Jamie Cudmore's brothers will cheer him on as he faces Japan at B.C. Place

The Cudmore boys grew up in Squamish and were forged by the outdoors. They were big, fast, and rambunctious. In between ski racing, fishing and mountain biking, there was hardly any time in front of a television. The world of imagination was running around the woods playing make-believe.

There were plenty of fights and falls, too: It is inevitable among three headstrong brothers. Gashes were stitched by their father, a doctor, on a table in the family home and, occasionally, on a sailboat. The B.C. wilderness shaped the boys – and even as they have gone far, their lives remain rooted where they came from.

The middle brother, Daniel Cudmore, is the best known, a prominent actor in the province's prospering film industry, in roles such as the mutant Colossus in the X-Men movies. Luke Cudmore, the youngest, played national-team rugby and professionally overseas, but injuries cut short his career. He returned to work in Vancouver's booming construction business.

This week, the two welcome home their oldest brother, Jamie Cudmore, captain of Canada's national rugby team, which will take on Japan at BC Place on Saturday afternoon as part of a series of international matches.

Jamie discovered the sport two decades ago, working a logging job as a teenager. The competitive local scene eventually propelled him to the top reaches of the sport internationally. ESPN UK has described the 37-year-old as "one of rugby's toughest and most ruthless players." Jamie, 6-foot-5 and 260 pounds, has spent the past decade with one of the best clubs in Europe, France's Clermont Auvergne.

Saturday's game is the first time at BC Place for the national 15-a-side rugby team. About 8,000 tickets have been sold, well over the capacity of about 5,000 at Swangard Stadium in Burnaby, where such matches previously were staged.

Rugby – still a niche sport – is gaining ground. An abbreviated version, rugby sevens, makes its Olympics debut this summer, and Canada's women are a medal favourite. The men's World Rugby Sevens Series visited Vancouver for the first time in March, drawing 60,000 over two lively days at BC Place.

On Saturday, Daniel and Luke Cudmore will be among the thousands cheering for Jamie.

"People don't understand how hard it is to go overseas and play," Daniel said. "I'm his brother, so I'm definitely going to boast about the guy, but it's a hugely illustrious career."

Ask Jamie, and it is Daniel who had the most rugby talent. "Daniel is the one who could have been the best," he said.

Daniel is taller than Jamie, and faster. "He's the best looking, too," joked Jamie. In Daniel's early 20s, when he was drawn to rugby, he also scored his big break in movies, X2. But he pursued the sport for several years before focusing on film. "I didn't want to be that guy at the bar saying what could have been," Daniel said. Like youngest brother Luke, he was forced off the field by injuries.

Jamie leads Canada, ranked No. 18 in the world, on the field in three matches this month. The first is the toughest, versus No. 10 Japan. The next two are June 18, in Calgary, versus No. 19 Russia, and June 26, in Toronto, against No. 14 Italy.

But Jamie's life in rugby is also about to change. As his playing days near an end, he is moving towards coaching.

Off the field, he and his wife run Sin Bin Wine, which takes its name from the penalty bench (or sin bin), where Jamie has been known to spend time because of his physical play. The white is called Yellow Card. The red, of course, is Red Card. (Earlier in his career, Jamie had several long suspensions, one for punching an opponent, another for stamping.)

Playing to a bigger audience at home is buoying for Jamie, even if rugby sevens, not traditional 15-a-side rugby, has stoked recent attention.

"Getting more kids playing rugby is exactly what we want," Jamie said.

Earlier in life, Jamie Cudmore was on course to become a national team ski racer – but he quit at 16, burnt out from racing. And the physical spirit of Squamish, the old, rough-hewn industrial Squamish, ran too deep in his blood. Hunting. Four-by-fouring in the mountains. Drinking beer and fighting down by the river.

"There's probably 100,000 kids in B.C. doing the same thing we did," Jamie said. "It's a great way to grow up."