Canada Finish 3rd in Second Cape Town Tournament: Tied for Top in Standings Overall
Canada came 3rd in the second Cape Town tournament but on aggregate are top of the standings, tied with Germany at 34 points. The next tournament is in Krakow April 11-12, the top four from there go to the LA promotion/relegation tournament.
Germany 24 – Canada 14
Germany came out strong and scored an easy first try as the runner blew through two defenders, 7-0. Germany added a second try, 2 minutes from half, 14-0. Canada had very little possession and they turned over the little possession they did have. Finally, just before half, Morgan di Nardo split the defence for a solo try, 14-7 at the half.
Canada started the half by kicking the ball out on the full and Germany started from half. Fortunately Kal Sager turned the ball over in a ruck. The turning point came at 5 minute mark, Canada had won consecutive penalties but seemed aimless in attack, one of the players lost the ball in contact, it popped up in the air into the hands of the German player who ran it 60 metres for the try, 19-7. They added one more with 30 seconds left, 24-7. Michael Laplaine scored from the kickoff on a nice solo effort, 24-14.
Starting 7
Brendan Black
Morgan di Nardo
Jamie Armstrong
Kyle Tremblay
Thomas Isherwood
Kal Sager
Elias Hancock
Scorers: Morgan Di Nardo (1T), Brenden Black (1C), Michael Laplaine-Pereira (1T), Ethan Turner (1C)
Canada 28 – Japan 15
Canada were up 21-5 at the half with tries by Ethan Turner, Brenden Black and Morgan di Nardo.
In the second half Kal Sager picked up an ill disciplined yellow, just putting a late shoulder into the back of a Japanese player. Japan scored almost immediately with the man advantage, 21-10. Down a man Canada put together a nice try with some pretty offloads, finished off by Kyle Tremblay, 28-10. Canada failed to send the ball 10m on the ensuing kickoff and Japan took the possession to score a final try, 28-15
Starting 7
Ethan Turner
Brenden Black
Morgan di Nardo
Jamie Armstrong
Kyle Tremblay
Kal Sager
Michael Laplaine
There were only 4 subs left by this time Isherwood, Bain, Franklin and Hager. Alex Russell and Elias Hancock were not available.
Scorers: Morgan Di Nardo (1T), Brenden Black (1T, 2C), Kyle Tremblay (1T), Ethan Turner (1T, 1C), Thomas Isherwood (1C)
CANADA’S MEN’S SEVENS TEAM
3. Ethan Turner (Maple Ridge, BC) – Burnaby Lake Rugby Club
5. Alex Russell (Bracebridge, ON) – McGill University
10. Noah Bain (Abbotsford, BC) – UBCOB Ravens / New England Free Jacks
13. Brenden Black (Oakville, ON) – Oakville Crusaders / Guelph University
15. Ethan Hager (Brantford, ON) – Brantford Harlequins / Castaway Wanderers
18. Morgan Di Nardo (Toronto, ON) – Toronto City Rugby / University of Victoria
20. Jamie Armstrong (Ottawa, ON) – Ottawa Irish / University of Ottawa
22. Kyle Tremblay (White Rock, BC) – Pacific Pride / Bayside RFC
23. Thomas Isherwood (Okotoks, AB) – Foothills Lions RFC / Westshore RFC
27. Johnny Franklin (Bowen Island, BC) – Capilano RFC
33. Kal Sager (Peterborough, ON) – Peterborough Pagans / Trent University
64. Elias Hancock (Ottawa, ON) – Bytown Blues / University of Ottawa
82. Michael Laplaine-Pereira (Montreal, QC) – TMR Rugby / Concordia University
from World Rugby
Portugal and Kenya win second round of World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger in Cape Town
After two rounds of exciting World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger action in Cape Town, eight men’s and eight women’s teams qualified for the third round in Krakow.
- Portugal and Kenya were crowned men’s and women’s champions at the second round of the World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger 2025 in Cape Town.
- Portugal overcame Germany 12-7 in the men’s final, while Kenya beat South Africa 17-0 in a hard-fought women’s final.
