Watch the BC Bears Senior Men’s Squad in action at the 2023 Coast to Coast Cup in Halifax – here is all you need to know ahead of the event!
The BC Bears Senior Men’s team will return to competition for the first time since the global pandemic at the 2023 Coast to Coast Cup, where they will face tough opposition from Atlantic Selects Rugby and the Toronto Arrows RFC Senior Academy.
The BC Bears Senior Men’s XVs team proudly wears playing kit manufactured and supplied by X-Treme Sports Gear, the official kit supplier to BC Rugby, for the 2023 season. The kit features the logo of primary program sponsor ONNI on the right chest.
2023 COAST TO COAST CUP SCHEDULE
The 2023 Coast to Coast Cup is a round-robin format competition, with each team playing their opponents once. The first match of the round robin is set to take place at Graves-Oakley Park, home of the Halifax Tars Rugby Club, while the middle and final matches will be hosted at the Wanderers Ground in downtown Halifax, which is home to the Halifax Wanderers Football Club and has hosted Rugby Canada Test matches against Belgium (Men) and Wales (Women) recently.
The BC Bears will face the Atlantic Selects on June 17 before taking on the Toronto Arrows Senior Academy on June 21. The full schedule details can be found below:
June 17: Atlantic Selects vs. BC Bears – 6:15pm AST/2:15pm PST – Graves-Oakley Park
June 21: BC Bears vs. Toronto Arrows Senior Academy – 7:00pm AST/3:00pm PST – Wanderer Grounds
June 24: Atlantic Selects vs. Toronto Arrows Senior Academy – 7:00pm AST/3:00pm PST – Wanderer Grounds
Tournament passes and tickets for all games are available here.
LIVESTREAM DETAILS
The Coast to Coast Cup will once again be broadcast on The Rugby Network. Fans across Canada, the USA and globally can watch all three matches free-of-charge after signing up for The Rugby Network.
For the second year in a row, the next generation of Canada’s Major League Rugby and test match talent will be on display over three game days on June 17, 21 and 24 from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
BC BEARS SENIOR MEN’S ROSTER
Head Coach Curry Hitchborn (UBC Thunderbirds) and Assistant Coaches Christian Esterhuizan (Meraloma RFC), Jake Ilnicki (Williams Lake Rustlers) and Rob Bowman (Capilano RFC), alongside Phil Mack (Pacific Pride), have named the 26-man travelling squad for Nova Scotia. The squad was finalized following months of talent identification and the recent Senior Men’s Blue vs. Gold Trial Match in Abbotsford.
Captaining the squad is Jesse Mackail (UBCOB Ravens).
The BC Bears Men’s Squad travelling to Halifax:
- Lalit Bharadwaj – Burnaby Lake RFC
- Jesse Mackail – UBCOB Ravens
- Nicolas Willey – Kamloops RFC
- Reid Davis – Pacific Pride
- Teigan White – James Bay AA
- Mike Finnemore – Castaway Wanderers RFC
- Matt Klimchuk – Pacific Pride
- Jalan Faris – Meraloma RFC
- Charlie Kinloch – Kamloops RFC
- Monty Weatherall – Meraloma RFC
- Demetri Patterson – UBC Thunderbirds
- Johnny Franklin – Capilano RFC
- Lenny Bonduou – UBC Thunderbirds
- Fynn Murphy – TWU Spartans
- Michael Moloney – Capilano RFC
- Cass Kocevar – Kelowna Crows RFC
- Theo Espagnol – Meraloma RFC
- Beaudry Leman – UBC Thunderbirds
- Asfand Saeed – James Bay AA
- Josh Halladay – TWU Spartans
- Zephyr Melnyk – Pacific Pride
- Sandon Gupta – UBC Thunderbirds
- Paddy Kirwan – Meraloma RFC
- James Biss – UBC Thunderbirds
- Rhys James – Kelowna Crows RFC
- Mostyn Findlay – James Bay AA
Head Coach: Curry Hitchborn (UBC Thunderbirds)
Assistant Coaches: Christian Esterhuizan (Meraloma RFC), Jake Ilnicki (Williams Lake Rustlers), Rob Bowman (Capilano RFC)
Athletic Therapist: Eric Marriott (Meraloma RFC)
BC Rugby
A: 2015 Main Street, Vancouver, BC | V5T 0J8
T: 604.737.3065
E: info@bcrugby.com
BC Rugby gratefully acknowledges that its offices reside on the traditional and unceded territory of the Coast Salish Peoples, including the territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.
