Canada has been drawn with Scotland, Wales and Fiji in Pool B at next year's Women's Rugby World Cup in England.
The Canadian women, who finished fourth at the last World Cup, are currently ranked second in the world while Scotland is No. 7, Wales No. 10 and Fiji No. 17.
“Scotland is a team we haven’t played much, but is a style of play I think we know," said Canada coach Kevin Rouet. "They’re going to have a lot of time together to prep, so it’s going to be a very good matchup.
“Wales, we know when we face them, it’s always a hard fight. Fiji could be this unpredictable team, that could be amazing. It’s a fun three teams to play. I think it’s going to be good for us.”
The Wales and Scotland matches should ensure a good crowd, even if they will be likely cheering against Canada. But Canadian captain Sophie de Goede welcomed the challenge.
"Wales and Scotland will test us in one way and Fiji will test us another," said de Goede, who expects to recover from knee surgery in time for the tournament.
""Fiji, I mean it's a rugby hotbed and they are an incredibly physical team," she added. "So that's a good test as well.":
The Canadian women have a 10-2-2 career record against Wales, winning 42-22 the last time they met, at the 2023 WXV I tournament.
Canada is 6-1-0 against Scotland winning 28-25 the last they met in November 2018 in Glasgow.
Canada has met Fiji just once, winning 24-7 in Suva in September 2022 in its final test match ahead of next month’s last World Cup.
Pool A consists of top-ranked England, No. 5 Australia, the ninth-ranked U.S. and No. 15 Samoa while Pool C is made up of No. 3 New Zealand, No. 6 Ireland, No. 11 Japan and No. 13 Spain. Pool D features No. 4 France, No. 8 Italy, No. 12 South Africa and No. 42 Brazil.
The top two teams in each of the four pools advance to the quarterfinals.
Thanks to its rankings, Canada was in the seeded pot for the draw. In Scotland, Wales and Fiji, it drew the third-highest, second-highest and third-highest teams in the remaining three pots.
The World Cup is scheduled to run Aug. 22 to Sept. 27, 2025, at eight venues across England. The tournament schedule is set for release on Oct. 22
Canada's best showing at the tournament was in 2014 when it lost 21-9 to England in the final.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.
Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
