 Round 2 of the JML 15s league took place at Nomad Sports Club last Saturday and it was fantastic to see all the local teams out playing the traditional 15s format of Rugby Union. This was the first time that a number of the players had played 15s Rugby and it was obvious that they relished the opportunity to play the more physical style of the game.
In very hot conditions it was the women that kicked off the first game with a number of the players starting to prepare for the upcoming Women's International games:
June 2 - Philippines v Singapore to be played in Cebu
June 13 - 17 - Asian Women's 15s Division 2 Championships against Laos, Singapore and Uzbekistan to be played in Manila
 The Women played two games of 7s style rugby and it was Team Xena team that took victory in both games. Several National team players showed that they are ready to fire up for the Philippine team in June, with Rose De La Cruz scoring both tries for Team Xena and Cassie Umali scoring and converting for Nomads in the first match, which left team Xena the winners in a very tight battle by 14 - 10.
The second game saw National team second rower Reena Novero busting the defence open with several block busting runs which paved the way for the Team Xena backline to run in two unanswered tries and eventualy win the second game by 10 - 0.
National team coaches Susan Konstanty and Expo Mejia were very pleased with the quality of Rugby that they witnessed. With the Asian Women's Championships being held in Manila in a months time, they explained that all the women need to be playing top level, competitive Rugby from now until the June 13th tournament to be able to be contenders in these championships.
The next game was the Plate Division match between the Nomads Carabaos and Manila Hapons which saw a number of expats take the field. The game was extremely close in the first half with the Carabaos taking an early lead through a try by veteran player Nigel Barrett. To the Hapons credit, they kept the pressure on the Caraboas which finally paid dividends when they scored just before the halftime break to take a 10 - 7 lead. The Hapons came out in the second half and continued to apply the pressure and it looked they were going to surprise their more fancied opponents when Jun Park scored a great solo try. However, this seemed to spark the Carabaos into the game and the second half became a one-sided affair with the Carabaos scoring the next eight tries, Nigel Barrett led the way with his second try of the game and National U20s player, Daniel Melrose also scored and converted three times for the Carabaos to win the game comfortably by 38 - 12.
 The Bowl game, was by all observers the best game of the day with the Globe Immortals taking on the Tarsiers/Bison team. It also saw Cassie Umali referee her first game of 15s Rugby and what a game to make debut. Both teams were certainly fired up for a win and it was Chester Anin from Globe that scored the first try to help Globe begin the first half with a 5 - 0 lead.
The Globe team seemed to have the upper hand in the first half and both teams were playing an open style of rugby trying to outflank each other with their speedy backs. Globe finally realised that 15s Rugby must be dominated in the forwards before running wide and Rafael De Colnet scored the second try for Globe and extended the lead to 10 - 0.
The Tarsier/Bisons under coach Paul Churchill rallied at halftime and came out with a more focused gameplan. They started to control the ball in the forwards, and this new tactic paid off when Bisons flanker Noel Villa scored and game was hung in the balance at 10 -5. This certainly gave the Tarsier/Bisons a new lease of life and they immediately went straight back at the Globe team with some strong runs up the middle of the field from National U16 player Tim Churchill. This time it was the Tarsiers/ Bisons hooker Merick Magdarang who scored on the back of some good ruck work by the Tarsiers/Bison forwards to equalize the game at 10 - 10. Tim Churchill converted the try and the Tarsier/Bisons team took the lead for the first time in the game with two minuted left to play. Globe had one last shot at scoring but lost possession and the Tarsier/Bisons celebrated their first victory of the season with a score of 12 - 10.
The last game of the day was plalyed between the Manila Nomads and a touring side from Hong Kong, the Discovery Bay Pirates. The Nomads had defeated the Cebu Dragons last weekend in the opening round of the JML 15s League by 53 - 0 and were primed to take the game against the newly formed club from Hong Kong.
