Kevin Rouet, Head Coach of Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team, has selected the 30-player squad to represent Canada on home soil for WXV 1 this September and October in Vancouver. Tickets can be purchased HERE. 

Three BC athletes have been included in the squad: congratulations to Victoria’s Caroline Crossley (Castaway Wanderers), Sooke’s Rori Wood (College Rifles RFC) and White Rock’s Shoshanah Seumanutafa (Counties Manukau) on their selections!

Several BC Clubs are also well represented with Gabrielle Senft (Castaway Wanderers), Gillan Boag(Capilano RFC), captain Tyson Beukeboom (Cowichan RFC), Fancy Bermudez (Westshore RFC), Juila Schell (Castaway Wanderers), and Sara Kalijuvee (Westshore RFC) all included in the squad.

Canada is competing in the top tier of WXV (WXV1), which includes the top three teams from the Women’s Six Nations (England, France, Ireland) and the top three teams from the Pacific Four Series (Canada, New Zealand, USA).

“Our preparation time was short but efficient. This will be a strong team,” said Rouet. “All the players have worked very hard for the last couple of weeks to prepare for WXV and we are excited for these next three matches and for the chance to play on home soil here in Vancouver against the best rugby teams in the world. France, Ireland and England will each challenge us in different ways but it’s another opportunity to test ourselves and another step in our journey to the Rugby World Cup next year.”

The team will be captained by Canada’s all-time women’s cap leader, Tyson Beukeboom (Cowichan RFC), who earned her record-breaking 68th international cap in Canada’s history-making win against New Zealand in May. 23 players selected for WXV 1 were part of the team that won the 2024 Pacific Four Series earlier this year.

Rori Wood, Caroline Crossley and Asia Hogan-Rochester will each look to earn their first cap for Canada. Wood recently spent five seasons with the University of British Columbia while Hogan-Rochester and Crossley won an Olympic silver medal at Paris 2024 alongside fellow WXV teammates Fancy Bermudez, Olivia Apps, Alysha Corrigan and Taylor Perry.

Karen Paquin, who has 38 caps for Canada and silver medal from the 2014 Rugby World Cup, returns to the team for the first time since the 2021 Rugby World Cup, while Sara Kaljuvee looks to make her first appearance since Canada’s 2023 Pacific Four Series match against Australia.

Canada will open the tournament versus France at BC Place in Vancouver, with kick-off scheduled for 3:45pm PT / 6:45pm ET on Sunday September 29. Canada has won two of their last three matches against the French including at the inaugural WXV 1 tournament hosted in New Zealand last year when a 66th-minute try from Fancy Bermudez clinched a 29-20 win in the last round of WXV 1 to leapfrog Australia into second place of the final standings.

More information on WXV can be found HERE.