The rugby World Cup is now acknowledged as the third largest international sporting event in terms of interest and economic impact, surpassed only by the Summer Olympics and FIFA soccer World Cup.
The Langford-based Canadian team, with several players from Island clubs, steps onto the big stage Saturday at 6:30 a.m. Pacific (TSN) in its 2015 World Cup opener against defending Six Nations-champion Ireland at Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a special feeling to be in the World Cup. The rugby culture is so big here that random people just stop you on the streets to shake your hands,鈥� said Canadian player Phil Mack of Victoria, by phone.
鈥淭hey say good luck against Ireland, but with a [knowing] smile.鈥�
In other words, few are giving No. 18 sa国际传媒 much of a chance against the No. 6 Irish.
鈥淏ut we know what we can do,鈥� said Mack, a graduate of Oak Bay High and the UVic Vikes, who plays club for James Bay.
鈥淲e have good launching pads for our backs and can run with anybody. We鈥檝e put in a lot of good work.鈥�
sa国际传媒 is 0-5-1 all-time against Ireland, including a harrowing loss on a field-length Irish try on the last play of the game in 1989 at UVic鈥檚 Centennial Stadium.
sa国际传媒 has had two pre-World Cup exhibition games this month since crossing the Atlantic. The 16-15 victory over No. 16 Georgia in Esher, England, snapped a summer-long seven-game Test losing streak, with several of those games extremely tight and lost in the waning seconds. Yet the triumph over Georgia was followed by a momentum-depleting 47-18 loss to No. 9 Fiji at the Stoop in Twickenham, London.
鈥淚t was a disappointing summer on paper. But on the field, we took immense steps forward,鈥� said Matt Evans of Duncan, who will start at fullback against Ireland, which itself is heading to the World Cup following losses to England and Wales.
鈥淵ou learn more from a loss than a win.鈥�
The Shawnigan Lake School graduate Evans was part of the Canadian team at the last World Cup in 2011 at New Zealand that caused a bit of a stir with its flowing beards and by going 1-2-1. Yet being a World Cup veteran doesn鈥檛 make the nerves go away the second time around.
鈥淭his is no less nerve-racking,鈥� said Evans. 鈥淲e are under no illusions [about the underdog status] and what it will take. But we will come out and play with that Canadian passion.鈥�
The Castaway Wanderers of Oak Bay have provided a healthy dollop of players to the Canadian World Cup effort with Ciaran Hearn starting the opener in centre, Hubert Buydens at prop and Ray Barkwill as hooker. Another CW player on the 31-man Canadian World Cup roster, Nanyak Dala, touched on the passion and commitment Evans mentioned.
鈥淚f you go into a World Cup thinking you鈥檙e not going to win, you might as well pack up and go home,鈥� said Dala, also by phone from Cardiff. 鈥淲e learned quite a few things in those close Test losses this summer.鈥�
Mostly, that lapses and miscues are punished unmercifully at the Test level.
鈥淲e know we have to limit our mistakes and play a clean game,鈥� said Dala.
sa国际传媒鈥檚 other Group D matches are on Sept. 26 against No. 14 Italy in Leeds, Oct. 1 against No. 7 and 2011 World Cup runner-up France in Milton Keynes and Oct. 6 against No. 17 Romania in Leicester.
In order to reach the World Cup quarter-finals for the first time since 1991, sa国际传媒 must target wins over Italy and Romania and hope for a massive upset of either Ireland or France.
Tyler Ardron was expected to make his World Cup debut by captaining sa国际传媒. But the Peterborough, Ont., product has been out since July with an MCL injury and will miss the opener. Veteran Jamie Cudmore from Squamish, making his fourth World Cup appearance, will captain sa国际传媒 against Ireland.
Nathan Hirayama of the University of Victoria Vikes will start at fly-half, and the fleet-footed DTH van der Merwe from Victoria on the wings with Jeff Hassler. John Moonlight of James Bay starts at flanker while UVic Vikes product Brett Beukeboom gets the nod in the second row. Dressing in reserve Saturday are Mack and UVic Vikes graduate Andrew Tiedemann.
The Canadian team is based at the Rugby sa国际传媒 Centre of Excellence in Langford.
SCRUM NOTES: In order to play for the national team in the World Cup, players must first distinguish themselves at the club level. The latter begins Saturday with the sa国际传媒 Premiership openers. The UVic Vikes host James Bay at Wallace Field. Meanwhile, CW is at Juan de Fuca for the first home game in the history of Westshore RFC, which was formerly Velox. Both fixtures are at 2:45 p.m.