The Nomads have had an outstanding year so far, winning the Bostik 10s League and the Plate Final at the Manila 10s International Rugby Festival. They have been looking forward to playing the 15s season as most of their big forwards relish the hard physical nature of 15s Rugby. Under new coach, Phil Gittus who himself is a front row player, the Nomads have come up with a very forward-orientated gameplan which worked to perfection on Saturday with Nomads scoring their first three tries through the forwards mauling the ball through the Discovery Bay opposition.
 Chris Anderson and Paul Ingram were on the back of two 15m mauls to crash over for tries which was followed by a third try by prop Nick Treweeke. The Nomads never looked threatened as they took a 38 - 0 lead into the halftime break. The Discovery Bay team asked a few of the local players to help in the second half but the Nomads machine was in full throttle as they eventually won the game by 55 - 0. This looks ominus as the Nomads take on their cross town rivals next week, the Alabang Eagles. After two games of 15s this season, the Nomads have scored 108 points and have not reliquished a point against them.
Round 3 will be played next Saturday, May 26th at the new home of the Alabang Eagles, The Eagles Nest. Situated in the Southern Plains development, the Eagles Nest is accessible via the Silangan Exit on the South Luzon Expressway.
 Manila Nomads On May 5, the Manila Nomads travelled to play the Cebu Dragons in the opening round of the 2012 JML 15s League.
In 37 degree heat, the teams took the field at the Cebu International School field for a fierce battle of territory and possession as the game remained without a try for the first 15 minutes. The Nomads took a clear size advantage into the game and it was a credit to the smaller Dragons players who continually pulled their larger opponents to the ground with Homer Bangay and Noel Flowers making several try-saving tackles to stop the ominous Nomads forward pack. Finally Nomads were awarded a penalty in the attacking quarter of the field and put on a tactful decoy move which allowed Aussie front player Nick Treweeke to steam onto the ball and set up a ruck only meters from the Dragons line. The biggest player on the field, Saki Tuisolisia, then picked up the ball and was impossible to stop as he took three Dragons defenders across the line with him to score the opening try of the game.
The Cebu restart did not make the 10m line and consequently this allowed the Nomads to go straight back into the Dragons territory. The Nomads were able to register their second try at the 26th minute of the game with veteran player Sam Chittick running onto the ball to score out wide and take the lead to 12 - 0. The Nomads then realized that if they kept the ball tight, they could dominate in the forwards.
The blistering heat was ceratinly taking its toll, as the Dragons players had to make twice as many tackles as the Nomads in the first quarter of the game. After the Dragons gave up successive penalties, the Nomads again found themselves in the attacking quarter and this time it was the Frenchman Eric Savina who actually passed the ball wide and then ran into the pursuing ruck to pick up a loose ball and score the Nomads third try.
This sparked the Dragons into a revitalized comeback with National A-team player Geoffrey Veracos showing some deft footwork, taking on the Nomads defensive line and beating some of the tackles by the Nomads forwards to set up some good field position for the Dragons to attack. The Nomads quickly regrouped in their own quarter and were able to thwart the attacking raid. Out of nowhere, Nomads speedster Sam Fogg decided to take on the Dragons defence from inside his own half and he split the field wide open as he ran 60m to score under the posts and give the Nomads a convincing 24 - 0 halftime lead.
With the temperature reaching 38 degrees, the halftime break was much appreciated by all the players and the match official Richard Radier, who then donned a hat for the second half.
 JML's Steve Payne & the Dragons' Homer Bangay The Nomads' size advantage was the difference between the two teams and time and again the Nomads won scrums against the feed which allowed them to both dominate possession and field position. Chris Anderson then scored from a push over scrum and the Nomads were never in doubt as they took the score to 31 - 0. Both teams then used all seven substitutions with the Nomads backs starting to run the ball wide against the less experienced Dragons defenders. This allowed Sam Fogg and Raphael De Colnet to both score on opposite wings. Danny Williams had plenty of kicking practice with the Nomads scoring nine tries and taking the opening round of the JML 15s Cup division by 53 - 0.
