After a disappointing showing at the Perth stop of the HSBC SVNS Series, both the Canadian men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 rugby sevens squads are looking for better results in Vancouver.

The women鈥檚 side lost a tight Cup quarterfinal 7-0 to Britain in Perth, eventually finishing seventh, while the men鈥檚 team ended up in 12th.

Phil Berna, playing in his 50th sevens series, said he and his teammates are looking to put the experience in Australia behind them and focus on the present.

鈥淲e had a bit of a tough one in Perth results wise and injuries wise, we lost three key members,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 thought I broke my leg at one point and now I鈥檓 back training so I鈥檓 really grateful to be back.鈥�

The focus, he added, is integrating younger players into the squad for when absences pile up for Olympic qualifying in Monaco.

鈥淚t鈥檚 another opportunity for new guys that we鈥檙e going to need at the end of the year when injuries inevitably happen 鈥� and they鈥檙e getting exposure now,鈥� he said.

Men鈥檚 head coach Sean White, who played in the first of the competitions held in Vancouver as part of the sevens series, said his team is looking to improve its consistency.

He pointed out his team went 0-5 at the tournaments in Dubai and Perth while finishing seventh at Cape Town, which shows a need for consistency.

鈥淗ow do we make that moment last longer?鈥� White said. 鈥淲hen we play our game, and it鈥檚 a very basic game, we don鈥檛 try to overcomplicate what we do on the field, but when we get it right, we鈥檙e dangerous. We just hope to get it right more often than we don鈥檛.鈥�

Heading into the three-day Vancouver competition that starts Friday, the Canadian women are sixth in the overall standings, while the men鈥檚 team sits 11th.

Sophie de Goede, the captain of Canada鈥檚 women鈥檚 rugby 15s team, current Allianz Premiership Women鈥檚 Rugby points leader and 2022 World Rugby Women鈥檚 Player of the Year nominee, will make her return for the women鈥檚 rugby 7s team in Vancouver.

She made her international sevens series debut last May at HSBC France Sevens and helped Canada鈥檚 Women鈥檚 Sevens Team qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympics in August in Langford, B.C.

鈥淚 think the start to the season in Dubai and Cape Town was a really strong start for us bouncing back from finishing ninth in the overall series last year, and then bit of a dip back for us in Perth,鈥� she said.

鈥淪o I think this is a really good opportunity for us to have a big bounce back tournament at home.鈥�

Women鈥檚 head coach Jack Henratty said he and his team are 鈥渄isappointed鈥� with their place in the current standings, but it鈥檚 an improvement from last season.

鈥淲e鈥檙e sixth at the moment, I think all in all we鈥檙e disappointed but it鈥檚 a much better place than ninth was at the end of last year,鈥� Henratty said.

鈥淲e were very disappointed last year. We looked at it and said 鈥榳e鈥檙e a better team than ninth鈥� but the facts and the results said differently.鈥�

Vancouver was confirmed as one of eight stops on the sevens circuit in July, having first been introduced as one for the men鈥檚 games in 2016.

There had been concerns that the popular stop wouldn鈥檛 make the cut as World Rugby looked to streamline the tournament series, but White and Berna emphasized the importance of having a Canadian destination on the circuit.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 know offhand if the numbers are growing, but I think tournaments like this, you know, really give that opportunity for growth,鈥� White said.

After Vancouver, the teams head to Los Angeles, Hong Kong and Singapore before wrapping up in Madrid from May 31 to June 2.

The men鈥檚 team will also play an Olympic qualifier in Monaco in June.

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