Rugby Canada recognizes summer Provincial Senior Women Programming as talent identification opportunity for Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team and Women’s U23 Team

18/04/2023

Rugby 15s Senior Women

April 18, 2023 (Langford, BC) – With the upcoming selection announcements for Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team and Canada’s Women’s U23 Team, Rugby Canada will use a series of regional competitions taking place across Canada from April to June as selection tool to form the roster for both squads.

April 18, 2023 (Langford, BC) – With the upcoming selection announcements for Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team and Canada’s Women’s U23 Team, Rugby Canada will use a series of regional competitions taking place across Canada from April to June as selection tool to form the roster for both squads.

The regional competitions for the provincial senior women’s programming, organized by the provincial unions, is set to begin on April 23.

On the west coast, two BC regional teams - BC Gold and BC Blue - will battle in a two-game series. In Alberta, two squads will be formed between players in the north and south regions of the province for a pair of games in May. Ontario and Quebec have created a competition structure that will see representative sides from Ontario West, Ontario East, Montreal and Quebec City face-off for a total of eight games throughout April and May. On the East Coast, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island will each form a team for a total of six games spanning all three provinces starting in April until June. A senior women’s squad from Manitoba is set to travel across the border in early June for a match in Madison, Wisconsin.

These games will provide another opportunity for Rugby Canada and Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team Head Coach, Kevin Rouet, to identify players for the upcoming competitions for Canada’s senior women and U23 women teams this summer.

Those aspiring for Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team will have the opportunity to play in front of Rouet as he builds the roster for the final two Pacific Four Series games in July against New Zealand and Australia. Rouet will assist Head Coach of Canada’s Women’s U23 Team, Dan Valley, with the selection of his squad.

“We want the women who are playing in these competitions to know that we will be watching them,” said Rouet. “Along with the U SPORTS competitions that take place across the country every year, this is another tool we can use as a pathway to our high-performance programs. I am looking forward to watching the high-quality rugby these games will offer and the chance to attend several of the matches in-person. All the games will be recorded and reviewed to ensure we can evaluate all the games across the country.”

Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team will meet New Zealand and Australia in the third and fourth rounds of the Pacific Four Series this July in Canada with selection of the team being announced on June 11 and the team assembling from June 25 to July 15.

The players who will represent Canada’s women’s U23 team this summer for a two-game series against the USA in Boston will be announced on June 12 and assembling from July 20-30.

Provincial Senior Women’s Programming – Regional Competition Schedule *subject to change*

May 20 – BC Gold (Victoria) vs BC Blue (Vancouver) – University of Victoria

June 3 – BC Gold (Victoria) vs BC Blue (Vancouver) – UBC

Alberta

May 6 – Alberta North vs Alberta South – Calgary (CRU)

May 21 – Alberta North vs Alberta South – Edmonton (Leduc, Alberta)

Manitoba

June 3 – Manitoba vs Wisconsin – Madison, Wisconsin

Ontario/Quebec

April 23 – Ontario West vs Ontario East – Toronto, Ontario

April 30 – Ontario West vs Montreal – Kingston, Ontario (Queen’s University)

April 30 – Ontario East vs Quebec City – Kingston, Ontario (Queen’s University)