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Philippines national rugby union team

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This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Philippines women's national rugby union team.

Philippines
Shirt badge/Association crest
NicknameVolcanoes
EmblemVolcano
UnionPhilippine Rugby Football Union
Head coachStu Woodhouse
CaptainDavid Smith
Most capsJake Letts (27)
Top scorerOliver Saunders
Top try scorerMatthew Saunders
Home stadiumRizal Memorial Stadium
Philippine Sports Stadium
First colors
World Rugby ranking
Current41 (as of March 20, 2023)
Highest41[1] (2020, 2023)
Lowest72[2] (March 2012)
First international
 Guam 14–18 Philippines Philippines
(May 20, 2006)
Biggest win
 Philippines 101–0 Brunei 
(July 2, 2008)
Biggest defeat
 Japan 121–0 Philippines Philippines
(April 20, 2013)
World Cup
AppearancesNone
Websitehttps://www.philippinerugby.com

The Philippines national rugby union team, nicknamed the "Volcanoes", represents the Philippines in international rugby union. The Philippines have been playing in the Asia Rugby Championship since 2006 when the team was first created. In 2012 they won the Division I championship and were promoted to the top 5 for the 2013 tournament where they earned 4th place and again in the 2014 tournament. The Philippines have yet to make their debut at the Rugby World Cup.

In the March 19, 2012 World Rugby Rankings, Philippines, along with Mexico and Pakistan, were listed for the first time, entering with the base rating of 40 points (which positioned the three national teams in 71st place).

The national side is ranked 41st in the world (as of July 29, 2019).[3]

History

The national team at the 2009 Asian Five Nations Division 3 Final.

In 1998 the Philippine Rugby Football Union (PRFU), the national governing body for rugby union in the Philippines, was formed. Rugby union in the Philippines was introduced mainly through the large number of British, Australian and New Zealand expatriates living in the country.

The Philippines made their first official international debut at the 5th division of the 2006 ARFU Asian Rugby Series. They won over Guam, 18 – 14, in its first match on May 20, 2006, but was later defeated by Pakistan in a match held on June 11, 2006, and failed to secure the sole slot for promotion to the next division.[4][5] In December 2006, the Philippines Under-19 went undefeated in the Asian Rugby Football Union (ARFU) Under-19 Second Division Tournament.

In 2008, the PRFU gained full membership to the international governing body, the International Rugby Board (IRB). The Philippines dominated the fourth-tier of the ARFU Asian 5 Nations Series and captured the inaugural Division 4 title. During the tournament, the Philippines demolished Brunei 101-0 and then defeated the home side Guam 20–8 to capture the division title.

In 2009 the Philippines won the inaugural Asian 5 Nations Division III rugby tournament at the Nomads field in Parañaque City. Defeating Iran 15-0 and Guam 25–0 in their two matches, the Philippines were then promoted to the Asian Five Nations Division II rugby tournament.

In 2010 the Philippines competed in the Asian 5 Nations Division II tournament and won it beating India in the final on a score of 44–12. Also in 2010 they played in ARFU Rugby 7s tournaments in Shanghai, Borneo and the Asian Games in Guangzhou.

In 2012 the Philippines competed in the Asian 5 Nations Division I tournament and went unbeaten in the round-robin series against Singapore, Chinese Taipei and Sri Lanka, therefore qualifying for the main division for the first time.[6]

The Volcanoes suffered heavy defeats in the 2013 edition of A5N, however showed good signs with a competitive first half against Hong Kong in Manila, and a win to avoid relegations against UAE also in Manila.

Tournaments

Tournament Year Division Place National Ranking
ARFU Asian Rugby Series 2006 5 2nd NA
ARFU Asian Rugby Series 2007 5 2nd NA
Asian Five Nations division tournaments 2008 Pacific—Asia Region 1st NA
Asian Five Nations division tournaments 2009 3 1st NA
Asian Five Nations division tournaments 2010 2 1st NA
Asian Five Nations division tournaments 2011 1 3rd NA
Asian Five Nations division tournaments 2012 1 1st 72
Asian Five Nations 2013 Top 4th 56
Asian Five Nations 2014 Top 4th 57
Asian Rugby Championship division tournaments 2015 1 2nd 52
Asia Rugby Championship division tournaments 2016 1 3rd 54
Asia Rugby Championship division tournaments 2017 1 3rd 57
Asia Rugby Championship division tournaments 2018 1 1st 56
Asia Rugby Championship division tournaments 2019 1 1st 53

