WXV – Canada vs France – ARN Guide

Canada opens their account in this year’s WXV tournament against close rivals France. The Maple Leafs are the top seeds on their side of the bracket having clinched the Pacific Four title with an historic first-ever win over New Zealand. Les Bleues were second only to top-ranked England in the Six Nations, and are looking to repay a defeat against Canada in Auckland last November.

FORM GUIDE

Current World Ranking: 3 (89.13 points)
2024-05-19 – New Zealand 19, Canada 22 (Christchurch)
2024-05-11 – Australia 14, Canada 33 (Sydney)
2024-04-28 – USA 7, Canada 50 (Los Angeles)
2023-11-04 – France 20, Canada 29 (Auckland)
2023-10-27 – England 45, Canada 12 (Dunedin)

Current World Ranking: 4 (87.27 points)
2024-09-07 – England 38, France 19 (Gloucester)
2024-04-27 – France 21, England 42 (Bordeaux)
2024-04-21 – Wales 0, France 40 (Cardiff)
2024-04-14 – France 38, Italy 15 (Paris)
2024-03-30 – Scotland 5, France 15 (Edinburgh)

STARTING LINEUP CHANGES

1 Brittany Kassil replaces McKinley Hunt
2 Emily Tuttosi replaces Sara Cline
7 Fabiola Forteza replaces Sophie de Goede (injury)
9 Justine Pelletier replaces Olivia Apps

6 Axelle Berthoumieu replaces Charlotte Escudero (injury)
9 Pauline Bourdon replaces Alexandra Chambon
10 Lina Queyroi replaces Lina Tuy
11 Mélissandre Llorens replaces Émilie Boulard
12 Gabrielle Vernier replaces Cyrielle Banet (No14 vs England)

NOTES

• Canada coach Kévin Rouet has made four changes to the line that defeated the defending World Cup champions in May… the most notable sees Fabiola Forteza stepping in on the flank in place of injured captain Sophie de Goede
• Tyson Beukeboom leads the Canadian side out for the first time in her 11-year international career… de Goede suffered a season-ending knee injury in training ahead of the Olympic Games
• there are two uncapped players among the reserves for the Maple Leafs… 26-year-old flanker Caroline Crossley and 25-year-old winger Asia-Hogan Rochester are each set for their test debuts… both were part of Canada’s silver medal-winning side at the Paris Olympics
• four players from Canada’s match day squad currently play their club rugby in France – Laetitia Royer, Fabiola Forteza, Justine Pelletier, and Alex Ellis
• France coaching duo David Ortiz and Gaelle Mignot have opted for five changes to the side that lost to England three weeks ago… recalled is Lina Queyroi, their top scorer in the Six Nations
• Manae Feleu was named the new French captain earlier this year, but she will share the duties with Marine Ménager for this match… the latter is celebrating her 50th test appearance
• referee Maggie Cogger-Orr is notably originally from Canada… the 32-year-old grew up in Toronto before moving to New Zealand at the age of 22… it’s the third time she has refereed Canada in a test match, including taking the middle in last year’s identical fixture in Auckland

QUOTES

Kévin Rouet (Head Coach)

“The team is looking forward to getting WXV 1 started on home soil here in Vancouver. Our journey and preparation for Rugby World Cup starts now and we are looking forward to seeing a strong performance from the team against France on Sunday. Training camp has been a great experience, and the players have been working hard to prepare for the tournament. Everyone is excited to be back on the pitch.”

David Ortiz (Co-Coach)

“It’s a series of four very high-level matches. It’s the only time we have in our season to play a series of matches against teams in the world’s Top 6. Above all, it’s a chance and an opportunity for us to continue to grow. Only the World Cup will allow us to have similar series of matches. We have to make the most of this period to continue to work against teams that will challenge us.”

Gaëlle Mignot (Co-Coach)

“Last year, we won the first match against New Zealand and then we underperformed against Australia and then we also missed out against Canada. We were in a year of development. We had made a lot of progress by integrating new things. This year, it will be a different context. We are entering a phase where we want to perform. The teams we will meet during this upcoming WXV are direct competitors for the World Cup next year. So we want to perform as well as possible.”

PREDICTION

Matches between the two sides are historically close, with Canada’s poor performance in the Bronze Final at the 2022 World Cup an outlier. The Maple Leafs have otherwise been the better side over the last decade. Les Bleues have a strong lineup but face a Canadian side at the top of their game who are unbeaten this year. The absence of de Goede does balance the scales somewhat, but Forteza is a class player in her own right. Canada are favorites at home.

TEAMS

CANADA
1 Brittany Kassil, 2 Emily Tuttosi, 3 DaLeaka Menin, 4 Tyson Beukeboom (capt.), 5 Laetitia Royer, 6 Pamphinette Buisa, 7 Fabiola Forteza, 8 Gabrielle Senft, 9 Justine Pelletier, 10 Claire Gallagher, 11 Paige Farries, 12 Alex Tessier, 13 Shoshanah Seumanutafa, 14 Fancy Bermudez, 15 Julia Schell

Replacements: 16 Sara Cline, 17 McKinley Hunt, 18 Alex Ellis, 19 Courtney Holtkamp, 20 Caroline Crossley, 21 Olivia Apps, 22 Alysha Corrigan, 23 Asia Hogan-Rochester

FRANCE
1 Yllana Brosseau, 2 Agathe Sochat, 3 Assia Khalfaoui, 4 Manaé Feleu (co-capt.), 5 Madoussou Fall, 6 Axelle Berthoumieu, 7 Émiline Gros, 8 Romane Ménager, 9 Pauline Bourdon, 10 Lina Queyroi, 11 Mélissandre Llorens, 12 Gabrielle Vernier, 13 Nassira Konde, 14 Marine Ménager (co-capt.), 15 Chloé Jacquet

Replacements: 16 Manon Bigot, 17 Ambre Mwayembe, 18 Rose Bernadou, 19 Hina Ikehehegi, 20 Teani Feleu, 21 Séraphine Okemba, 22 Alexandra Chambon, 23 Lina Tuy

MATCH INFO

Date: Sunday, September 29
Venue: BC Place, Vancouver
Kickoff: 15:45 local (18:45 Eastern, Monday 00:45 Paris)
Weather Forecast: sunny, 55°F (13°C), wind W 8-12mph (13-19km/h)
Broadcasts: TSN2 (Canada), RugbyPass TV

MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee: Maggie Cogger-Orr (New Zealand)
Assistants: Aimee Barrett-Theron (South Africa) & Kat Roche (USA)
TMO: Leo Colgan (Ireland)

HISTORY

HEAD-TO-HEAD (17): France 9,  Canada 8
2023-11-04 – France 20, Canada 29 (Auckland)
2022-11-02 – Canada 0, France 36 (Auckland)*
2019-07-02 – Canada 36, France 19 (Chula Vista)
2016-07-09 – Canada 29, France 10 (Salt Lake City)
2014-08-13 – France 16, Canada 18 (Paris)*
2013-11-05 – France 6, Canada 11 (Amneville)
2013-11-02 – France 27, Canada 19 (Pontarlier)
2010-08-28 – France 23, Canada 8 (Guildford)*
2009-11-21 – France 22, Canada 0 (Paris)
2009-11-18 – France 5, Canada 14 (Dijon)

*denotes World Cup fixture