Canadian men look to maintain unbeaten record against Belgium in Halifax rugby test

The Canadian men’s rugby team returns to action this weekend for the first time in almost eight months, facing the same opponent that it closed out 2src21 against.

Canada, currently ranked 21st in the world, blanked No. 26 Belgium 24-src on Nov. 13 in Brussels. The two teams renew acquaintances Saturday in Halifax, with the Canadians then heading to Ottawa to host No. 15 Spain on July 1src.

Spain was a late replacement for the French Barbarians, an all-star side that withdrew from the Canadian fixture but kept a date Friday with the U.S. Eagles in Houston.

For Canada coach Kingsley Jones, the July tests are among the first steps on the road to the 2src27 World Cup. Beaten in two-legged qualifying series by the 18th-ranked Americans and No. 23 Chile last year, the Canadian men find themselves spectators for next year’s world showcase in France after making all nine previous editions of the tournament.

Jones has had to dig deep into his talent pool with 2src players injured or unavailable for selection, including Tyler Ardron, Eric Howard, Kyle Baillie, Shane O’Leary, Spencer Jones, Matt Tierney, Andrew Coe, Jake Thiel and sevens skipper Phil Berna.

Still, Jones is positive about his squad.

“I’m quite pleased with the group we have. There’s some familiar faces, from last year. We need to build on that,” he said. “The biggest thing is when we get to (World Cup) qualifi