Pool D.
Men’s SVNS title favourites Argentina are in Pool A with Great Britain and South Africa. Olympic champions France will play Ireland and Kenya in Pool B. Australia, Spain and Uruguay will battle it out in Pool C. While Fiji, New Zealand and the USA are in Pool D.
Canada Face Fiji in Quarter-Finals at Hong Kong 7s After 2-1 Pool Round
Canada went 2-1 in the pool round defeating Japan and Spain and losing to Australia, that result puts them in the quarter-finals against Fiji. Fancy Bermudez scored the first two tries for Canada in the tournament and has put in an outstanding performance over the first three matches.
Canada 24 – Japan 17
Scorers: Fancy Bermudez (2T), Olivia Apps (1T, 2C), Sabrina Poulin (1T)
Australia 26 – Canada 15
Scorers: Olivia Apps (1T), Carissa Norsten (1T), Taylor Perry (1T)
Canada 29 – Spain 10
Scorers: Breanne Nicholas (1T), Fancy Bermudez (1T), Carmen Izyk (1T), Carissa Norsten (1T), Olivia Apps (1T, 2C)
Canada Name Team for Hong Kong 7s Next Weekend: Missing Logan, Scurfield, Hogan-Rochester
Canada goes into Hong Kong missing some of their top players, captain Piper Logan who picked up an injury in the Vancouver 7s, Krissy Scurfield who was injured in training before the Vancouver 7s and Asia Hogan-Rochester who is currently the on-form player for Canada. There was no reason given in the Rugby Canada article on her absence.
It’s a chance for some upcoming talent to shine. There were 14 players named, only 12 can dress, and 13 declared for the tournament, so Canada is taking an extra player to experience the tournament training and buildup. Canada are in a pool with Australia, Japan and Spain and kickoff the tournament on Thursday evening at 7:30pm PT vs Japan in the west coast time zone. Canada currently sit in 6th place in the series, 4 points behind Japan and 5 points ahead of Great Britain.
from Rugby Canada
Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team is back in action this month for the first time since HSBC SVNS Vancouver, with the squad set to represent Canada at the Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens announced today by Head Coach Jocelyn Barrieau.
The Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens, the fifth leg of the 2025 HSBC SVNS series, will take place March 28 to 30 at the new Kai Tak Sports Park, with Canada taking on Japan, Australia and Spain in Pool C.
Fourteen players will travel to Hong Kong, with 13 declared for the final tournament roster ahead of competition.
“We have continued to work closely with Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team Head Coach Kevin Rouet and to embody and live our One Squad philosophy throughout the selection process as our programs and players prepare for the remaining SVNS stops and the Pacific Four Series,” said Jocelyn Barrieau, Head Coach of Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team. “We are excited to keep building on the foundations of our performances this season. We will continue to support all of our teams and players in this monumental year for women’s rugby in Canada, and look forward to seeing the return of multiple players to the international sevens stage in the brand-new Kai Tak Sports Park in Hong Kong.”
Taylor Perry returns to Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team for the first time since winning silver at the Paris 2024 Olympics, having spent this past season in the PWR with the Exeter Chiefs. Perry’s Exeter Chiefs teammate Sabrina Poulin makes her return to sevens as well, having last competed on the SVNS series in Hong Kong last April.
Following HSBC SVNS Perth, Carmen Izyk returned to her Élite 2 Féminine team in France, Rugby Club Toulon Provence Méditerranée, and now makes the switch back to the Canadian national team.
Eden Kilgour, who competed with Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team at the PR7s All-Star Tournament in November and last appeared on the SVNS series in Singapore last year, has been named to the squad as well.
Two RBC Training Ground players could make their SVNS series debut. Julia Omokhuale, who earned her first cap for Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team at WXV in 2023, has spent the season in the PWR with Leicester Tigers. Vanessa Chiappetta, a standout University of Victoria player, is also a 2024 FISU World University Championship silver medallist.
Olivia Apps will captain the team and has the opportunity to surpass 300 career SVNS series points in Hong Kong, currently holding 296.
HONG KONG POOL PLAY SCHEDULE
Friday March 28
Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team vs Japan
7:30pm PT (March 27) / 10:30pm ET (March 27) / 10:30am local time
Watch live on TSN+
Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team vs Australia
10:57pm PT (March 27) / 1:57am ET / 1:57pm local time
Watch live on TSN+
Saturday March 29
Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team vs Spain
6:30pm PT (March 28) / 9:30pm ET (March 28) / 9:30am local time
Watch live on TSN+
Following the Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens, Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team will travel to the penultimate 2025 HSBC SVNS stop in Singapore (April 5 to 6). Any roster changes heading into Singapore will be announced on Rugby Canada’s social media channels following Hong Kong. World Rugby will announce the pools and schedule for Singapore following the conclusion of Hong Kong also.
All Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens and HSBC SVNS Singapore matches will be available live on TSN+.
MORE INFO
For the most up to date information on the HSBC SVNS Series and live coverage, including details on the event format, the schedule and the latest news, visit the official website: www.svns.com.
CANADA’S WOMEN’S SEVENS TEAM ROSTER
3. Vanessa Chiappetta (Rigaud, QC) – University of Victoria / Westshore RFC
4. Breanne Nicholas (Blenheim, ON) – Kent Havoc RFC
6. Charity Williams (Toronto, ON) – Markham Irish / University of British Columbia
7. Florence Symonds (Vancouver, BC) – University of British Columbia
8. Carmen Izyk (High River, AB) – Foothills Lions / Queen’s University / RCTPM
9. Olivia Apps (Lindsay, ON) – Lindsay RFC
10. Fancy Bermudez (Edmonton, AB) – NorWester Athletic Association / Westshore RFC / Saracens
14. Eden Kilgour (Barrie, ON) – Westshore RFC
18. Julia Omokhuale (Calgary, AB) – Calgary Irish / Leicester Tigers
19. Carissa Norsten (Waldheim, SK) – Kirin RFC / University of Victoria
22. Sabrina Poulin (St-Georges, QC) – Town of Mount Royal RFC / Exeter Chiefs
27. Olivia Sarabura (Guelph, ON) – University of British Columbia
29. Mahalia Robinson (Fulford, QC) – Town of Mount Royal RFC
40. Taylor Perry (Oakville, ON) – Oakville Crusaders / Exeter Chiefs