Noah Flesch is set to earn his first Canada 15s cap, lining up with brother Mason Flesch on Saturday when the Canadian men play Chile in a rugby test match in Romania.
The 22nd-ranked Canadians take on No. 21 Chile before facing No. 20 Romania on Nov. 16, with both games at Stadionul Arcul de Triumf in Bucharest.
Noah, 21, is set to start at inside centre with Mason, 24, in the forward pack at lock. The younger Flesch, who joined Rugby Canada's Pacific Pride development academy four years ago, made his sevens debut for Canada in February in Vancouver.
"He came in as a loose forward and we looked at his skill set and his speed. And we had a lot of loose forwards in Canada," said Canada coach Kingsley Jones. "He was really open to playing in the centres and he's done that, changed position and adapted really well.
"Everything we've asked him to do, he's done."
Like his brother Mason, the six-foot-two 207-pound Noah is a physical presence, "who brings a hard edge to the midfield," said Jones.
Six-foot-four Mason lines up besides six-foot-seven Kaden Duguid, a Pacific Pride graduate earning his fourth straight start, in the second row.
Canada has some unfinished business with Chile, which ended its qualification bid for last year's World Cup with a 54-46 aggregate victory in their two-legged series in October 2021.
Jones is expecting a "physical confrontation" Saturday.
"They're very good in their set pieces, their maul," he added. "They're very simple in what they do but they're hard to deal with. They're a very aggressive, physical side."
Jones's starting forwards all come from Major League Rugby with three members of the champion New England Free Jacks, two each from the Chicago Hounds — including captain Lucas Rumball — and RFC LA and one from NOLA Gold.
Veteran flanker Matt Heaton, one of the RFC LA representatives, makes his first appearance for Canada since 2021.
The 31-year-old Heaton has been dealing with a litany of injuries — leg, knee and head knocks. Recently married, he also became a father.
Jones is delighted to have the experienced forward back in the fold
"He's gone through some lifestyle changes but he's always been keen, always giving feedback," said Jones. "He's always been in my depth chart and he's champing at the bit … He's telling me he's been in the best shape of his life. It's really good to have him back."
Jason Higgins and Peter Nelson pair up again at scrum half and fly half in a backline featuring four MLR players.
Jones's 32-man tour roster includes 25 players who took part in the Pacific Nations Cup, which saw Canada lose to No. 14 Japan (55-28), the 19th-ranked United States (28-15) and No. 16 Tonga (30-17) in August and September.
"The more exposure they can get at that level and the more time they can spend as a group with the coaches, the better these players can get," Jones said of his young squad.
"We're effective but we need to be more efficient," he added. "We need to take the opportunities when we get into the opposition 22. We're not capitalizing. But that's normal. It's teaching young players who to win test matches."
The Canadian men split their two earlier test matches in July in Ottawa, beating Romania 35-22 and losing 73-12 to No. 7 Scotland.
The tour roster also includes uncapped scrum half Jesse Kilgour, centre Rhys James and loosehead prop Sam Miller, who all trained with Canada before the Pacific Nations Cup. Kilgour and James play for Pacific Pride while Miller is a graduate of the program.
Duguid and Tyler Matchem earned their first caps against Japan and Tonga.
"It's one eye on the future," said Jones. "This is probably our last window to look at some of these younger guys before we get to the serious stuff in World Cup qualification next year."
Canada will look to qualify for the 2027 World Cup through the 2025 Pacific Nations Cup.
The top three teams from the Pacific Nations Cup will book their ticket to the 2027 World Cup in Australia. But given Fiji and Japan have already qualified, a top-five finish would do it for Canada if Fiji and Japan finish above it.
This year's Pacific Nations Cup field also included No. 13 Samoa.
Should Canada fail to qualify through the Pacific Nations Cup, it will still have two more chances to make the World Cup field, via a playoff with the 2025 Sudamerica Rugby Championship runner-up and, finally, a four-team repechage tournament.
Canada failed to qualify for the 2023 World Cup for the first time after losing qualifying series to the U.S. (59-50 on aggregate) and Chile.
Canada Roster
Cole Keith, Apohaqui, N.B., New England Free Jacks (MLR); Andrew Quattrin, Holland Landing, Ont., New England Free Jacks (MLR); Conor Young, Yamba, Australia, RFC LA (MLR); Kaden Duguid, Edmonton, NOLA Gold (MLR); Mason Flesch, Cobourg, Ont., Chicago Hounds (MLR); Ethan Fryer, Issaquah, U.S., New England Free Jacks (MLR); Matt Heaton, Godmanchester, Que., RFC LA (MLR); Lucas Rumball, Toronto, Chicago Hounds (MLR); Jason Higgins, Cork, Ireland, Chicago Hounds (MLR); Peter Nelson, Dungannon, Northern Ireland, Dungannon RFC (Northern Ireland); Josiah Morra, Toronto, New England Free Jacks (MLR); Noah Flesch, Cobourg, Ont., Pacific Pride; Ben LeSage, Calgary, New England Free Jacks (MLR); Andrew Coe, Markham, Ont., RFC LA (MLR); Nic Benn, Caves Beach, Australia, Utah Warriors (MLR).
Replacements
Jesse Mackail, Palmerston North, New Zealand, Pacific Pride; Calixto Martinez, White Rock, B.C., Old Glory DC (MLR); Tyler Matchem, Pictou County, N.S., Pacific Pride; Callum Botchar, Vancouver, NOLA Gold (MLR); Siôn Parry, Cardiff, Wales, Ebbw Vale RFC (Wales); Brock Gallagher, Edmonton, Strathcona Druids RFC; Cooper Coats, Halifax, Halifax Tars; Mitch Richardson, Stoney Creek, Ont., McMaster University.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
