24 years in 140 characters: Firemen and lumberjacks pushed All Blacks in 1991 and battled the Boks in 1995 but fell away when game went pro. Gareth Rees, where art thou?
World Cup record
1987: Pool Stages
1991: Quarter-finals
1995: Pool Stages
1999: Pool Stages
2003: Pool Stages
2007: Pool Stages
Record in 2011: P6 W4 L2
Coach: Kieran Crowley
Captain: Pat Riordan
How are they likely to get on
Canada made the quarter-finals in 1991, famously giving New Zealand a run for their money in Villeneuve-d'Ascq, near Lille, before losing 29-13. They are ever present at the World Cup but will not win this one, or even emulate the feats of 20 years past. Once the great hope for a breakthrough in the Americas, they have now seen time called even on their development programme in north Wales. They will fear no one physically, but have only seven professionals with European clubs in their squad of 30. Keep an eye on one of them, the wonderfully named wing forward recently signed by the Ospreys, Chauncey O'Toole.
Key player: The enforcer in the pack is Jamie Cudmore of Clermont Auvergne, who even surprises the French with the regularity of his visits to the sinbin. The knockouts may be a stage beyond the team, but not their second row.
Commentator's kit: Ander Monro's grandfather was Lord Hector Monro, a former president of the Scottish Rugby Union. The fly-half was educated at Glenalmond College and Edinburgh University.
Squad
Hubert Buydens, prop, age 29, caps 6
Scott Franklin, prop, age 31, caps 8
Jason Marshall, prop, age 26, caps 7
Andrew Tiedemann, prop, age 23, caps 11
Frank Walsh, prop, age 35, caps 4
Ryan Hamilton, hooker, age 23, caps 4
Pat Riordan (c), hooker, age 31, caps 39
Jamie Cudmore, second-row, age 33, caps 23
Brian Erichsen, second-row, age 34, caps 5
Tyler Hotson, second-row, age 26, caps 20
Nanyak Dala, flanker, age 27, caps 11
Adam Kleeberger, flanker, age 27, caps 31
Chauncey O'Toole, flanker, age 25, caps 12
Jebb Sinclair, flanker, age 25, caps 17
Aaron Carpenter, No8, age 28, caps 38
Jeremy Kyne, No8, age 28, caps 1
Ed Fairhurst, scrum-half, age 32, caps 49
Jamie Mackenzie, scrum-half, age 22, caps 3
Sean White, scrum-half, age 23, caps 10
Nathan Hirayama, fly-half, age 23, caps 7
Ander Monro, fly-half, age 30, caps 26
Phil Mackenzie, wing, age 24, caps 9
Mike Scholz, centre, age 23, caps 4
Ryan Smith, centre, age 31, caps 45
Conor Trainor, centre, age 22, caps 1
Taylor Paris, wing, age 18, caps 2
DTH van der Merwe, centre, age 25, caps 17
James Pritchard, full-back, age 32, caps 37
Matt Evans, full-back, age 23, caps 12
Ciaran Hearn, wing, age 25, caps 16
Average age 26.8
Average caps 15.8
