By Canadian Press

Canada rugby sevens men down Tonga, Uganda to advance to Challenger Series semifinals

Mar 7, 2025 | 10:50 AM

CAPE TOWN — Kal Sager ran in two of Canada’s six tries in a dominant 38-7 win over Uganda on Friday in the second round of the World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger Series.

The Canadian men, who opened the day by edging Tonga 26-24, finished atop Pool B and will play Pool C winner Germany in the Cup semifinal Saturday.

Ethan Hager, Jamie Armstrong, Kyle Tremblay and Ethan Turner also scored tries for Canada with Thomas Isherwood, Brenden Black, Armstrong and Turner adding conversions.

Armstrong scored a pair of tries in the win over Tonga with Sager and Morgan Di Nardo adding single tries. Armstrong and Isherwood combined for three conversions.

The Canadians led the Pacific Islanders 12-0 and 19-10 but had to stave off several comeback attempts.

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Canada finished runner-up in the first round of the second-tier rugby sevens series, which wrapped up last Sunday also in Cape Town. The Canadians went unbeaten until the final, where they were beaten 33-7 by Chile.

Canada, which finished last in the 12-team elite HSBC SVNS circuit last year, was relegated from the top tier after a 22-14 loss to Spain in June.

The Canadian men are looking to finish in the top four in the three-event Challenger Series. That will earn them a spot in a promotion/relegation tournament May 3-4 in Carson, Calif., where the top four teams from the Challenger Series and the bottom four from the HSBC SVNS will meet to decide four spots in next season’s HSBC SVNS field.

Cape Town is hosting the opening two rounds of the Challenger Series, with the second event March 7-8. The top eight teams then compete in the Challenger Series finale in Krakow, Poland in April.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 7, 2025

The Canadian Press