Its been a whirlwind start for Liam Middleton as coach of the Canadian mens rugby sevens side.Appointed in late September, the Zimbabwe-born coach didnt make it to Victoria until two weeks ago because of immigration red tape.Essentially Middleton had a week to work with his players on the West Coast before flying out to Dubai for Fridays start of the Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens, the second stop on the HSBC Sevens World Series.It did mean I got some sessions in with the guys and weve had a couple here in Dubai so far, said Middleton, taking the glass half-full view. I think it was probably enough time to get integrated in the squad. Any less would have been a little bit of a challenge.But Im happy with a week with the guys. A bit more would have been nice. It was just good to get there and get to these tournaments.After Dubai, the teams head to South Africa for a Dec. 13-14 tournament.Middleton previously served as the Zimbabwe sevens coach and director of rugby at the Zimbabwe Rugby Union. He also coached in England with second-tier Bristol and Hartpury College.The 37-year-old Middleton has big shoes to fill.Canada had a breakthrough season in 2013-14 when it finished sixth on the circuit under Welsh coach Geraint John, who subsequently quit to take over the Australian sevens program. Under John, Canada reached the final in Glasgow and placed third in Las Vegas.The stakes are raised this season with the top four teams earning automatic qualification for the 2016 Olympics, where rugby sevens makes its debut.Should Canada not crack the top four, it still has two more chances to make the 12-team Olympic field. One team will qualify from a North American and Caribbean regional tournament with another coming out of a last-ditch 16-team world playoff.Middleton missed the first event of the season in Australia in October when Canada placed 13th in the absence of the injured Nanyak Dala, Nathan Hirayama, Phil Mack, Mike Scholz and Sean White. Canada went 0-3-0 in its pool but the losses were all by small margins: 17-15 to the U.S., 14-12 to Argentina and 19-12 to England.Middleton also has to contend with injuries in Dubai. Dala (facial injury), Hirayama (shoulder), Harry Jones (groin) and Liam Underwood (concussion) are all out while Ciaran Hearn is being rested after the November 15-man tour.Well be in a similar boat, he said of his roster. But I dont think its a bad thing for us to try and open up our squad a little bit as we build over the next couple of years.Canada, which is in a challenging pool with South Africa, Wales and Portugal, features five players who have never played in Dubai before.On the plus side, the speedy Mack is back in the sevens squad.Hes a phenomenal rugby player. A phenomenal sevens player, said Middleton, who has been to the Dubai event seven times. Hes added a fair bit of leadership and hes also give us some creativity in the midfield which we need. Particularly with Harry Jones not being in the squad with us.While Middleton travels to Dubai and South Africa, wife Sarah and sons Struan (two) and Ethan (nine months) will be settling in the Victoria area with Langford, home to Rugby Canadas Centre of Excellence, their likely final settling point.So far he likes what he sees.I think its fantastic. The scenery is phenomenal and weve felt very welcome in the Langford area.Canada RosterAdmir Cejvanovic, Burnaby Lake RFC, Vancouver; Justin Douglas, Abbotsford RFC, Abbotsford, B.C.; Sean Duke, UVIC Vikes, Vancouver; Mike Fuailefau, Castaway Wanderers, Victoria; Lucas Hammond, Toronto Nomads, Toronto; Pat Kay, UVIC Vikes, Duncan, B.C.; Phil Mack, James Bay AA, Victoria; John Moonlight (capt.), James Bay AA, Pickering, Ont.; Jack Smith, James Bay AA, Lakefield, Ont.; Conor Trainor, UBCOB Ravens, Vancouver; Sean White, James Bay AA; Victoria; Adam Zaruba, Capilano RFC, Vancouver.Follow @NeilMDavidson on Twitter Best Cheap Lebrons . James scored 25 points against his former team, leading the energized Heat to a 114-107 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday night. Dwyane Wade added 24 points and Chris Bosh had 22 for the Heat, idle since a 90-84 loss Tuesday at Indiana. Cheap Lebrons For Sale . 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The Liverpool striker is expected to get the nod to lead the line for Gareth Southgates side at Wembley, but tactical expert Higginbotham believes Scotlands deep defensive line might make it difficult for him to use his pace.Daniel Sturridge is a fantastic player who likes to play on the shoulder of opposition defences, he told Sky Sports. The problem youre going to find is that the back four are going to be happy to play deep and narrow. The midfield are going to come tight and deep too. Watch NOW TV Watch Sky Sports for just ￡6.99. No contract. What you are going to find then is that there isnt going to be the space for Sturridge to run into. It doesnt matter how quick you are, theres not going to be any space to expose the oppositions lack of pace, unless you get an early goal. Danny Higginbotham thinks Daniel Sturridge could struggle to find space Youre not going to shift that back four around too much and that becomes a bit of an issue because youll find a lot of players are grouped together with a lack of movement.ddddddddddddSouthgates apparent decision to start with Sturridge raised eyebrows in some quarters. The 27-year-old scored in Englands recent 2-0 win over Malta, but he is yet to net a Premier League goal this season having fallen down the pecking order under Jurgen Klopp. Merse on England v Scotland England must put Scotland under pressure at Wembley, says Paul Merson Higginbotham believes Tottenhams Kane, who scored from the penalty spot on his return from injury against Arsenal at the weekend, could be better equipped to break Scotland down.What you see with Harry Kane is that hes quite happy to drop deep, said Higginbotham. The problem you then have as a centre-back is, do you go with him or do you not? If you dont then hes able to turn and look for the likes of Raheem Sterling and Theo Walcott. But if you go tight, then youre still leaving space between the centre-backs and full-backs. Thats why I think its key for Kane to play.Higginbotham also discusses how Wayne Rooney could help unlock Scotlands defence from midfield, and assesses Scotlands attacking options. Watch the video above to see his full analysis. Also See: Merse on England v Scotland Sturridge no risk, Rooney is Poppy action down to match chief VOTE: England or Scotland? ' ' '