Canada's men, women rugby sevens treading different paths

Canada's men's and women's rugby sevens teams are trending in starkly different directions.

The women's side, which has already qualified for Rio after finishing fourth in the world last year, is preparing for a homecoming at the inaugural Women's Sevens Series event in Canada at Westhills Stadium in Langford, B.C.

Canada's pool features a familiar foe in England, who defeated them in the bronze medal match at last weekend's event in Atlanta.  Japan and Ireland, ranked 10th and 12th respectively, round out the group.

Canada currently sits in third place in the series standings with 42 points, two points ahead of England and four behind New Zealand.  Australia has a commanding lead with 60 points after winning their third consecutive event.

In the men's series, Canada is in the midst of a difficult season. Currently ranked 13th in the world and struggling to advance even in the consolation brackets, the team will need a string of strong performances over the final three events to crack the top 10.

Olympic qualification for the men's side is in jeopardy as well. With 17th-ranked Brazil receiving an automatic berth, the final slot in the 12-country event will be decided with a repechage tournament on June 18-19 in Monaco.  In that tournament, Canada's biggest tests will come from Samoa and Russia, against whom Canada has posted a 4-6 record this year.

That tournament could be problematic for many of Canada's sevens players. The men's national 15s team hosts Russia in a test match in Calgary on June 18, and will likely require the presence of dual players like Nathan Hirayama and John Moonlight.

A couple of Canadians reached personal milestones at the sevens events in Atlanta and Hong Kong. Women's stalwart Ghislaine Landry reached 500 career points and was named to the all-tournament team.

Conor Trainor entered into the record books on the men's side, scoring his 50th career sevens try in Hong Kong. However, the highlight of the tournament came from teammate Mike Fuailefau's hybrid ruck/wrestling move and subsequent score.

The men's team will face no.2 New Zealand, no.5 U.S. and no.11 France in pool play in Singapore on April 16-17.