The awards function was attended by Steve Payne from JML with Nomads' Nick Treweeke & Dragons' Homer Bangay receiving best player awards and a bottle of wine for a hard hot day of rugby:
The next round of the JML 15s league will see all divisions play at Nomads on Saturday May 12th from 2pm.
 Cebu Dragons |  Match Officials Beekay delos Santos, Richard Radier & Rose Mae Lanticse |
Day 1: Philippines 37 - 20 Singapore
Day 2: Philippines 34 - 12 Chinese Taipei
Day 3: Philippines 28 - 18 Sri Lanka
 The Philippine Rugby Football Union has announced the list of players selected to the team that will compete in the HSBC Asian 5 Nations Division 1 Championships scheduled to begin on Sunday, April 15 at the Rizal Memorial Stadium, Manila.
Abraham, Phil
Bautista, JC
Bellenie, Matt
Carroll, Terry
Coveney, Justin
Dacanay, Austin
De Guzman, Michael
Duhig, Michael
Gomez, Cleo
Hitch, Chris
Howorth, Steven
Letts, Jake
Letts, Michael
Matthews, Joseph
Matthews, Luke
Olivier, Patrice
Perez, Tyler
Perry, Nick
Price, James
Saunders, Matt
Saunders, Oliver
Taylor, Richard
Urquijo, Jaime
Ward, Jake
West, Brian
Coach: Expo Mejia
Coach: Jarred Hodges
Manager: Matt Cullen
Physiotherapist: Damian Raper
Manager: Grant Rice
The Philippines is the most successful team in the Asian Five Nations next to Japan. The Volcanoes have lost only one match in the past four years, losing to South Korea in Division 1 last year. Fielding a 100% Filipino heritage squad with all members having at least one parent or grandparent born in the Philippines, the Volcanoes are eager to claim victory on home soil. The winner of Division 1 will be promoted to the Asian 5 Nations Elite level in 2013 to compete with Asian Rugby powerhouses Japan, Hong Kong, UAE and Kazakhstan.
Mr. Jarrad Gallagher, Regional General Manager for Asia of the IRB commented on the tournament’s development at every level saying, “Over the years we have seen the matches become more and more competitive, not only have several teams reduced the margins against Japan, but the gaps are closing at every level as a result of the intensity of the HSBC A5N. This can only be a boost for rugby in the region.”
Joining the Philippines in Division 1 are Sri Lanka, Singapore and Chinese Taipei. The teams will play each other in a new round-robin format with the objective of further preparing teams for promotion to the Top 5. To learn more about the HSBC Asian 5 Nations Series, go to www.asian5nations.com
Match Schedule (all matches played at Rizal Memorial Stadium)
Sunday, April 15
5pm Sri Lanka vs. Chinese Taipei
7pm Singapore vs. Philippines
Wednesday, April 18
5pm Sri Lanka vs. Singapore
7pm Philippines vs. Chinese Taipei
Saturday, April 21
5pm Sri Lanka vs. Philippines
7pm Singapore vs. Chinese Taipei
Admission to the games on April 15 and 18 is free of charge, while tickets are required for April 21. Tickets for April 21 may be purchased at Ticketworld outlets and www.ticketworld.com.ph. The Philippines’ matches will be telecast live on ABS-CBN Studio 23.
For information on ARFU & the HSBC A5N, contact Sean Moore at sean.moore@elitestep.com
For information on the PRFU & the Philippine Volcanoes, contact Raquel Romero at communications@prfu.com
 The Philippine National Development team came out firing against the Hong Kong Tertiary Select team in the Final of the Development Series. The game was played at the RECS Sports Facility in St. Cruz Laguna and Governor Ejercito was proud to host the International Game at the RECS Complex Field.
