The National Senior Women’s Team roster has been announced for their upcoming tour to France. A handful of potential new caps and the return of a former player highlight the announcement.
Four new faces lace the 28-player roster; Andrea Burk, Corinne Jacobsen, Darcy Patterson and Shannon Kane could possibly earn their first caps on the two-match tour, which includes the momentous test to be played at Stade de France before an international men’s test match.
Araba Chintoh returns to the Canadian side after playing her last match for Canada in 2004. In the meantime, the 16-cap second row has earned a PhD, and continues to study medicine in Newcastle, England while returning to Canada in the summers to complete her Post Doc work at the University of Toronto.
On November 12th, the NSWT will assemble in Paris from across Canada and the UK, before traveling south to Dijon where they will have three training sessions a day for the next week. Their first match is to be played in Dijon on November 18th at 6pm CET.
The squad will remain in Dijon until traveling back to Paris on the Friday before the pinnacle Stade de France test. The historic match kicks off at 3pm CET in the 80 000 person capacity stadium.
After their test match, courtesy of the French Rugby Federation (FFR), the women will watch Samoa take on France in a full test before being hosted in a joint post-match function with the men.
Across the English Channel on the same day, the England women will play host to the New Zealand Black Ferns at Twickenham Stadium as a curtain raiser to the All Blacks versus England test.
Tour preparations and the birth of his second son, Henry, have kept NSWT head coach Johnathan Long busy since the Nations Cup in August.
With less than 10 months to the 2010 World Cup in London, Long says this tour has bigger implications for his squad.
“This is really the beginning of our World Cup preparation. We have been setting targets with the players and this will be the first opportunity to gauge how far we have come during the past 6 months of an intensive program set for the girls.”
Canada owes their IRB fourth place ranking to third ranked France; Canada has unsuccessfully faced France in the third place game of the last two World Cups.
The two sides faced each other in most recently in August, with France besting the Canadians by an unconverted try, 12 – 7, at the 2009 Nations Cup in Oakville, Ontario
The Nations Cup did not hold the desired result for the NSWT, but the match against South Africa was a glimpse of how dangerous Canada can be, Long says.
“To win in [France’s] backyard would give the team a tremendous boost, but I am most concerned with our performance and the ability of the team to build on the how we want to play which everyone got a taste of in the first half against South Africa during the Nations Cup.”
For coverage of the entire tour, please check the Rugby Canada website for exclusive video and written reports - www.rugbycanada.ca .
Match dates and times:
NSWT France Tour Roster
1. Paige Burdett Calgary Irish
2. Andrea Burk Capilano
3. Araba Chintoh Darlington Mowden Park (UK)
4. Leslie Cripps Saracens (UK)
5. Kim Donaldson Burnaby Lake
6. Marlene Donaldson Velox Valhalians
7. Gillian Florence Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue
8. Maria Gallo Burnaby Lake
9. Megan Gibbs Toronto Irish
10. Brooke Hilditch York Yeomen
11. Corrine Jacobsen Burnaby Lake
12. Heather Jaques Capilano
13. Shannon Kane Velox Valhalians
14. Jennifer Kish Edmonton Lep/Tigers
15. Ashley MacDonald Lethbridge
16. Mandy Marchak Capilano
17. Barbara Mervin Velox Valhalians
18. Darcy Patterson Capilano (UBC)
19. Ashley Patzer Lethbridge
20. Cheryl Phillips Toronto Scottish
21. Kelly Russell Toronto Nomads
22. Anna Schnell Burnaby Lake
23. Tabitha Stavrou Toronto Irish
24. Laura Stoughton Calgary Irish
25. Julia Sugawara Saracens (UK) / Burnaby Lake
26. Sarah Ulmer Saracens (UK)
27. Brittany Waters Meraloma
28. Julianne Zussman Town of Mount Royal
Unavailable for selection:
Lesley McKenzie UBCOB Ravens
Marie-Eve Brindamour-Carignan Town of Mount Royal
