Typically a tournament which has been erratic in format and scheduling, World Rugby’s Pacific Nations Cup returns in better shape for 2015. Unlike in 2014 when the PNC was little more than a disconnected patchwork of test matches, this year’s edition will see one extra game added to the round-robin, as well as the inclusion of a single playoff round to determine the final standings.
Pacific Nations Cup: Canada vs Japan Preview
Unfortunately, the improvements in format will be undercut by the fact that PNC 2015 will serve as little more than a training run for the imminent Rugby World Cup. With England on the horizon and the typical player availability headaches endured by Tier 2 nations, most of the coaches have admitted that this will be a time to find depth players while holding strategic cards close to the vest.
All told, however, there are enough intriguing matchups and internal position battles that this year’s PNC should generate a more satisfying experience for rugby fans in the participating nations of Canada, Fiji, Japan, Samoa, Tonga, and the USA.
For Canada, there are certainly a lot of question marks when it comes to how their 31-man roster will shake down by September. Fortunately that’s less a comment on overall quality and more an issue of identifying the form players so they can be slotted into the best positions. For head coach Kieran Crowley and the rest of his staff, the job of sorting through all the permutations gets underway on Saturday in San Jose (5pm PST/8pm EST) with Canada taking on Japan.
The Japanese national set-up is one that has been slowly building in quality off the strength of a high-quality domestic league in the last number of years. Head coach Eddie Jones has his side playing with plenty of attacking ability and a famously improved scrum, giving the Brave Blossoms the look of a side that’s on the road to emerging from the Tier 2 mass. With the addition of a Tokyo Super Rugby franchise in 2016, solidifying a spot in the top 10 of World Rugby’s (admittedly problematic) rankings could be well within grasp for Jones and his charges.
Only two summers removed from the 13th overall spot currently occupied by Japan, has Canada been left in the dust by their Pacific rivals? Certainly the conservative roster selections of this year’s PNC means that there won’t be much to take away from head-to-head results; nevertheless, Canada-Japan sets up as an interesting study of two well-matched rugby nations which share a history stretching back to 1932.
Last Meeting:
June 7, 2014 Swangard Stadium, Burnaby, BC, Canada.
Canada notched three well-deserved tries in the first half—including a pair in 180 seconds just two minutes out from the halftime break—and with a 25-9 lead after 40 minutes certainly looked on course to kick off their 2014 season in fine style.
However, a quick strike try by the Brave Blossoms only one minute into the second half proved to be a harbinger of things to come, with Canada’s defense cut to ribbons for the rest of the afternoon. Over the next 47 minutes, Japan racked up 25 unanswered points on the way to a 34-25 win.
In a way, it was a match which dramatically exemplified the collective personality of Canada’s squad: plenty of attacking verve and the skill to back it up juxtaposed with maddening inconsistency in all areas of the park.
Canada Last 5 v. Japan:
2014 at Burnaby: Loss 25-34 (PNC)
2013 at Nagoya: Loss 13-16 (PNC)
2011 at Napier: Draw 23-23 (RWC)
2009 at Sendai: Loss 8-46
2009 at Tokyo: Loss 6-27
Canadian Roster Questions – Lock:
The versatility of many of the Canadian players has lately been both a blessing and a curse for Crowley; Canada have struggled to find or develop enough players who can claim a particular position with such authority that it would be unthinkable to shift them into another jersey.
This affliction holds true among the second row forwards, where concussion issues continue to hover around the indomitable Jamie Cudmore. If indeed he is unavailable for selection come September—and that would be a monumental blow to Canada’s RWC ambitions—it is likely that Jebb Sinclair would step in–if the coaches don’t already have him pegged for a permanent spot in the second row. Yet even Sinclair has been shifted between lock and flanker in recent years. Given all these moving parts, there could be as many as four, or as few as two, roster spots open for the group of locks invited to Canada’s recent training camp in Shawnigan Lake: Jon Phelan, Brett Beukeboom, Aaron Flagg, Tyler Hotson, Cameron Pierce, Evan Olmstead and Callum Morrison.
Who among these seven will get first crack at impressing the coaching staff? Based on past form and last November’s selections, the likely incumbents are Hotson and Phelan; unfortunately the announcement of Canada’s 23-man roster versus Japan has been delayed. Regardless, there is plenty of quality depth, and it will be a fascinating battle to watch over the next few weeks.
By the Numbers:
10-11 – Canada’s won-loss record against Tier 1 and 2 nations since RWC 2011.
9.6 – Canada’s s average losing margin over that time.
12-9 – Japan’s won-loss record against Tier 1 and 2 nations since RWC 2011.
