Mack to the Future for Canada

The rumors were true. Just three months after announcing his retirement from the HSBC Sevens Series, Phil Mack has decided to pull on the Canadian jersey one more time. The 31-year-old is set to take his James Bay halfback partnership to the international stage along with another returnee, Connor Braid. The duo last played test rugby during the 2015 World Cup.

Otherwise the squad is largely as expected. Injuries to Jebb Sinclair, Tyler Ardron, and Jeff Hassler – among others – have opened the door for three uncapped players. Second row Conor Keys, no8 Admir Cejvanovic, and midfielder Ben LeSage are all part of the 28-man squad. Other recalls include Americas Rugby Championship starter Clay Panga, who missed out on the June tests and Americas Pacific Challenge, and veteran lock Brett Beukeboom, now fully recovered from a knee injury suffered on club duty in April.

While a number of players have now joined Canada’s centralized athlete program, it’s a largely amateur group with only 12 playing in professional competitions overseas. A handful will take time out of academic pursuits to make the trip. Four players – Ray Barkwill, Jake Ilnicki, Kyle Baillie, and Nick Blevins – took part in PRO Rugby’s inaugural season earlier this year. A captain has not yet been named in the absence of Ardron and Jamie Cudmore, with former skipper Aaron Carpenter a leading candidate to reprise the role.

Canada’s three-match European tour begins on November 12 a the Aviva Stadium in Dublin where they will meet Ireland. Another World Cup opponent awaits in Romania a week later, with a neutral-site test against Manu Samoa rounding off the trip. Official World Rugby rankings points will be on the line in all three, which will have an impact on the location of 2019 World Cup qualifiers set for August of 2017. The higher-ranked side of Canada and the USA at the end of November will decide who hosts the second of the scheduled home-and-away matches between the two sides.

FORWARDS
Rob Brouwer (Lindsay / Ontario Blues), Jake Ilnicki (San Diego Breakers / Manawatu Turbos, NZ), Ryan Kotlewski (Westshore / Prairie Wolf Pack), Djustice Sears-Duru (Glasgow Warriors, UK), Matt Tierney (Pau, FR), Ray Barkwill (Sacramento Express / Castaway Wanderers), Eric Howard (Brantford Harlequins / Ontario Blues), Brett Beukeboom (Cornish Pirates, UK), Conor Keys (UVic Vikes / Atlantic Rock), Evan Olmstead (Newcastle Falcons, UK), Kyle Baillie (Ohio Aviators / Westshore), Aaron Carpenter (London Welsh, UK), Admir Cejvanovic (Burnaby Lake / BC Bears), Matt Heaton (Atlantic Rock / Darlington Mowden Park, UK), Clay Panga (Westshore / Prairie Wolf Pack), Lucas Rumball (Balmy Beach / Ontario Blues)

BACKS
Phil Mack (James Bay / BC Bears), Gordon McRorie (UBCOB Ravens / Prairie Wolf Pack), Connor Braid (James Bay), Patrick Parfrey (James Bay / Atlantic Rock), Nick Blevins (San Francisco Rush / Calgary Hornets), Ciaran Hearn (London Irish, UK), Ben LeSage (UBC Thunderbirds / Prairie Wolf Pack), Conor Trainor (Vannes, FR), Taylor Paris (Agen, FR), DTH van der Merwe (Scarlets, UK), Matt Evans (Cornish Pirates, UK), Brock Staller (UBC Thunderbirds / BC Bears)

INJURED/UNAVAILABLE
Hubert Buydens (San Diego Breakers / Castaway Wanderers), Andrew Tiedemann (Castaway Wanderers), Jamie Cudmore (Oyonnax, FR), Cam Pierce (Pau, FR), Jebb Sinclair (London Irish, UK), Tyler Ardron (Ospreys, UK), Nanyak Dala (Castaway Wanderers / Prairie Wolf Pack), Kyle Gilmour (St. Albert / Prairie Wolf Pack), Jamie Mackenzie (UBCOB Ravens / Atlantic Rock), Phil Mackenzie (San Diego Breakers), Jeff Hassler (Ospreys, UK), Dan Moor (Castaway Wanderers / Ontario Blues), Jordan Wilson-Ross (James Bay / Ontario Blues)

FIXTURES
Nov 12 – vs Ireland – Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Nov 19 – vs Romania – Stadionul Arcul de Triumf, Bucharest
Nov 25 – vs Samoa – Stade des Alpes, Grenoble