Richmond rugby standout Nolan Howell is in Romania as a member of a Rugby Canada U18 touring side that is on a three-game tour.
The Canadian team left Thursday for Frankfurt then will head to Bucharest for a pair of matches versus the Romanian U19 national team and another against its U18 squad.
Howell secured his spot on the Canadian roster with a strong showing for Team B.C. at the national rugby festival in Calgary this summer. Earlier, he closed out his high school career by having a leading role in the McRoberts Strikers earning bronze at the provincial AA rugby championships. Howell now plays for the UBC Thunderbirds.
He is one of 10 players from B.C. on the Canadian roster.
“We learned from last year that it’s an unfamiliar and challenging environment being so far from home, but it’s why we have agreed to travel back to Bucharest,” said Canadian head coach Jim Delaney.
Many of the players will be looking for spots on Canada’s 2015 Junior World Rugby Trophy team that will travel to Portugual, while others are aiming for spots on the 2016 and 2017 JRWT team.
