The day on the pitch, however, didn鈥檛 go well for the host nation as sa国际传媒 was beaten 36-7 by Rio Olympic bronze-medallist South Africa in the quarter-finals and before falling 12-5 to Argentina in the fifth-seventh place game.
The Langford-based Canadian side had gone 2-1 in pool play a day earlier. There were more than 38,000 fans at sa国际传媒 Place on each of Saturday and Sunday.
鈥淚 thought when we were healthy 鈥� we gave a glimpse of what this group is capable of,鈥� said Canadian coach Damian McGrath, in a statement. 鈥淲e appreciated every minute of support the crowd gave us and I hope they appreciate what we did.鈥�
Five University of Victoria Vikes players or alumni were on the roster for the host team 鈥� current Vikes Isaac Kay and Lucas Hammond and UVic alumni Luke Bradley of Port Alberni, Pat Kay of Duncan and Nathan Hirayama. Also on the sa国际传媒 roster from the Island were St. Michaels University School grads and Castaway Wanderers Mike Fuailefau and Luke McCloskey.
The veteran Hirayama tied Phil Mack of Victoria for the most career points (973) by a Canadian player in the HSBC World Series. But it didn鈥檛 salve the sting of fading on the final day.
鈥淚t鈥檚 tough. We didn鈥檛 finish the chances we had. Not making any excuses. I鈥檓 proud of the boys,鈥� said Canadian captain Harry Jones.
鈥淭he boys put their hands up and put in a gutsy effort. But you don鈥檛 play the game to come seventh.鈥�
Jones added McGrath has done a lot of work 鈥� 鈥渟imple stuff鈥� 鈥� during training at Westhills Stadium in Langford and it鈥檚 starting to show.
It was encouraging for Canadian rugby to see a national men鈥檚 side finally moving up the world rankings, and not the other way. Reaching the quarter-final stage at home over the weekend lifted sa国际传媒 two spots to No. 10 in the world and follows making the semifinals of the Wellington Sevens and quarter-finals of the USA Sevens in Las Vegas.
This comes after the Canadian men failed to qualify for the 2016 Rio Olympics and lost its $850,000 annual funding from the federal Own the Podium program. The turnstile bonanza over the weekend at sa国际传媒 Place should help refill those depleted coffers.
The boost has also been much needed after Rugby sa国际传媒 has taken other hits recently on the men鈥檚 side by going 1-4 in the XVs Americas Championship and falling to a world ranking of No. 23. sa国际传媒 fielded a young, developmental side against veteran South American sides such as Uruguay and Brazil. But they were Test matches, nonetheless, and are now being reflected in sa国际传媒鈥檚 lowest-ever world ranking.
鈥淲e鈥檝e seen some extremes lately, but that鈥檚 life. I understand the frustrations and why people are disappointed [about the recent XVs results]. I鈥檓 disappointed, too,鈥� said Gareth Rees of Victoria, director of commercial and program relations for Rugby sa国际传媒.
鈥淏ut we are continuing to build, and this weekend was a great example of that, as our sevens team and home crowd gave us some real moments to savour.鈥�
THROUGH THE UPRIGHTS: Former Canadian captain and four-time World Cup player Rees was inducted with the charter inaugural class into the new Rugby sa国际传媒 Hall of Fame along with Al Charron, Rod Snow, Ro Hindson, Robert Spray, Mike Luke and Gillian Florence over the weekend in Vancouver. The Hall of Fame will be located in the Al Charron National Training Centre under construction in Langford, which will feature a museum showcasing the history of rugby in sa国际传媒.
