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Canada’s getting closer and closer to where they want to be in rugby sevens. There’s no doubt of that.

But you know the cliche about the few sporting scenarios where being close yields desired results.

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In other words, they’re not there yet.

In pool play this weekend at the Hong Kong 7s, they showed how complete their game is getting. Their defence is generally stout and on attack, they control the ball as well as any elite squad on the series and it delivers plenty of points.

They edged passed Kenya 17-14 to open their account. In that one they totally dominated the breakdown, something that’s no mean feat against the powerful Shujaa.

On day two, they dispatched a struggling French outfit with relative ease 28-14. It was close for a time but the Canadians are finding a relentlessness that’s serving them well. Damian McGrath is honest about the work to be done in building out his team’s depth; against France he went to every member on his bench and they all delivered.

To close the day there was a daunting showdown with series leaders South Africa. Canada pressed very, very hard, but the class of the BlitzBoks proved to be too much and they ran away to 26-7 winners, a score which wasn’t a fair reflection of the narrowness of play.