Canada downs Ireland to set up winner-take-all WXV Finale

Canada kept their unbeaten record on the year intact with a comfortable 21-8 victory over Ireland in Langley on Saturday. All the scoring for the Maple Leafs came in the first half, with the home side shifting their focus to defense in the second stanza.

It was a stalemate until Ireland ran afoul of the referee 25 minutes in. Linda Djougang saw yellow for a deliberate knock-on with Canada knocking on the door. Just a minute later fellow prop Niamh O’Dowd joined her in the bin and a penalty try was awarded for a collapsed maul.

The Maple Leafs were next to lose their discipline, with a warning followed quickly by a yellow card to Alex Ellis for failing to roll clear in a tackle. Dannah O’Brien was summoned to take points from just outside the 22-meter line, and the flyhalf got Ireland on the board with a clean strike off her left boot.

A mistake from O’Brien in her own end put Canada in scoring position. The attack went wide left and despite some sloppy handling, Gabrielle Senft managed to tip the ball on to a looping Claire Gallagher for a try in the corner.

Djougang returned to make it 14 players apiece, but before O’Dowd could get back on the pitch Canada struck again. This time it was a turnover from Shoshanah Seumanutafa that caught Ireland unawares in defense, with Julia Omokhuale there in support to sprint 30 meters untouched for the try. Alex Tessier nailed both conversions, one from each side of the pitch, to make it 21-3 for the home side.

Not long into the second half Canada were caught trying to play out of their own end, with a forward pass conceding an attacking scrum to Ireland. Aoife Wafer, wearing No7 but packing down at the No8 position, exploded off the back and committed five defenders before finally going down just five meters out. Eimear Considine was left wide open on the right side and O’Brien picked out the winger with a perfectly-weighted cross-kick for the finish.

That would be the last act of scoring for either team. Replacements streamed into the match and though both sides had chances, neither could break through before the final whistle.

The tournament now returns to BC Place in Vancouver, with Ireland facing a short turnaround for their match against the USA on Friday. Canada will square off against England in the tournament finale, with both sides sporting perfect records in 2024 and sitting at the top of the world rankings.

 

SCORING

CANADA 21
Tries (3) – Penalty try (26′), C. Gallagher (34′), J. Omokhuale (36′)
Cons (3) – No kick (26′), A. Tessier 2/2 (35′, 37′)
YC (1) – A. Ellis (31′)

IRELAND 8
Tries (1) – E. Considine (46′)
Cons (0) – D. O’Brien 0/1
Pens (1) – D. O’Brien 1/1 (32′)
YC (2) – L. Djougang (25′), N. O’Dowd (26′)

TEAMS

CANADA
1 Brittany Kassil (17 McKinley Hunt 51′), 2 Emily Tuttosi (16 Sara Cline 73′), 3 Alex Ellis (18 Rori Wood 68′), 4 Tyson Beukeboom (capt.) (19 Laetitia Royer HT), 5 Courtney Holtkamp, 6 Julia Omokhuale (21 Karen Paquin 65′), 7 Caroline Crossley (18 Rori Wood 33′-41′) (20 Fabiola Forteza 41′), 8 Gabrielle Senft, 9 Justine Pelletier, 10 Claire Gallagher, 11 Alysha Corrigan, 12 Alex Tessier, 13 Shoshanah Seumanutafa (22 Olivia Apps 48′), 14 Fancy Bermudez, 15 Taylor Perry (23 Julia Schell 48′)

IRELAND
1 Niamh O’Dowd (17 Siobhan McCarthy 68′), 2 Cliodhna Moloney (16 Neve Jones 44′), 3 Linda Djougang (18 Andrea Stock 73′), 4 Dorothy Wall, 5 Fiona Tuite (17 Siobhan McCarthy 27′-36′) (19 Grace Moore 65′), 6 Erin King, 7 Aoife Wafer (20 Deirbhile Nic a Bhaird 65′), 8 Brittany Hogan, 9 Emily Lane, 10 Dannah O’Brien (22 Nicole Fowley 50′), 11 Amee-Leigh Murphy-Crowe, 12 Enya Breen (capt.), 13 Eve Higgins (23 Aoife Dalton 50′), 14 Eimear Considine (18 Andrea Stock 27′-35′), 15 Stacey Flood

Not used: 21 Molly Scuffil-McCabe

MATCH INFO

Date: Saturday, October 5
Venue: Langley Events Centre, Langley
Kickoff: 15:45 local
Weather Forecast: sunny, 61°F (16°C), wind W 8-12mph (13-19km/h)

MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee: Aimee Barrett-Theron (South Africa)
Assistants: Maggie Cogger-Orr (New Zealand) & Jenny Lui (USA)
TMO: Andrew McMenemy (Scotland)

HIGHLIGHTS