- Germany’s men’s team and South Africa’s teams earned silver.
- Top eight women’s teams, Kenya, South Africa, Argentina, Colombia, Thailand, Czechia, Poland and Uganda, celebrated International Women’s Day by qualifying for the next round in Krakow.
- Top eight men’s teams, Germany, Canada, Portugal, Chile, Samoa, Japan, Madagascar and Tonga progressed to the third round in Krakow on 11-12 April.
- The Challenger provides a promotion pathway to HSBC SVNS, with the top four placed men’s and women’s teams securing their place in the high stakes HSBC SVNS Play-Off in Los Angeles on 3-4 May and an opportunity to gain promotion.
After two days of intense, high-action rivalry, Portugal’s men’s team and Kenya women’s took top honours at the second round of the World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger 2025 in Cape Town.
The top eight men’s teams to go to the World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger third round in Krakow are Germany, Canada, Portugal, Chile, Samoa, Japan, Madagascar, and Tonga.
On International Women’s Day, there was joy for Kenya, South Africa, Argentina, Colombia, Thailand, Czechia, Poland and Uganda, who marked the occasion by securing their places in the third Challenger round on 11-12 April in Poland.
Germany won the first men’s semi-final 24-12 over Canada, and Portugal reached the final thanks to a 36-14 win over Japan. Portugal dominated the men’s competition, claiming a spot in the final with a 12-7 victory over Germany.
South African women beat Czechia 21-15 in the first semi-final, while Kenya was victorious over Colombia with 12-5. For a second consecutive tournament, Kenya lifted gold beating South Africa 17-0 in an all-African women’s finals. South Africa ended in second place—Canada men’s and Colombia women’s beat Japan and Czechia to third place.
VIEW POOLS, SCORES AND FIXTURES >>
The Challenger series starts with back-to-back events in Cape Town, with the top-ranked eight men’s and women’s teams progressing to the third and final tournament at the Henryk Reyman’s Municipal Stadium in Krakow on 11-12 April.
Captain of the Portuguese team, Diogo Sarmento reflected on their experience: “This win is overwhelming. The conditions were not perfect for us as we had a lot of players making their debut and the average age of the group is 20. We stood together, and what we accomplished is fantastic. We worked hard and now we are looking forward to going to the next round.”
“Reflecting on their second World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger win in Cape Town, the captain, Grace Okulu said: This is the first time we achieved back-to-back wins in the Sevens Challenger and we are now Challenger champions. We are now ready for anything.”
The four men’s and women’s teams with the most cumulative points gained across the three Challenger rounds will then qualify for the HSBC SVNS Play Off in Los Angeles on 3 – 4 May, where they will face the bottom four ranked teams from HSBC SVNS 2025 in a high-stakes promotion and relegation tournament with four coveted places in future SVNS at stake.
The Challenger was introduced in February 2020 to boost the development of rugby sevens across the globe and provide a clear promotion pathway to reach the top level of global rugby sevens for the short format of the game, which has experienced massive growth over the past two decades since the introduction of the global sevens series and becoming an Olympic sport at the Rio 2016 Games.
Fans around the globe can watch the action on rugbypass.tv or via domestic broadcast partners.
Canada 2-0 on Day 1 at Cape Town – Face Germany in Semi-Finals
Canada struggled in their first match to get past a determined Tonga, but then dominated in their match against Uganda to finish 2-0 and top their pool. The result gives them a semi-final against Germany in a replay of the tournament last weekend. Challenger Series leaders Chile were upset by Japan and won’t be in the Cup round but will be playing for 5th place against Samoa who were upset by Portugal.
Canada 26 – Tonga 24
Canada went out early and played good rugby building up a 12-0 lead. They missed a few tackles and the momentum shifted, Tonga came back with two tries before half. The half ended 12-10 for Canada.
The second half saw Canada score first, then Tonga replied and Canada picked up a yellow card in the process. Canada scored short-handed to put the game away and Tonga scored one at the whistle to make it close.
