Canada

8:40 am on 9 September 2011

Canada have played in every World Cup with their best result in 1991 when they made the quarter-finals before being beaten by New Zealand.

There is a Kiwi connection with former All Blacks and 1987 winning player Kieran Crowley their coach.

Crowley has 11 veterans of 2007 in France in the squad, including captain and hooker Pat Riordan, vice captain and fly half Anders Monro and wing DTH van der Merwe.

Crowley says it's been an exhaustive three year process and it's probably the first time since he's been here that they have been able to take Canada's best team.

Only seven members of the squad play club rugby professionally in England or France, with the rest playing in the Canadian rugby championship, with the 30-man selection boasting nearly 450 Test caps between them.

Canada were the top qualifying Americas team for the tournament and will certainly have a lot to prove when they take on some big-name teams in Pool A.

They play New Zealand and France, who they have never beaten, and Tonga and Japan in their pool.

Canada are ranked 15th in the world and are known as the ''Canucks'' or ''Maple Leafs''.