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MARKHAM, Ont. — After getting punched in the jaw during Canada’s weekend rugby loss to Romania in Edmonton, Tyler Ardron found himself chatting with his assailant at the post-game meal.

Hooker Otar Turashvili, it seems, is good company off the field. Fisticuffs forgotten, the two chatted about life playing pro rugby.

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“There’s not many sports you do that in,” Ardron said with a smile.

“He just said he was sorry. I just laughed and said ‘That was pretty dumb,”‘ Ardron added.

Turashvili agreed. While his red mist will likely cost him a suspension, the Romanian’s manners quickly returned after the final whistle.

That rough-and-tumble camaraderie is what drew the six-foot-four 242-pound Ardron to rugby.

“I played every sport, to be honest,” said the 26-year-old from Lakefield, Ont. “It was just the community of rugby that really kept me in it and wanted me to do it. And the travel once I got into the sevens (Canadian team).