Canada’s Men’s Rugby Team begin their World Rugby Nations Cup November 2026 campaign with 59-14 loss to Georgia.

PHYSICALITY ON DISPLAY IN FIRST HALF

Georgia jumped out to an early 5-0 lead in the third minute with a grubber kick down the outside and try by Dachi Papunashvili.

Canada responded quickly, pressing deep inside Georgia’s 5-meter line. Following a strong run by Takoda McMullin, a Ben LeSage chip kick, and a penalty, Canada broke through the Georgian defense in the 10th minute. Jesse Kilglour popped a quick pass to LeSage, who crashed through a gap to put Canada on the board. McMullin added the conversion to give Canada a 7-5 edge.

The first half continued at a chaotic, back-and-forth pace. Georgia had an apparent 13th-minute try by their right winger which was called off after a TMO review determined a forward pass. A yellow card against Canadian winger Nic Benn in the 19th minute opened space for Georgia’s Akaki Tabutsadze to touch down just a minute later, pushing Georgia ahead 10-7.

Canada reclaimed momentum in the 26th minute following a heated exchange, as Izzak Kelly sneaked around the blindside of the scrum to score. McMullin’s second conversion put Canada up 14-10.

Georgia dominated the final ten minutes of the half. Their full-back split the Canadian defense in the 30th minute to set up a try for Davit Niniashvili that was converted by Matkava that gave Georgia a 17-14 lead. In the dying moments before the whistle, Georgia strung together a well-executed team try finished off by Luka Tabatadze. With the conversion slotted by Matkava, Georgia carried a 24-14 advantage into halftime.

GEORGIA PULLS AWAY

Georgia is back on the board with 7 points after being awarded a penalty try in the 44th minute while Canadian captain Lucas Rumball was sent to the sin bin with a yellow card.

Shortly after Rumball returned to the field in the 54th minute, Georgia struck through the Canadian defence with replacement prop Beka Gigashvili in the 55th minute, extending their lead to 38-14 following Matkava’s third conversion. Kyle Tremblay was forced off the pitch with an injury that sidelined him for the remainder of the match.

In the 67th minute, a clever chip kick from the Georgian scrum-half landed cleanly in Canada’s try zone for their Tornike Kakhoidze to pounce on with Matkava’s fourth conversion. Georgia wove through Canada’s defensive line for Kakhoidze with the try and Matkava with his fifth try, blowing the lead open to 52-14. Canada suffered another setback in the 74th minute when Liam James sustained an injury and was ruled out for the rest of the game.

Georgia closed out their performance in the 78th minute with one final surge. Karkadze dived over the try line, and Matkava’s sixth and final conversion would be commanding 59-14 victory over Canada.

WORDS FROM CAPTAIN LUCAS RUMBALL

“We made some errors that put us under a lot of pressure. We need to be more accurate, make fewer errors, myself included, and we need to improve our kicking game. I think we did some good things, especially in that first half being a man down, but I wouldn’t say we were on par; we need to be better.”

CANADA SCORING SUMMARY   
Tries:  Ben Lesage (1), Izzak Kelly (1)
Conversions: Takoda McMullin (2)

NEXT FOR CANADA’S MEN’S RUGBY TEAM

Canada’s Men’s Rugby Team vs Hong Kong China
Saturday November 14, 2026
15:00 Local / 6:00am PT / 9:00am ET
Live on TSN4, replay on TSN5 at 4:00pm PT / 6:00pm ET
Chambéry Savoie Stadium, Chambéry

Canada’s Men’s Rugby Team vs Romania
Friday November 20, 2026
18:30 Local / 8:30am PT / 11:30am ET
Live on TSN4, replay on TSN2 at 6:30pm PT / 8:30pm ET
Stadionul National Arcul de Triumf, Bucharest

CANADA’S MEN’S RUGBY TEAM’S MATCH DAY ROSTER VS GEORGIA
1. Calixto Martinez (White Rock, BC) – Bayside RFC / Old Glory DC (14 caps)
2. Foster DeWitt (Courtenay, BC) – Westshore RFC / Nottingham Rugby (8 caps)
3. Kyle Steeves (Winnipeg, MB) – Winnipeg Wombats / Blackheath Rugby (7 caps)
4. Daragh Doyle (Québec City, QC) – Clontarf FC (5 caps)
5. Izzak Kelly (White Rock, BC) – Bayside RFC (19 caps)
6. Matt Beukeboom (Lindsay, ON) – SAXV Angoulême (3 caps)
7. Lucas Rumball (Scarborough, ON) – Balmy Beach RC / Chicago Hounds (70 caps)
8. Tyler Ardron (Lakefield, ON) – Peterborough Pagans / Provence Rugby (40 caps)
9. Jesse Kilgour (Oro-Medonte, ON) – Barrie RC / Aurora Barbarians (3 caps)
10. Spencer Jones (Cambridge, NZ) – Hamilton Old Boys / Nottingham Rugby (19 caps)
11. Nic Benn (Caves Beach, AUS) – Hawkes Bay Magpies (13 caps)
12. Ben LeSage (Calgary, AB) – Calgary Canucks / New England Free Jacks (41 caps)
13. Jacob Ince (Oakville, ON) – Oakville Crusaders (5 caps)
14. Kyle Tremblay (White Rock, BC) – Bayside RFC / Westshore RFC (8 caps)
15. Takoda McMullin (White Rock, BC) – University of British Columbia / Bayside RFC (6 caps)

FINISHERS
16. Austin Creighton (Edmonton, AB) – Nor’Westers Athletic Association (4 caps)
17. Sam Miller (Mount Denson, NS) – Valley Rugby Union / Blackheath Rugby (10 caps)
18. Tyler Matchem (Pictou County, NS) – Pictou County RFC / James Bay AA (2 caps)
19. Barnaby Waddell (Exeter, ENG) – Okehampton RFC / Camborne RFC (5 caps)
20. Siôn Parry (Cardiff, WAL) – Rhiwbina RFC / Ebbw Vale RFC (21 caps)
21. Stephen Webb (Toronto, ON) – Balmy Beach RFC / Toronto City RC / University of British Columbia (2 caps)
22. Jack Gore (Mississauga, ON) – Oakville Crusaders / Wilfrid Laurier University (0 caps)
23. Liam James (Vancouver, BC) – University of British Columbia / UBCOB Ravens (4 caps)

ABOUT THE WORLD RUGBY NATIONS CUP
The World Rugby Nations Cup is a new biennial competition featuring 12 nations already qualified for Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027. Designed to create a structured annual test calendar and increase opportunities for meaningful international competition, the tournament represents a significant step forward in the global game.

SUPPORT RUGBY CANADA
Earned Not Given is a national campaign designed to shine a light on what Canadians don’t always see – Canada’s National Team players working full-time jobs, balancing education, constant fundraising, and training without the spotlight.

Through this campaign, Canadians are invited to invest in that meaning — by supporting Rugby Canada’s high-performance programs, player development pathways, and grassroots growth across the country. Donations directed through the Earned Not Given campaign will fund Canada’s National Rugby Teams’ high-performance programs, travel for international competition, coaching, recovery resources, and grassroots initiatives. Canadians can learn more and contribute at
https://rugby.ca/donate.