After having their early expectations derailed, the Canadian women鈥檚 sevens team hopes playing in front of a hometown crowd at the upcoming HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series event in Vancouver can help put their season back on track.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not been the start and the season that we were wanting,鈥� co-captain Olivia Apps said during a break in training. 鈥淭here鈥檚 lots to be said about this new group and just trying to build some chemistry and some cohesion with some new faces.

鈥淚 think for myself and the team, we鈥檙e really looking forward to making some bigger strides in the end of the season and finishing on a high.鈥�

After four stops on the World Rugby Sevens Series, the Canadian women are ranked 10th among the 14 teams with 16 points. The team鈥檚 best finish was eighth place in Cape Town, South Africa.

New Zealand, the winner of three of the tournaments, leads the standings with 78 points.

The HSBC Canada Sevens will be held at BC Place Stadium March 3-5. It will be the eighth time the tournament has been staged in Vancouver but the first with a full slate of 12 women鈥檚 teams competing at the same time as the men.

鈥淚t鈥檚 definitely something the team has been looking forward to,鈥� said Apps. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really special because it鈥檚 such a young team being able to showcase the rugby we have been working on.

鈥淚 have so much belief in this program and what we鈥檙e doing. It鈥檚 really going to be an honour to be able to do it in front of friends and family.鈥�

The Canadian women finished seventh overall in last year鈥檚 world sevens series. They were eighth in Dubai early in the season, then down the stretch placed fifth playing at home in Langford, B.C., and finished sixth in the final event in Toulouse, France.

鈥淲e wanted to get a podium finish this year and we are still looking to do that,鈥� said Apps, a 24-year-old scrum half from Lindsay, Ont. 鈥淲e were expecting some higher results this year, especially with the training we鈥檝e done.

鈥淐learly we have a lot of work that still needs to be done, lots of learning going forward.鈥�

Co-captain Breanne Nicholas said the Canadians will feed off the energy of the frenzied crowd that has packed BC Place for past tournaments.

鈥淲e know what the home crowd feels like in Langford, so we鈥檙e even more amped to get to BC Place, where we know there will be a huge crowd,鈥� said the 28-year-old hooker from Blenheim, Ont.

鈥淚t will be awesome. We can turn the season around.鈥�

The Canadian lineup will benefit from several players returning from injury, including rising star Piper Logan.

Logan turned heads in her international debut last year as part of the team that finished fourth at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England. She also was part of the team that finished sixth at the Rugby World Cup Sevens in Cape Town.

The Calgary native, who plays for UBC, suffered a foot injury in November during the Thunderbirds鈥� Canada West championship win over the Victoria Vikes.

Logan was sidelined for eight weeks but had her first full practice Monday and has been given the green light to play again. Being forced to watch as the team struggled hasn鈥檛 been easy.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been a new experience,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou want to be out there. It鈥檚 difficult seeing the challenges they鈥檙e going through and not being able to help out.

鈥淎 lot of us are coming back from injury so it will be a new group, which will be exciting for us.鈥�

Logan brings some versatility to the Canadian lineup by being able to play several different positions.

Apps likes what she has seen from Logan in the past.

鈥淧iper is an unpredictable player,鈥� she said. 鈥淪he brings a lot of speed and a lot of strength both defensively and offensively.

鈥淪he鈥檚 really an exciting player to watch.鈥�

Apps believes having men and women playing at the same tournament benefits the sport.

鈥淲ith the men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 sevens program in Canada, it鈥檚 nice to have more cohesion,鈥� she said.

鈥淚nternationally, women being able to play alongside the men at the same tournament, equality across the board is really important. Having more tournaments with them is going to be great exposure for the women鈥檚 game and for sevens in general.鈥�

鈥擩im Morris, The Canadian Press