Canada to hold Senior Men’s High Performance camp

Canada’s Senior Men’s team will not be playing any test matches in 2020 but they will convene as a group for a three-week training camp beginning on November 9 at their Langford headquarters. Kingsley Jones has selected 36 players to take part, more than half of whom are uncapped.

The squad features 14 players who suited up for the Pacific Pride last season, and 29 in all who graduated through Canada’s u20 program. There are 13 who traveled to Japan for Rugby World Cup 2019. With an average age of just 24, Patrick Parfrey is the elder statesman. The Arrows fullback will celebrate his 29th birthday before the camp begins.

Professional players currently based abroad were not able to attend while a number of senior internationals miss out as Head Coach Kingsley Jones looks to broaden his player pool with an eye towards RWC 2023 and beyond. There are seven members of Canada’s Senior Men’s Sevens group named including Cooper Coats who is named in a national XVs squad for the first time.

Other first timers include former Laval football player Marc-Antoine Ouellet and new Toronto Arrows scrumhalf Jason Higgins, Irish-born but qualified through his Canadian father. There are a quartet of UBC forwards – hooker Connor Sampson, locks Frank Carson and Izzak Kelly, and loose forward Michael Smith.

Coaching the group along with Jones will be Pride duo Jamie Cudmore and Phil Mack. Four Arrows staff members will also be present – Assistant Coaches Aaron Carpenter and Peter Smith, Analyst Rodin Lozada, and General Manager Mark Winokur.

 

PROP
*Jake Ilnicki (Seattle Seawolves)
*Cole Keith (Toronto Arrows)
Liam Murray (James Bay / Pacific Pride)
Marc-Antoine Ouellet (CRQ / Pacific Pride)
Tyler Rowland (Toronto Arrows / Pacific Pride)
*Djustice Sears-Duru (Seattle Seawolves)

HOOKER
Dewald Kotze (Strathcona Druids / Pacific Pride)
*Andrew Quattrin (Toronto Arrows)
Connor Sampson (UBC Thunderbirds)

SECOND ROW
Frank Carson (UBC Thunderbirds)
Izzak Kelly (UBC Thunderbirds)
*Conor Keys (Rugby ATL)
Adrian Wadden (Toronto Arrows)

BACK ROW
*Matt Heaton (Rugby ATL)
*Lucas Rumball (Toronto Arrows)
Michael Smith (UBC Thunderbirds / Pacific Pride)
Jake Thiel (James Bay / Canada Sevens)
Siaki Vikilani (Toronto Arrows / Pacific Pride)
Taitusi Vikilani (Burnaby Lake / Pacific Pride)

SCRUMHALF
Brock Gallagher (Strathcona Druids / Pacific Pride)
Jason Higgins (Toronto Arrows)
Crosby Stewart (UVic Vikes / Pacific Pride)

FLYHALF
Cooper Coats (Halifax Tars / James Bay / Canada Sevens)
Will Kelly (Toronto Arrows)
Brock Webster (Oshawa Vikings / Pacific Pride / Canada Sevens)

CENTRE
Phil Berna (UBC Thunderbirds / Canada Sevens)
*Guiseppe du Toit (Toronto Arrows)
*Ben LeSage (Toronto Arrows)
Quinn Ngawati (Rugby United New York)
Josh Thiel (San Diego Legion)

WING
*Andrew Coe (Markham Irish / Canada Sevens)
Doug Fraser (Old Glory DC)
*Kainoa Lloyd (James Bay / Canada Sevens)
Isaac Olson (Castaway Wanderers / Pacific Pride)

FULLBACK
*Patrick Parfrey (Toronto Arrows)
*Theo Sauder (Vancouver Rowing Club / UBCOB Ravens / Canada Sevens)

*Rugby World Cup 2019 squad