Canadian men fall two places to No. 20 in latest world rugby rankings

TORONTO — Canada has dropped two places to No 20 in World Rugby’s latest rankings in the wake of a 51-34 loss to the visiting U.S. Eagles.

It’s the biggest drop in the new rankings, along with that of No. 34 Poland.

Russia, thumped 46-21 by the Canadians last June, moved up two spots to take over from Canada at No. 18. The Russians beat Belgium 25-18 and lost 16-6 to Spain recently in the Rugby Europe Championship.

Canada and Russia were the only teams to move in the top 20. New Zealand remains No. 1, followed by England, Australia, Ireland and Wales.

The U.S. was unchanged at No. 17.

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Canada, now sandwiched between Namibia and Spain in the rankings, heads south to play No. 23 Uruguay on Saturday in its fourth outing of the Americas Rugby Championship. The Canadians have beaten Chile and lost to Argentina ‘A’ and the U.S. so far.

Canada is 2-7-0 since coach Mark Anscombe took over from Kieran Crowley last year. But the New Zealander has had few chances to field his strongest lineup.

The Canadian Press