Cudmore's last international appearance came at the 2007 Rugby World Cup © Getty Images

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Clermont Auvergne lock Jamie Cudmore has been recalled to the Canada squad for next month's Churchill Cup.

The 32-year-old, who has not played for the Canucks since the 2007 Rugby World Cup, has been named in coach Kieran Crowley's 26-man squad for the tournament that will also feature England Saxons, Italy 'A', Russia, Tonga and the USA.

Club duties, injuries, suspensions and family issues have prevented Crowley from selecting Cudmore since he took over the side four years ago and he will be without him once again for their opening game against Italy on June 4 due to Clermont's presence in the Top 14 play-offs.

But the 6ft 5in, 257lb second row has his sights set on return to the international stage and a third World Cup having also featured at the 2003 tournament in Australia. "Definitely he wants to be there, he always has," Crowley said when announcing his squad. "Things have just transpired against us."

However, Crowley insisted that the no-nonsense forward, capped 19 times by the Canucks, is going to have to earn his place. "He's not coming in with a free ride," said Crowley. "He's also got to prove his ability within the group. You can't have the expectation that you're just going to walk into it. Everyone's got to prove themselves for each game."

Flanker Adam Kleeberger (shoulder), utility back DTH van der Merwe (wrist and nose) and winger Taylor Paris (hand) are injured and unavailable for selection while flanker Stan McKeen is continuing his studies at Oxford University. But Crowley insists the selection door is not closed with a number of places in his World Cup squad still up for grabs.

"As I've said all along to the guys, just because you're going to the Churchill Cup doesn't mean you're going to the World Cup. And just because you miss out on Churchill doesn't mean you're not going," he said. "Performances at the Churchill Cup are pretty vital because it's a chance for the guys that are there to cement their places or put in performances that stick up their hand to say "Yeah, I'm the man.' But it's also opportunities for them to also play themselves out of it.''

Canada, who were beaten by the Saxons in the final of the 2010 Churchill Cup, have not played since a tour of Europe at the end of last year where they notched victories against Belgium, Spain and Portugal and were beaten by Georgia. They can also look forward to a clash with Italy 'A' that will help decide who they meet in the play-offs.

Canada's Churchill Cup squad:

Forwards: Pat Riordan, Ryan Hamilton, Scott Franklin, Hubert Buydens, Andrew Tiedemann, Jason Marshall, Tom Dolezel Tyler Hoston, Brian Erichsen, Jamie Cudmore, Sean Michael Stephen, Jebb Sinclair, Chauncey O'Toole, Aaron Carpenter

Backs: Sean White, Ed Fairhurst, Nathan Hirayama, Ander Monro, Ryan Smith, Conor Trainor, Phil Mackenzie, Justin Mensah-Coker, Ciaran Hearn, James Pritchard, Matt Evans