After suffering a 48 – 7 points loss on Wednesday the Philippines showed that they can take on their top- level opponents from Hong Kong and came out in the second game with a renewed confidence and passion to play the game in the face of their opponents. The Philippines had implemented a drift style defense in Wednesday‘s game and this allowed the evasive Hong Kong backline the time to move the ball wide and attack at will. The Philippines changed the defensive line to a man-on-man pattern and Jon Morales, Andrew Wolff, Tim Bwehemi and Eric Tai all looked more comfortable playing in the face of the opposition.
Hong Kong looked like they would repeat their game from Wednesday and opened the scoring with a wide attacking play that ended with their winger scoring in the corner to take a 5 – 0 lead. To the Philippines credit they then stepped up their defense and held Hong Kong scoreless for the remainder of the first half. At the 25th minute mark it was Eric Tai who exploded into the game tackling his opposition winger and was able to turn the ball over. Andrew Wolff swooped onto the loose ball and broke through the first line of defense to run 80 m to score the opening points for the Philippines. The crowd from Sta. Cruz were ecstatic and the cheering certainly helped to lift the spirits of the Philippine team.
 For the last 10 minutes of the first half, Hong Kong then threatened the Philippines line and somehow the Philippines made several try saving tackles to hold out the Hong Kong attack and the first half finished at 5 all.
The second half was as intense as the first and Philippines had turned around the game from Wednesday’s loss to seeing a victory in their sights. Hong Kong still had a distinct advantage in the set plays, winning all their own scrums and lineouts and this is where the Philippines struggled in the second half. Once again the Philippines were forced to defend in their own half and this eventually led to the Hong Kong’s second try when the Philippines were not able to control a high midfield kick and Hong Kong threw the ball to find one of their props rampaging out wide and he ran 20m to give the Hong Kong the vital lead in the 30th minute of the second half.
 The Philippines had their chances late in the game and were able to attack the Hong Kong line without success, this pressure eventually led to Hong Kong giving up a penalty and this was converted by Danny Williams to enter the last 5 minutes of the game at 10 – 8. The game hung in the balance and the Philippines had proved that they were equal of their development counterparts. With two minutes left on the clock Hong Kong were able to break away from some tired defense and scored out wide to win the game and the Asian Development Series by 15 – 8.
The Philippine Development team only started in January 2011 and have now proven to themselves and Hong Kong that they can play Rugby Union at the International Level and have made a pact to improve in 2012. Kit Guerra was awarded the Philippines Most Valuable player award and was well supported by Jaime Zobel, John Oduilo and Andrew Wolff.
The Philippine National Development are due to play against the Sabah Rugby Union this October in the second game of the home and away series. Stay tuned for the date and venue.
The Philippine and Hong Kong Rugby Football Unions are leading the way with Rugby development programs and tours in Asia. This year, the Philippines have hosted both the Hong Kong National Men’s 15s Asian 5 Nations Premier team the Hong Kong Tertiary Select. The National Men’s team played against the Philippine Volcanoes in April, while the Tertiary Select team is here to play the Philippine Development team in a two-game series. The Philippines will also send their inaugural Under14 and Under16 National Teams to play Hong Kong in October. The focus for both Unions with these tours is to develop the sport of Rugby Union in Asia. This also certainly helps a developing Rugby nation like the Philippines with all aspects of promoting Rugby as a sport for Filipinos in the Philippines.
 The Hong Kong Tertiary Select team is made up of younger development players based in Hong Kong who are vying to be selected in the Hong Kong men’s team -- ranked 2nd in Asia, while the Philippine National Development team are all locally based players who are also striving to win a position in the Philippine National Men’s Team.
The first game between the 2 teams was played on August 17 at Rizal National Stadium -- the first Rugby Union game to be played at the newly renovated venue. The game started at a hectic pace and both teams were evenly matched in the first quarter with Hong Kong taking a lead of 14 – 0. The Philippines were unlucky not to score off a wide backline move when Jaime Zobel received a well-timed pass from Andrew Wolf and was able to scoot down the sideline only to be tackled with the try line in sight. The Hong Kong team’s fitness and precision started to show in the second quarter and this lead to three quick tries before the halftime break. The Hong Kong scrum started to dominate the front row late in the second half and successfully wheeled three scrums to turn over the feed; this consequently led to a glut of possession which allowed the sharp Hong Kong backline the time and space to score out wide.