13.6 – Japan’s average losing margin over that time. This drops to 8.3 when excluding an unsurprisingly heavy 48 point loss to the All Blacks in 2013.
597 – Career test-match points for Canadian fullback James Pritchard.
570 – Career test-match points for Japanese fullback Ayumu Goromaru.
670 – Career test-match points for Fijian fly-half Nicky Little — the all-time record among Tier 2 players.
Coachspeak:
Eddie Jones: “In reality, our top 20 players are easily decided. It’s the (other 11 spots) that there is a lot of competition for . . . there’s no point us playing our hand and showing the other teams what we can do.”
Kieran Crowley: “I love a world cup year, it’s the only time we get consistent time with the guys . . . there’s actually time to put things together.”
Canada’s Scehdule at the Pacific Nations Cup:
July 18 – Canada vs. Japan (San Jose, USA) (5pm PST/8pm EST)
July 24 – Canada vs. Tonga (Swangard Stadium, Burnaby) (7pm PST/10pm EST)
July 29 – Canada vs. Samoa (BMO Field, Toronto) (2:30pm PST/5:30pm EST)
August 3 – Canada vs. TBD (Swangard Stadium, Burnaby)
Canada’s Shawnigan camp roster: Name – (Club/CRC), Hometown
Tyler Ardron – (Ospreys) Lakefield, ON
Ray Barkwill – (Castaway Wanderers/Ontario Blues) Niagara Falls, ON
Brett Beukeboom – (Cornish Pirates) Lindsay, ON
Nick Blevins – (Calgary Hornets/Prairie Wolf Pack) Calgary, AB
Connor Braid – (Unattached/BC Bears) Victoria, BC
Hubert Buydens – (Castaway Wanderers/Prairie Wolf Pack) Saskatoon, SK
Aaron Carpenter – (Cornish Pirates/Ontario Blues) Brantford, ON
Thyssen de Goede – (James Bay AA/BC Bears) Victoria, BC
Tom Dolezel – (London St. George’s/Ontario Blues) London, ON
Matt Evans – (Cornish Pirates) Maple Bay, BC
Aaron Flagg – (Moseley/BC Bears) Abbotsford, BC
Kyle Gilmour – (Rotherham Titans/Prairie Wolf Pack) St. Albert, AB
Jeff Hassler – (Ospreys) Okotoks, ON
Ciaran Hearn – (Castaway Wanderers/Atlantic Rock) Conception Bay, NL
Tyler Hotson – (Doncaster Knights) Vancouver, BC
Jamie Mackenzie – (Oakville Crusaders/Ontario Blues) Oakville, ON
Phil Mackenzie – (Sale Sharks/Ontario Blues), Oakville, ON
Jason Marshall – (Agen/BC Bears) North Vancouver, BC
Gordon McRorie – (Calgary Hornets/Prairie Wolf Pack) Calgary, AB
Callum Morrison – (UBC Old Boys Ravens/BC Bears) Victoria, BC
Evan Olmstead – (Parramatta Two Blues/Prairie Wolf Pack) Sydney, Australia
Owen Parfrey – (Swilers RFC/Atlantic Rock) St. John’s, NL
Patrick Parfrey – (Swilers RFC/Atlantic Rock) St. John’s, NL
Taylor Paris – (Agen) Barrie, ON
Jon Phelan – (Doncaster Knights/Atlantic Rock) Montreal, QB
Cameron Pierce – (Pau) Vernon, BC
Benoit Piffero – (Blagnac/Atlantic Rock) Montreal QB
James Pritchard – (Bedford Blues) Parkes, NSW, Australia
Lucas Rumball – (Balmy Beach/Ontario Blues) Scarborough, ON
Djustice Sears-Duru – (Oakville Crusaders/Ontario Blues) Oakville, ON
Richard Thorpe – (London Welsh) Beckenham, England
Andrew Tiedemann – (Plymouth Albion/Prairie Wolf Pack) St. Albert, AB
Liam Underwood – (Balmy Beach RFC/Ontario Blues) Toronto, ON
DTH Van Der Merwe – (Scarlets) Regina, SK
Doug Wooldridge – (Lindsay RFC/Ontario Blues) Lindsay, ON
Unavailable due to injury or other commitments:
Jamie Cudmore – (Clermont Auvergne) Squamish, BC
Nanyak Dala – (Castaway Wanderers/Prairie Wolf Pack) Saskatoon, SK
Jake Ilnicki – (Castaway Wanderers/BC Bears) Williams Lake, BC
Jebb Sinclair – (London Irish/Atlantic Rock) Fredericton, NB
