Canada captain Pat Riordan has hailed his team’s display as they beat Tonga 20-25 to pick up their first World Cup win of the campaign.

"That was awesome," Riordan said after the match. "I’m proud of the boys and the guts they showed."

Canada came out of a dogged first half to seal the victory just five minutes from full-time.

"At half-time we knew we had to change a couple of things, [there were] a couple of things we had to do differently," he added.

"But everything we had to change was in our control and I think it’s awesome what we did."

Canada were underdogs going into the match, but hard defensive play and some ambitious runs were enough to see off the Tongans.

"It shows what the Canadian boys can do when they work hard," Riordan said. "I’m so proud of them."

Canada go on to face France on Sunday, September 18.