Nickname and emblem

Insignia of the 1st Philippine Regiment

The Philippines national rugby union team is nicknamed the 'Volcanoes'. The name comes from the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment that fought under the command of the United States Army. It was made up of Filipino-Americans with a few Filipino veterans which fought in World War II. The PRFU thought the situation was similar to the first Philippines national team which mainly consisted of foreign expatriates with only a few Filipinos.[7]

The emblem of the team is based on the insignia of the 1st Filipino Infantry Regiment. One of its features is a volcano which represents where the infantry units were located.[8]

Players

Current squad

Squad for 2019 Asia Rugby Championship:[9]

  • Simon Gabion-Sheehan
  • Harvey Mercado
  • James Krook
  • Sam Callaghan
  • Jeromy Cairns
  • Sam Bennetts
  • David Feeney
  • Ashley Heward
  • Chris Bird
  • Edlen Hernandez
  • Tom Gunn
  • Kingsley Ballesteros
  • Ken Mellorin
  • Tim Berry
  • Jobel de Castro
  • Daniel Matthews
  • Kohei Mitsuhashi
  • Ellis Rudder
  • Robert Fogerty
  • Justin Coveney
  • Ned Stephenson
  • Vincent Young
  • Phillip Hinson
  • Patricie Olivier
  • Timothy Bweheni

Coaches

  • Australia Mike McMahon (2006)
  • Australia Matthew Cullen (2007–2009)
  • Philippines Expo Mejia (2009–2013)
  • Australia Jarred Hodges (2013–)
  • Australia Stuart Woodhouse (2013, caretaker)

Honours

Asia Rugby Championship
  • Pacific-Asia Regional Champions: 2008
  • Division 3 Champions: 2009
  • Division 2 Champions: 2010
  • Division 1 Champions: 2012, 2018, 2019

Overall record

The Philippines vs Iran, 2009 Asian Five Nations Division 3 Semifinal.

Their test match record against all nations:[10]

Nation Played Won Drawn Lost % Won
 Brunei 1 1 0 0 100%
 Chinese Taipei 2 2 0 0 100%
 Guam 4 4 0 0 100%
 Hong Kong 3 0 0 3 0%
 India 2 1 0 1 50%
 Iran 1 1 0 0 100%
 Japan 2 0 0 2 0%
 Malaysia 3 2 0 1 66.7%
 Pakistan 1 0 0 1 0%
 Singapore 1 1 0 0 100%
 South Korea 1 0 0 1 0%
 Sri Lanka 6 3 0 3 50%
 Thailand 1 1 0 0 100%
 United Arab Emirates 2 2 0 0 100%
Total 24 14 0 10 58.33%

References

  1. ^ "Men's Rankings Updated: 26 October, 2014". RugbyWorld.org. October 26, 2014. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  2. ^ "Men's Rankings Updated: 25 March, 2012". RugbyWorld.org. March 25, 2012. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  3. ^ "Men's Rankings | World Rugby".
  4. ^ David, Greg (May 21, 2006). "Philippines take First International scalp". Philippine Rugby Football Union. Archived from the original on October 28, 2007. Retrieved June 10, 2015.
  5. ^ Scott, Jamie; Gallagher, Jarrad (June 14, 2006). "Pakistan finish Asia Nations Series with win". Philippine Rugby Football Union. Archived from the original on October 28, 2007. Retrieved June 10, 2015.
  6. ^ Fopalan, Reneé. "Mission accomplished: PHL Volcanoes erupt at Asia 5 Nations, beat Sri Lanka". GMANetwork.com. GMA Network. Retrieved April 21, 2012.
  7. ^ "Welcom to the Philippine Volcanoes' blog!". Team Philippine Volcanoes. September 23, 2011. Archived from the original on April 20, 2012. Retrieved April 15, 2012.
  8. ^ "California and Second World War - California's Filipino Infantry". MilitaryMuseum.org. Retrieved April 15, 2012.
  9. ^ "Volcanoes select top 26". PRFU. May 27, 2019.
  10. ^ "Philippines - head-to-head summary". Rugby Data. Retrieved March 17, 2011.
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