 The Philippines were able to steady the ship and regain their breath at halftime. Unfortunately the Philippines received two yellow cards in the second half which left the team with only 14 players for 20 minutes. The Philippines showed good determination in the third quarter and controlled possession to allow Tim Bweheni to break through the defense and score under the post in the 37th minute of the game. Hong Kong then finished strongly and ran in three tries in the last 20 minutes of the game and their superior fitness was the overriding factor at the end of both halves. With this match being the highest level that these local players had ever played at, it was obvious that match fitness is a necessary requirement to win international games at this level. The final score was 48 – 7 to Hong Kong.
The second game of the Philippine/Hong Kong Asian Development Series will be played at the RECS Sports Complex in St. Cruz Laguna this Saturday August 20 and the Philippines will definitely be out for revenge and now understand what it takes to play an international team like Hong Kong.
Thanks go out to Phil Gittus, Rob Hawtree and Harry Wang for officiating the game while Ross Schirmer and Precious Regner kept the match statistics.
The Nomads Rugby club once again proved that they are the local champions at 15s Rugby in the with a hard fought win over their cross town rivals the Alabang Eagles by 36 – 19. The game started with a torrential downpour that did not let up throughout the afternoon and the Nomads Rugby pitch turned into a mud bath as both teams scrambled to win the slippery ball.
During the first period of the game, Nomads played in the Eagles territory which resulted in David Feeney and Pierre Fallourd scoring the first two tries for Nomads to take a 12 – 0 lead. The Alabang Eagles finally realized that they could not win the game from their own quarter and punched the ball downfield to capitalize on a Nomads mistake and Rimex Davai beat two defenders in the slippery conditions to score the opening try for the Eagles. The Eagles attacked again immediately from the kick off and Tim Bweheni scored to give the Eagles the lead 12 – 10. Nomads then kicked the ball deep and the Eagles once again tried to run from their own quarter only to knock the ball on and give Nomads possession again, which resulted in a Kevin Ogley try out wide that left the halftime score at 17 – 12 to Nomads.
As the rain came down it was obvious that whichever team played the territorial advantage, would benefit in the second half. Nomads dominated the second half and scored three unanswered tries with Nomads Captain Jon Morales crossing first, to be followed by Kevin Ogley and finally Nick Treweeke. Danny Williams had a successful day with the boot in the wet conditions and converted three tries to take out the PRFU 15s league trophy.
The game was played in a competitive and fair spirit and the Alabang Eagles fought hard and without their injured star players David Carman, Chris Hettel, Andrew Wolff and Eric Tai it was always going to be difficult to win against a full strength Nomads outfit.
The PRFU 15s Division 1 “Most Valuable Player” was awarded to Nomads newcomer Kevin Ogley.
ALABANG IBONS TAKE OUT THE PRFU 15s DIVISION 2 TITLE
Meanwhile, it was hard to decipher the teams in the Division 2 PRFU 15s Final with the field becoming a sea of mud and rain. The Alabang Ibons had remained undefeated coming into the Div 2 final and once again proved too strong for the Globe Immortals, winning the final by 34 – 5. This was the Globe immortals first years at playing 15s style Rugby and they will make improvements for next year’s competition. The Ibons were led by Philippine National u20s brothers Jovic and Jeepy Paypon who both played and scored tries in the backs, while PRFU local legend Gabby Roque and up and coming u18s National player Ross “Barnaby” McLeod led the forwards up the middle of the field.
The PRFU Division 2 “Most Valuable Player” was awarded to Ross McLeod.
The PRFU will now host the HK u21s team to play a two game series against the Philippine National Development team here on Aug 17th and 20th. The National Development team is selected from locally based Filipino players who have learnt and played their Rugby here in the Philippines.
