Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby XIII in non-Anglophone Europe and South America, and referred to colloquially as football, footy, rugby, or league in its heartlands, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 m (74 yd) wide and 112–122 m (122–133 yd) long with H-shaped posts at both ends. It is one of the two major codes of rugby football, the other being rugby union. It originated in 1895 in Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England, as the result of a split from the Rugby Football Union (RFU) over the issue of payments to players. The rules of the game governed by the new Northern Rugby Football Union progressively changed from those of the RFU with the specific aim of producing a faster and more entertaining game to appeal to spectators, on whose income the new organisation and its members depended.
The Churchill Cup was an annual rugby union tournament, held in June, contested by representative men's teams from Canada, England, the United States, and other invited teams from a wide array of countries.
Gareth Lloyd Rees is a Canadian former international rugby union footballer who played at fly-half and full back positions. Rees played for several English club sides, including Wasps and Harlequins. He won 55 caps for Canada, captaining them on 23 occasions and scoring 487 test points. In October 2011, Rees received arguably his greatest honour with induction to the IRB Hall of Fame. He and fellow 2011 inductee Brian Lima of Samoa are the first members of the IRB Hall from nations outside of the traditional top tier of the sport.
Football Club Auch Gers is a French rugby union club based in Auch in Occitania most recently playing in the promotion-eligible pool of Fédérale 1. In recent years, they have mainly bounced between the first-level Top 14 and Pro D2. In a five-year stretch between 2003 and 2004 and 2007–08, they were either promoted or relegated four times—promoted to the then-Top 16 as champions of Pro D2 in 2004, relegated in 2005, promoted as Pro D2 champions again in 2007, and relegated as bottom finisher in 2008. Founded in 1891, the club plays at Stade Jacques Fouroux ; its players wear red and white.
Andrew James Titterrell is a former rugby union player who played at hooker and previously for England.
The Canada men's national rugby union team represents the Canada in men's international rugby union competitions. They are overseen by Rugby Canada the governing body of rugby union in Canada.
Jamie Cudmore is a Canadian former professional rugby union player who played as a lock and as a flanker. Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, he began his career with Capilano RFC in British Columbia. He then played professionally in Wales for Llanelli and Llandovery, and in France for Grenoble, Clermont and Oyonnax. He was nicknamed "Cuddles" by his teammates.
Jacques Fouroux was a French rugby union player and coach. He captained France when they won the Grand Slam in 1977, and was the manager when the side repeated the feat in 1981 and 1987. Due to his small stature and strong personality, he was nicknamed "Le petit caporal", a reference to Napoléon Bonaparte's nickname.
Rugby union is a moderately popular sport in Canada; it is quite strong as a participation sport, particularly in several hotspots like British Columbia, Atlantic Canada, the West Island of Montreal, Quebec City and Ontario but does not attract the same level of spectator support yet, likely because the CFL's popular brand of Canadian Football is still similar to rugby in many ways, whilst also being the dominant football code in the country. Rugby Canada is the administrative body for rugby union in Canada. Every province also has its own union.
Edward Fairhurst is a former Canadian international rugby union player.
Justin Mensah-Coker is a Canadian rugby union player who plays internationally with the Canada national team. He is of Sierra Leonean descent.
Scott Franklin, is a Canadian Professional rugby union player who plays rugby for the Prairie Wolf Pack in Canada, and for the Canadian national team. Franklin is a prop/Flanker/#8.
Ryan Smith is a former Canadian rugby union player, who played club football for French team US Montauban in the Top 14 division and represented Canada at international level. Smith's first appearance for the national side was on June 14, 2003, in a match against England Saxons. Smith played 51 times for Canada, scoring 9 tries, and appeared in the 2003 and 2007 and most recently the earning his 51st cap. World Cups. On December 1, 2011, Ryan Smith announced his retirement from all levels of rugby.
The Vancouver Wave are a Canadian rugby union team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The team plays in the Rugby Canada National Junior Championship and draws most of its players from the Vancouver Rugby Union and the British Columbia Rugby Union, one of fourteen Rugby Unions that have rep teams in the RCSL.
Jacques Brunel is a French rugby union coach and former player. He was most recently the French national team head coach, having previously been assistant coach for his nation and had led the Italian national team between 2011 and 2016. Brunel, who has spent most of his career in France, formally coached his former team Auch, as well as Bordeaux Bègles, Colomiers, Pau and Perpignan.
Andrew Tiedemann is a Canadian rugby union player. His position is prop, and he has played 11 tests for the Canada national team. Tiedemann currently plays rugby for Castaway Wanderers RFC in the British Columbia Premiership and the Prairie Wolf Pack of the Canadian Rugby Championship. Previously, Tiedemann spent time with St. Albert RFC and the University of Victoria.
UBC Old Boys Ravens is a Canadian rugby union team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. Founded in 1974, Ravens was formed by graduates from the University of British Columbia. The club currently competes in, and is the two-time defending champion of, the British Columbia Premier Rugby League.
Andrea Burk is a Canadian rugby footballer. She represented Canada in rugby union at the 2014 Women's Rugby World Cup and in rugby league at the 2017 Women's Rugby League World Cup. She made her debut in their 2009 tour of France.
Barbara Mervin is a Canadian rugby union player also known affectionately as Swevin Mervin. She represented Canada at the 2014 Women's Rugby World Cup. She broke a bone in her right hand in Canada's first World Cup match against Spain and missed out on the rest of the World Cup in France. Mervin was a member of the Canadian sevens team that won the 2012 Las Vegas Sevens.
Lesley McKenzie is a Canadian rugby union player with 25 caps and the coach of the Japan women's national rugby union team. She played for Canada at the 2006 and 2010 Rugby World Cup's, and coached Japan at the 2021 World Cup.
