Canadian coach Francois Ratier had the perfect comeback when it was noted that world No. 19 sa国际传媒 should be favoured in rugby against No. 42 Brazil, a nation best known for soccer.
鈥淚鈥檓 pretty sure they know sa国际传媒 best from hockey. That doesn鈥檛 change anything. There will be two rugby teams on the pitch playing hard for the win,鈥� said Ratier.
The first-ever Test between sa国际传媒 and Brazil will be played today at 4 p.m. at Westhills Stadium in Langford.
鈥淚t鈥檚 great to be part of history,鈥� said Canadian captain and World Cup veteran Ray Barkwill, a hooker from the Castaway Wanderers of Oak Bay.
The Canadians are 1-1 in the Americas Championship tournament after beating No. 21 Uruguay 33-17 before about 1,200 fans at Westhills two weeks ago and losing 30-22 to the No. 16 U.S. Eagles before more than 7,200 fans in Austin, Texas last week.
The Brazilians are 0-2, but have been competitive in both their tight losses, 25-22 to No. 24 Chile and 33-29 to Uruguay.
鈥淲e鈥檙e looking to get back on the winning track,鈥� Barkwill said of the setback in Austin.
鈥淲e missed some great opportunities against the United States. We have a lot of new faces earning caps and a lot of growing up going on.鈥�
Although a front-row stalwart, Barkwill knows how rugby is going and advocates for sa国际传媒 to be part of the emerging wave of expansive play.
鈥淲e want to play flowing rugby with lots of skill,鈥� said the native of Niagara Falls, Ont.
Even minnow nations, such as Brazil, want in on the act.
鈥淲e want to play the new rugby that everybody is playing,鈥� said Brazilian captain Daniel
Daniclewicz.
鈥淲e held up well against Uruguay and Chile.鈥�
The sport is expecting a growth spurt in Brazil with Rio hosting the 2016 Summer Olympics this year in which sevens rugby will be making its Games debut.
鈥淩ugby is starting to grow, especially with the Olympics,鈥� Daniclewicz said.
And where would any emerging rugby nation look for guidance, of course, but New Zealand? Brazil is coached by Jake Mangin of Christchurch. 鈥淲e鈥檙e taking inspiration from a nation such as Japan,鈥� Mangin said of the upstart darlings from the 2015 World Cup, and the 2019 World Cup hosts.
鈥淭he Rio Olympics have already had a huge impact. There鈥檚 a lot more money available for training, sponsorship is on the rise, and the Olympics are the reason. There are going to be a lot more [Brazilian] kids playing the game because of Rio 2016.鈥�
The Americas Championship was created because World Rugby, as the rebranded International Rugby Board is now known, wants to give the so-called second-tier nations more Test matches to help build up their programs.
sa国际传媒 concludes the tournament on the road at No. 5 Argentina next Sunday and at Chile on March 6.
SCRUM NOTES: Ratier, the Canadian women鈥檚 head coach, is guiding the men鈥檚 national team on an interim basis until a replacement is hired for New Zealand native Kieran Crowley. The latter guided sa国际传媒 through the 2011 and 2015 World Cups, but left last month to become head coach of a pro team in Italy.
