Top prospects headed for Serevi 7s

Some of Canada’s most promising young players will travel with the Upright Rugby Rogues to take part in the Serevi RugbyTown 7s in Glendale, Colorado, this coming weekend. The tournament features 17 elite rugby teams, including the national sides of Bermuda, Mexico, and the Bahamas, as well as the Serevi Selects, who often include a number of international stars.

Upright Rugby is a development initiative based in Dundas, Ontario, headed by former Niagara Thunder flyhalf Tyler Leggatt. They recently partnered with Rugby Canada to run a five-day camp in Aurora, Ontario, and will do so again this week to provide valuable playing time for developing 7s talent.

Included in the Rogues roster are six members of the Maple Leafs national development side. Phil Berna, Trent Cooper, Luke McCloskey, Matt Mullins, Theo Sauder, and Jon West are all on Canada head coach Liam Middleton’s list of players on the rise.

Berna, Sauder, and Lucas Rumball were all part of this year’s national u20 team that traveled to Portugal in May. Previous graduates of the national u20 program include Mullins, West, Andrew Ferguson, Dylan Mundy, and Max van Dijk. Dan Mathie and Riley DiNardo come highly rated from the Ontario Blues development program.

The Rogues are in Pool B of the tournament, along with home town Glendale Raptors, Bermuda, and Stars Rugby out of Chicago. Live stream link and more can be found on the official event website.

UPRIGHT RUGBY ROGUES
Phil Berna (UBC Thunderbirds), Trent Cooper (Oshawa Vikings), Riley DiNardo (Toronto Saracens), Andrew Ferguson (Oakville Crusaders), Dan Mathie (Oakville Crusaders), Luke McCloskey (UVic Vikes), Matt Mullins (Belleville Bulldogs), Dylan Mundy (Oshawa Vikings), Lucas Rumball (Balmy Beach), Theo Sauder (UBC Thunderbirds), Max van Dijk (Oakville Crusaders), Jon West (Markham Irish)