 The Philippine National Men's 15s team went down to the highly-ranked Korea squad by 34 points to 20. In a game that hung in the balance until the last play of the day, the Philippine Volcanoes were unlucky not to equalize the scores at 27 all in the final few minutes. Their missed chance was capitalized on by the Koreans who scored on the last play of the game when the Philippines attempted to attack from their own five meter line a desperate bid to score the equalizing try. The Philippines can look back on a game of lost opportunity with only themselves to blame after committing 27 unforced errors, compared to Korea's ten errors. As a consequence, the Volcanoes were forced to defend for up to 70% of the game and this took its toll, while the Korean team stuck to basic patterns that worked well in the wet conditions.
The first two tries of the game came directly after the big Korean forward pack were able to win two scrums against the head and turned defence into offence to take an early lead of 10 - 0. The Philippines had their opportunities but on the first four occasions of entering the Korean half, the Philippines made simple mistakes that allowed the Koreans to diffuse any pressure. The Koreans then won a third scrum against the feed and the Philippines gave up a professional foul penalty in front of the posts by diving into a ruck to stop a certain try. This penalty was converted and Koreans had stamped their authority on the game up front with their forward pack and led 15 - 0. The Philippines then started to play attacking rugby and it was Oli Saunders who placed a perfectly weighted grubber kick through for center combination Justin Coveney and Gareth Holgate, as they both ran through behind the Korean defensive line to swoop on the loose ball. The ball bounced awkwardly and the Korean defence was able to counter attack and ran 60m to score an easy try and take a convincing 22 - 3 lead.
 As the game wore on, the bigger Korean team started to tire and this is when the Philippines started to rally. It was the Philippines hooker Phil Abraham who ignited the go forward when he picked up a loose ball at the base of the ruck and split the Korean defence up the middle of the field and ran 30 meters to finally be pulled down on the Korean 22m line. It was the first time that the Philippines had entered the Korean half and consequently the Koreans gave up a penalty for holding the ball in a ruck. Oli Saunders was able to convert the Penalty from 30m out in front of the posts and register the first points for the Philippines. The successful penalty kick obviously inspired the Philippines and it was not long before Team Captain, Michael Letts was able to gain some valuable territory with a well waited kick and the Koreans were under pressure in their own 22 zone. Nick Pineda flew high to take the ball in the lineout and Oli Saunders ran to the line and found debutant Joven Clake on his outside shoulder and fed him a well-timed pass to allow Joven to break through two tackles and score the Philippines’ first try. This late try allowed the Philippines to go into the halftime break with some confidence and a respectable score of 22 - 8.
The Philippines had managed to stay within striking distance of the Korean team and came out in a positive mood to attack in the second half. The Philippines Vice Captain Chris Hitch struck the first blow when he gathered a loose ball at the back of a ruck and broke through three tackles to run 20 meters before being dragged down, he popped to the ball to Nick Pineda who then attracted another three defenders, Jake Letts was the man on the spot to shoot a quick fire pass out to his brother, Michael Letts who dummied on his outside and split the defence to score the opening try for the second half and reduce the score to 22 - 13.
From this point on the Koreans implemented a strategic kicking game that pinned the Philippines in their own quarter. As a result the Philippines struggled to exit their defensive zone and it was the Koreans who attacked for ten minutes and finally scored on the wing to take a 27 - 13 lead. The Philippines had displayed a remarkable defensive effort and the Koreans once again began to tire late in the second half. Gareth Holgate who had defended magnificently throughout the game at outside center then created a turnover and picked up a dropped ball to run 60 m and link up with his winger Matt Saunders who scored the try of the game under the posts. This was converted his brother Oli and with 5 minutes left in the game the Koreans had a slender lead of 27 - 20.
In a last ditch effort, the Philippines threw caution to wind and threw the ball to the first half try scoring speedster Joven Clarke, Joven stepped around his opposite winger and sped down the touchline, as the Korean fullback came to tackle him, Joven placed a chip kick that would have opened the doors for the Philippine attack, the Korean fullback was just able to juggle the kick with his finger tips and took the intercept to run away and secure victory for the Koreans. The final score was 34 - 20 to Korea and they can thank their lucky stars that the Philippines had not drawn level as they had run out of legs and were struggling in the last ten minutes of the game.
