On Aug. 22, Team Canada will be battling the United States of America for not only pride in front of the first international rugby match in Calgary in a decade, but also for a potential spot at the 2027 World Cup.
The Pacific Nations Cup is kicking off at McMahon Stadium, where the trio of Canada, USA, and Japan battle it out over the next few weeks for that cup title at one venue each for the three nations.
Ben LeSage, centre for Team Canada, said that as a former Calgarian, he had been lobbying for a major match to be played in the city since joining the team in 2016.
“I grew up here, born and raised. So, Calgary has a special place in my heart, and to get to show the city to the guys has been awesome,” he said.
“I think it’d be extra special to get out there at McMahon on Friday night and take the field in front of so many friends and family who have supported me along the way.”
He said that he was fortunate to play a Team Canada match in 2016, and that the return to Calgary was very much a homecoming—and a chance to show friends, family, and his former rugby club, Calgary Canucks, how far his career has gone.
“Albertan fans really get behind the boys, and we know how rowdy they can get. So, it’ll be a bit of a home-field advantage on Friday, for sure,” said LeSage.
Something to prove come Friday
But Friday’s game is also a serious one for the team. Team Canada will be battling a seasoned and well-drilled American team, along with the powerhouse Team Japan.
It’s also a chance to revisit the 2021 qualifiers, which saw Canada beat out for a chance at that 2023 World Cup.
“We’ve looked at ourselves in the mirror, and in 2021, when the last qualifiers took place, we probably just got beat by sort of hungrier teams. The South American teams, especially Uruguay and Chile, they’ve come a long way in the past several years, and they wanted it really badly, and sort of took it to us,” said LeSage.
“I think we’ve come back now. We’re the scrappy team at the table. We’ve got sort of that underdog mentality where we’re definitely not favourites going into some of these Pacific Nations matches. But we hope that between games, being at home, and between having sort of some of that chip on our shoulder mentality going in, that we can leverage that to get back there.”
Men’s 15s head coach, Stephen Meehan, said that it wasn’t a message he was providing the players about that prospect.
“Everybody’s aware of it. We don’t have to go and speak about that. In this team, we don’t have words on the wall that describe our culture. We just get out here, and we are who we are, and we have our disciplines and our behaviours that support what we are doing,” he said.
“Everybody knows how important this game is. You win this game, you put yourself in a strong position in the [Pacific Nations Cup]. Winning this game doesn’t guarantee you qualification in the Rugby World Cup, and that’s something that everyone needs to be aware of. But as I say, it does put you in a good position.”
Meehan said that the team had a few full weeks of training in Calgary to get ready for the McMahon game, and that a win on Friday would be a way to repay all of the people who have helped the team.
The Canada vs USA Men’s 15 Pacific Nations Cup match is being held on Aug. 22, at 7 p.m.
For more details and tickets, see rugby.ca/en/tickets.
