A penalty goal from Gonzalo López with time up on the clock denied Canada a major upset on Saturday. The kick gave Spain a 24-23 win at Clarke Stadium, securing Los Leones a sweep from their North American tour. Despite the loss it was a much improved showing from the Maple Leafs after their subpar performance against Belgium a week before.
The first points also came from a López kick at the 5-minute mark following early pressure from Spain. Both teams had promising attacks halted inside their opponent’s 22 before Peter Nelson responded for Canada from 40 meters to level the scores. The fullback nudged the home side ahead by three with a more routine strike shortly after.
Spain manufactured their first try by stretching the Canadian defense wide to the left, then to the right, then all the way left again where a sweeping JW Bell gave Pau Aira a one-on-one with Nelson. The Spanish winger fought through the tackle to ground the ball in the corner. López couldn’t add the extras from the sideline, but he would give his team three points just before halftime after another advance was slowed.
The Maple Leafs emerged from halftime determined and when Spanish discipline faltered the Canadians were ready to strike. Evan Olmstead was held up by the hand of Therry Futeu under the posts, but the home side were on advantage and there was no stopping Matt Oworu from close range after opting for a tap penalty. Just four minutes later Oworu was in for his double after Spencer Jones charged down a clearance attempt from López, and suddenly Canada held a 20-11 lead.
Things began to sour when Cali Martinez was binned for a high shot. Piers von Dadelszen’s third lineout steal of the game was followed by a rampaging 50-meter gallop from Oworu, but the Leones turned the ball over and moved back upfield. This time the lineout worked as intended and when the maul collapsed, seven points went up on the board and the Canadians were temporarily reduced to 13 men as Emerson Prior was deemed the guilty party.
With the two props still off the pitch Nelson had a long-range shot at the posts but pulled it just right. He made good shortly after to restore a five-point lead for the home side, but it wouldn’t last long as López responded in kind to make for the grandstand finish.
Things were looking good for the Maple Leafs when replacement Lucas Santamaría saw yellow for a dangerous tackle, but Spain again won back possession and a series of phases put them well inside Canadian territory. After turning down one chance to kick at goal the lineout was slowed, but another penalty give López a better angle and his right boot did the rest.
The Spanish players now return to their clubs before reconvening for the November test window. For Canada the stakes now move higher as they begin their quest for World Cup qualification with a North American derby clash against the USA Eagles in Calgary on August 22. The winner will likely earn a spot at Australia 2027 though further results in the Pacific Nations Cup will ultimately tell the tale.
CANADA 23
Tries (2) – M. Oworu 2 (44′, 48′)
Cons (2) – P. Nelson 2/2 (45′, 49′)
Pens (3) – P. Nelson 3/4 (16′, 20′, 62′)
YC (2) – C. Martinez (51′), E. Prior (56′)
SPAIN 24
Tries (2) – P. Aira (32′), Penalty try (56′)
Cons (1) – G. López 0/1, No kick (56′)
Pens (4) – G. López 4/4 (5′, 39′, 64′, 80’+1′)
YC (1) – L. Santamaría (73′)
CANADA
1 Cali Martinez, 2 Andrew Quattrin (16 Dewald Kotze 77′), 3 Cole Keith (18 Kyle Steeves 64′), 4 Piers von Dadelszen, 5 Evan Olmstead, 6 Sion Perry (20 Matt Heaton 70′), 7 Lucas Rumball (capt.), 8 Matthew Oworu, 9 Jason Higgins, 10 Cooper Coats, 11 Josiah Morra, 12 Spencer Jones, 13 Noah Flesch, 14 Isaac Olson (17 Emerson Prior 53′-66′), 15 Peter Nelson
Not used: 19 Izzak Kelly, 21 Stephen Webb, 22 Kyle Tremblay, 23 Brenden Black
SPAIN
1 Thierry Futeu (17 Bernardo Vázquez 55′), 2 Álvaro García (capt.) (16 Vicente Del Hoyo 70′), 3 Joaquín Domínguez (18 Lucas Santamaría 72′), 4 Matt Foulds, 5 Asier Usárraga (19 Imanol Urraza 53′), 6 Ignacio Piñeiro, 7 Ekain Imaz (20 Vicente Boronat 70′), 8 Raphaël Nieto, 9 Kerman Aurrekotxea (21 Tani Bay 51′), 10 Gonzalo Vinuesa, 11 Pau Aira (23 Gauthier Minguillón 56′), 12 Gonzalo López, 13 Iñaki Mateu (22 Álvar Gimeno 51′), 14 Martiniano Cian (3 Joaquín Domínguez 73′), 15 JW Bell
Date: Friday, July 18
Venue: Clarke Stadium, Edmonton
Kickoff: 19:00 local
Weather: partly cloudy, 75°F (24°C), wind S 9-17mph (14-27km/h)
Referee: Angus Mabey (New Zealand)
Assistants: Gonzalo de Achaval (Argentina) & Luke Rogan (USA)
TMO: Mike Kelly (USA)