It was a remarkable effort for a Philippine National team who do not even have a world ranking to push the 33rd ranked team in the world to such a close scoreline. Philippines coach Expo Mejia was disappointed with the Philippines execution and decision making and is confident that the Philippines will win the A5N Div 1 Tournament in the next twelve months. The Philippines must now concentrate on winning their game against Malaysia this Saturday and ensure they remain in this Division. Philippines Manager Matt Cullen is confident that the Philippines will regroup from the loss against Korea and come out to play a strong and disciplined game against Malaysia this Saturday.
Best forwards for the Philippines were Nick Pineda and Chris Hitch and best backs were Joven Clarke and Gareth Holgate.
Tries:
Joven Clarke (1)
Michael Letts (1)
Matt Saunders(1)
Conversions:
Oliver Saunders (1)
Penalties:
Oliver Saunders (1)
 1. Austin Dacanay
2. Phil Abraham
3. Richard Taylor
4. Nick Pineda
5. Jaime Urquijo
6. Raf Zappia
7. Chris Hitch
8. Michael De Guzman
9. Jake Letts
10. Oliver Saunders
11. Joven Clarke
12. Justin Coveney
13. Gareth Holgate
14. Matt Saunders
15. Michael Letts
16. Michael Duhig
17. Josh Sutcliffe
18. Nick Perry
19. Kit Guerra
20. James Price
21. Rupert Zappia
22. Luke Matthews
Front row L to R: Luke Matthews, Patrice Olivier, Jaime Urquijo, Nick Perry, Michael Letts (Captain), Tyler Perez, Rupert Zappia, Nick Pineda
Middle row: Matt Cullen (Manager), Raf Zappia, Austin Dacanay, Michael de Guzman, Justin Coveney, Gaz Holgate, Chris Hitch (Vice Captain), Josh Sutcliffe, Damian Raper (Physiotherapist)
Top row: Jarred Hodges (Asst. Coach), Richard Taylor, Joven Clarke, James Price, Oliver Saunders, Kit Guerra, Matt Saunders, Michael Duhig, Phil Abraham, Jake Letts, Expo Mejia (Head Coach)
The Philippine National Men's Rugby Team travels to South Korea today to compete in the Division 1 Championships of the HSBC Asian 5 Nations Tournament. The Philippines and Japan (Asian 5 Nations Premier Division Champions) are the only teams that remain undefeated in the Asian 5 Nations since the competition's inception in 2008. Playing with a 100% Filipino Heritage squad (defined as having at least 1 grandparent born in the Philippines), the Philippine Volcanoes will face their toughest challenge yet as the underdogs of Division 1.
Their first match will be on Wednesday, June 1 against tournament hosts, South Korea, at the Ansan Wa Stadium. Relegated to Division 1 in 2010, South Korea will be the Philippines' strongest competition, hungry to claw its way back into the Premier Division. The winner of the June 1 match will face the winner of the Singapore vs. Malaysia match for the Championship on Saturday, June 4. The winner of the Championship will be promoted to the Premier Division in 2012.
It has been quite a journey for the Volcanoes as the sport of Rugby in the Philippines is not widely known or played. Their unprecedented ascension from Division 4 to Division 1 has gone largely unnoticed in their home country, which is just now beginning to pay attention. However recognition has never been the Volcanoes' motivation -- the overseas-based players train on their own, then travel to the Philippines at their own expense, with just around a week to practice together before heading to a tournament. They sacrifice personal time with their families, vacation time from work and school, and risk injury every time they step onto the pitch. Composed of Filipino, Fil-Australian, Fil-American, Fil-Spanish, Fil-French and Fil-British players, they are a brotherhood of warriors whose singular vision and hope is to bring glory to their mother country.
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