2018 Canadian Rugby Foundation Recap

Monty Heald Fund Update - National Women's XVs Successful UK Tour

Congratulations to our National Women's XV team on an very successful UK tour this November.  Twenty nine of the thirty one players who went got at least one international cap. In fact between last years fall tour and this years , we have presented 26 new caps an impressive number of young players.   

Due to a $75,000 commitment from the MHF these athletes did not have to pay to play.   That is each player was subsidized over  $2,000 from Monty Heald Fund.  This tour is the beginning of the road to the next Women's Rugby World Cup which is to be held in New Zealand in 2021. 

The Rugby Canada Women's management group has a robust plan to insure we are ready for that tournament.  That means training camps, games and tours to develop athletes and team dynamics.  It all costs money.  Based on current estimates we have set a fundraising goal of $400,000.   We can get there! Please support our National Women's XVs program by donating generously to the Monty Heald Fund.  All donations are tax deductible and 100% of funds donated to MHF go to the Women's XVs team/program.

Canada U20 Support Group Fund - Men Defeat USA and Represent North America at JWRT

The Canadian Rugby Foundation maintains a U20 Support Group Fund led by Dr. Pat Parfrey, former Rugby Canada president and Order of Canada member, it was created to provide a permanent endowment fund to reduce the requirement for U20 player contributions and to enhance the national U20 team’s preparation. There’s a partnership in place with Rugby Canada whereby they match Canadian Rugby Foundation contributions to ensure Canada have a well prepared team going forward.

This year the Canada U20 men’s team had an extended preparation camp and subsequently they were able to defeat the USA in Texas in a two game series. That series win sent Canada to the Junior World Trophy Tournament (JWRT) as the North American representative.

2018 Canadian Men’s University Championship

The Canadian Rugby Foundation were again proud to be part of the Canadian Men’s University Championship, this year along with title sponsors Victoria Mitsubishi and Carson Automotive Group, and corporate sponsors Pemberton Holmes Ltd. This competition is vital for the growth of Canadian rugby and donations to the General Fund make projects like this possible.

UBC won the event for the second year but a strong showing from Queen’s University to win Silver shows that the gap is closing between the top universities in the country. The trophy is named after Spence McTavish an iconic name in Canadian University rugby. The photo below shows CRF chair person Mike Holmes (left) and Spence McTavish (right) presenting the trophy to the UBC captains.

2018 Canadian Rugby Club Championship

This was the first year for this competition and it was a great success bringing together the top 4 club sides from across the country. The event was hosted by the Capilano Rugby Club of North Vancouver. Funding was provided by the Canadian Rugby Foundation and title sponsor Pemberton Holmes Ltd.  Canadian rugby icon Hans de Goede led the effort as committee chair. 

Initially 8 regional champions started the competition with the 4 winners advancing to the final in Vancouver.  The eventual title winners were the UBCOB Ravens, Brantford Harlequins finished 2nd, Edmonton Nor’Westers 3rd and Fredericton Loyalists 4th.

Toronto Inner-City Rugby Award Canadian Rugby Foundation Bursaries

The Toronto Inner-City Rugby Foundation (TIRF) awarded Canadian Rugby Foundation (CRF) bursaries to 8 recipients, CRF provided a grant of $15,900 to support TIRF activity in 2018. TIRF is a rugby-centred community development organization that uses rugby as a tool for social good, it focuses on over 30 of Toronto’s underserved, low-income neighbourhoods.