If Canada could play consistently like they did for the first 5 minutes of this match, they would be in contention for promotion this year. When the errors start creeping into their game, missed tackles, passes not going to hand, yellow cards, then they begin to struggle against mid-level teams.
Scorers
Jamie Armstrong (2)
Kal Sager
Morgan di Nardo
Canada 38 – Uganda 7
Canada started slowly in the match, the score 7-7 going into the last minute of the first half. Canada exploded with 2 tries to end the half, the second try in added time. It was 19-7 at the half.
Canada dominated the second half with a 19-0 advantage playing strong defence.
Canada now go up against Germany in the semis.
Scorers
Ethan Hager
Jamie Armstrong
Kal Sager (2)
Kyle Tremblay
Ethan Turner
from World Rugby
World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger 2025 Round 2 semi-finals decided
The World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger 2025 second round continues at the Athlone Stadium in Cape Town on Friday, with all teams playing their first two pool matches.
- Canada, Germany, Japan and Portugal lead the men’s competition log with top points.
- Czechia, South Africa, Uganda and Colombia women finish day one with convincing wins.
- Second round of the World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger 2025 taking place at Athlone Stadium in Cape Town.
- The action continues from 10:00 local time (GMT+2) on Saturday.
- The top eight placed men’s and women’s teams will progress to the third round in Krakow on 11-12 April.
- The Challenger provides a promotion pathway to HSBC SVNS, with the top four placed men’s and women’s teams securing their place in the promotion and relegation play-off in Los Angeles.
- Fans around the globe can watch the action on rugbypass.tv
Excitement in the second round of the World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger 2025 on Friday kept everyone on the edge of their seats with a lot to play for at the Athlone Stadium in Cape Town.
The men’s event saw some intensely competitive matches as Canada, Germany, Japan and Portugal claimed two wins each to ensure their safe passage to the semi-finals.
In the women’s tournament, there were flying starts for the hosts, South Africa, Czechia, Uganda and Colombia, who all finished top of their logs on day one with a pair of victories to secure spots for Saturday’s semi-finals. Uganda beat the round 1 winner, Kenya, in nailbiting extra time.
Canada men’s, Germany men’s, South Africa women’s, and Colombia women’s teams qualified for the semi-finals in round 1.
VIEW POOLS, SCORES AND FIXTURES >>
The action continues from 10:00 local time (GMT+2) on Saturday, with place play-offs and both men’s and women’s finals.
World Rugby Chief Competitions and Performance Officer Nigel Cass reflected on the successful start to the World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger 2025: “It’s great to be back in Cape Town. The tournament has kicked off in spectacular fashion, with fantastic rugby played in the sunshine. The quality of all the teams has been outstanding and everybody should just now be looking forward to an incredible weekend.”
The first two rounds of the Challenger replicate the competition format used at the recent HSBC SVNS Cape Town tournament in December 2024. This sees the four pool winners progress directly to contest the semi-finals, while second-placed teams will play for fifth to eighth places, and teams finishing third in their pools will compete for ninth to twelfth positions.
The Challenger series begins with back-to-back events in Cape Town, with the top-ranked eight men’s and women’s teams progressing to the third and final tournament at the Henryk Reyman’s Municipal Stadium in Krakow on 11-12 April.
The four men’s and women’s teams with the most cumulative points gained across the three Challenger rounds will then qualify for the HSBC SVNS Play Off in Los Angeles on 3 – 4 May, where they will face the bottom four ranked teams from HSBC SVNS 2025 in a high-stakes promotion and relegation tournament with four coveted places in future SVNS at stake.
The Challenger was introduced in February 2020 to boost the development of rugby sevens across the globe and provide a clear promotion pathway to reach the top level of global rugby sevens for the short format of the game, which has experienced massive growth over the past two decades since the introduction of the global sevens series and becoming an Olympic sport at the Rio 2016 Games.
All teams qualified for the HSBC Sevens Challenger via their respective regional competitions.
Fans around the globe can watch the action on rugbypass.tv or via domestic broadcast partners.