By Canadian Press

Canadian rugby women blanked 24-0 by France in Singapore Sevens Cup quarterfinal

May 4, 2024 | 10:23 AM

SINGAPORE — Canada’s rugby sevens women were blanked 24-0 by France in Saturday’s Cup quarterfinal at the Singapore Sevens.

The Canadians, who stand fifth in the season standings after six events, saw both Olivia de Couvreur and Julia Greenshields sent to the sin-bin.

Canada advanced to the quarterfinals as one of the two best third-place finishers after finishing third in Pool A following losses to No. 7 Ireland (5-0) and No. 1 New Zealand (31-7) sandwiched around a win over No. 12 Spain (28-7).

Piper Logan scored a late try with Chloe Daniels adding the conversion against New Zealand in the final pool game.

The Canadian women will now face No. 8 Britain in the seventh-place playoff.

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The women’s semifinals pit No. 6 Fiji against No. 1 New Zealand and No. 2 Australia against No. 3 France.

Canada’s rebuilding men’s side continues to take it on the chin on the circuit, finishing last in Pool A. But the Canadians pushed No. 5 New Zealand to the limit before falling 21-17 in extra time. Losses to No. 6 Australia (21-14) and Series-leading Argentina (38-0) followed.

The Canada men fell into the 11th-place playoff against No. 11 Samoa after losing 31-7 to No. 3 Fiji, the two-time Olympic champions, in the ninth-place semifinal.

The men’s semifinals are No. 5 New Zealand versus No. 6 Australia and the eighth-place U.S. versus No. 4 France.

The Canadians, who sit last among 12 teams, saw their losing streak extend to 24 games dating back to a 33-7 win over France on Dec. 10 that saw them finish seventh in Cape Town.

They have collected a minimum one-point in five of the six events.

The Canadian men won the Singapore event in 2017, their lone sevens tournament win on the world stage.

The slimmed-down sevens circuit, rebranded this season as HSBC SVNS from the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series, features seven regular-season events, each featuring men’s and women’s competition, plus a grand final with promotion and relegation at stake.

The men’s and women’s team with the most cumulative points after seven rounds claim the title of SVNS 2024 League Winners, while the top eight-placed teams earn their place in the new “winner takes all” Grand Final from May 31 to June 2 in Madrid, where the men’s and women’s champion will be crowned.

The Canadian men, who won a relegation playoff last year to preserve their core status, will find themselves fighting to stay up in Madrid. The Canadian women, in contrast, will get a chance to go after the grand prize.

The relegation bracket in Madrid, featuring the bottom four teams in the SVNS standings and the top four from the World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger series, will determine the remaining four HSBC SVNS core teams.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 4, 2024

The Canadian Press