Lindsay U17 player represents Canada
In early December, the Canada U17's Junior Men's Rugby selection camps wrapped up and the task of selecting the two squads was completed. Two Lindsay Football Rugby Club players made the final selection, with Bobby Grant being selected for the Christmas tour to Santa Barbara, California, and Sam Evans being selected for the tour of British Columbia being held in February. From those two events a final squad of 26 players will be selected to represent Canada at the Wellington Festival in the U.K., over the Easter holidays, in 2011.
Mr. Grant, a St. Thomas Aquinas student arrived in California on Sunday and started to work with his new team. He says,
"After two great and productive training sessions today (Monday), we got a relieving, yet freezing, swim in the Pacific Ocean this afternoon. It was great for us, having just been in the cold weather in Ontario."
Fran Mason, the team's manger, reports that it is the coaching staff's intention is to maximize the group's time together. The team's itinerary is light on free time and heavy on preparation.
The Canadian men have two games scheduled against a strong All-American High School (U18) team. Canada Head Coach Jim Delaney states that the pace of training is going to continue to roll and build as the Canadian winter camp moves forward.
"All players will participate (in games) on Wednesday, as they will on Friday. This is still a selection event and each player must be provided with equal opportunity to perform. We will adjust the combinations throughout the practice sessions as well", Delaney stated.
Mr. Grant is looking forward to getting on the field. He states,
"As soon as I arrived at the residence, it truly dawned on me how fortunate I am to be here, representing my country, province, family and club. I am anticipating more good lessons to come and the excitement is unbearable."
On Wednesday, December 29th and Friday, December 31st, the Canada U17 Men's Rugby Team faced off against the U18 High School All-Americans in a Santa Barbara, California, as part of a developmental tour, leading up to a tour to the Wellington International Rugby Festival in 2011. Heavy rain in California resulted in both matches being moved to an artificial turf field.
In the first game, Mr. Grant had a strong performance, scoring a try in a 31 to 22 win for Canada.
On Friday, with both teams aiming to make the strongest possible start, Canada knew they would be facing the best the U.S.A. had to offer in this match. It was a hard fought game, with Canada ending up on the short side of a 29 to 44 loss. Mr. Grant had a strong game, playing the full game, kicking 2 of 3 conversions and being selected as Canada's "Man of the Match" by the American team.