Canada’s Senior Men’s Sevens team takes to the pitch in penultimate stop of Sevens Series circuit
Rugby 7s Senior Men
Canada’s Senior Men’s Sevens teams took to the field on Saturday as Day 1 of the HSBC London Sevens got underway at Twickenham Stadium in London, presented by Velocity Trade.
Canada’s Senior Men’s Sevens teams took to the field on Saturday as Day 1 of the HSBC London Sevens got underway at Twickenham Stadium in London. A challenging day on the pitch for Henry Paul’s young roster saw the team coming up against the trio of France, Australia and New Zealand in Group C action.
Canada opened up their Saturday schedule on the front foot against France, leading 14-7 at the half thanks to tries from Elias Ergas and Alex Russell. However, a resilient France group came out in the second half, with Jonathan Laugel and teammate Nelson Epee registering tries to pull ahead for the 19-14 win.
Anton Ngongo’s late, first half try in Canada’s second match of the day cut opponent Australia’s lead to just seven heading into the second half of play with a 12-5 scoreline. Unfortunately for Canada, a stifling defensive effort from the Aussies in the second half prevented any further scoring as Australia would move on to a 26-5 win at the final whistle.
New Zealand’s offence was on display early and often in Canada’s final match of Day 1, with five consecutive tries going on the board in the first half. Canada continued to compete despite falling behind early, holding New Zealand off the board in the second half and collecting a pair of back-to-back tries from Nicholas Allen and Thomas Isherwood, with conversions on both from Cooper Coats. New Zealand would find a last-minute try to secure a 40-14 win and close out action for Canada on Day 1.
Canada’s Senior Men’s Sevens team returns to action on Day 2 in the 9th place semifinal at Twickenham. Kick-off is set for 2:36 a.m. Pacific.