Americas Rugby News Rugby news from across the Americas!
Rugby Canada CEO Allen Vansen has issued a statement in a media release following the Senior Men’s defeat to Chile in Valparaíso on Saturday. The result of the loss is that Canada will miss out on a spot at France 2023, the first Rugby World Cup of any kind that will be absent Canadian participation.
“First off, I must congratulate the Chilean Rugby Union and wish them the best of luck as they move forward in the qualifying rounds. This is a hugely disappointing result – although we remain proud of the staff and players and the efforts they made over the past months, we all know the expectations for Canadian rugby are rightfully higher.
“We are excited about the young players that made their debuts this year and those that are coming through our performance pathways. We will do everything possible to ensure their development continues over the coming seasons. Rugby Canada is currently undergoing a review of our High Performance programs – the Men’s 15s program, and recent results, will be a focus.”
The statement is similar to that made by Vansen in February 2018 following the Senior Men’s defeat by Uruguay in the Americas 2 round of the RWC 2019 qualification process. They would eventually qualify for Japan 2019 through the last-change Repechage tournament.
Just days ago Rugby Canada issued an update on the High Performance review that was due to begin earlier this year. Vansen says it is hoped the review will now be completed by late November. Sally Dennis is Chair of the Board of Directors. In a statement she acknowledged the delay in the review process.
“In May, we committed to an inclusive, independent and transparent review of our high performance rugby programs. Launching this review is a crucial step in the future of those programs. The process to be followed has been designed to engage with and restore confidence and trust within the rugby community and spark a transformation of the high performance culture.
“It has taken longer to get to this stage than initially thought, but we felt it important to build a strong foundation by assembling the right team. I am confident that we have found that team. I thank in advance everyone involved for committing their time, energy and expertise to this very important initiative.”
