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Romanian Rugby

Very young team, lots of 20, 21, 22 yo players, actually most of them but I like this approach
 
Starting Romania A team for the first match tomorrow:
1.Gigi Militaru (Timisoara Saracens), 2. Florin Bardasu (Stiinta Baia Mare), 3. Vlad Badalicescu (L’Aquila), 4. Ionut Muresan (Timisoara Saracens), 5. Andrei Diaconu (U Cluj), 6. Dorin Lazar (C) (Timisoara Saracens), 7. Razvan Ilisescu (Graulhet), 8. Marian Gorcioaia (Timisoara Saracens), 9. Alexandru Tigla (CSM Olimpia), 10. Luke Samoa (Stiinta Baia Mare), 11. Nicolas Onutu (ROC La Voulte â€" Valence),12. Jack Umaga (Timisoara Saracens), 13. Ionut Balaban (CS Dinamo), 14. Sione Fakaosilea (Stiinta Baia Mare), 15. Sabin Stratila (CSA Steaua)
Subs: 16. Bogdan Neascu (CS Dinamo), 17. Ovidiu Cojocaru (Stiinta Baia Mare), 18. Alexandru Gordas (CSA Steaua), 19. Andrei Iurea (Stiinta Baia Mare), 20. Cristian Chirica (Stiinta Baia Mare), 21. Razvan Ailenei (Stiinta Baia Mare), 22. Vlad Rotar (U Cluj), 23. Alexandru Palii (Stiinta Baia Mare), 24. Alexandru Bucur (Stiinta Baia Mare), 25. Marian Ispir (CSM Olimpia), 26. Robert Neagu (CSA Steaua)

The match will be live from 19.00 Romanian time on www.rugbytv.ro
 
In the first match, Romania A - Crawshays Welsh RFC 27-15

Romania A squad for the second match (almost all players were rotated):1.Bogdan Neacsu (CS Dinamo), 2. Ovidiu Cojocaru (Stiinta Baia Mare), 3. Silviu Suciu (Stiinta Baia Mare), 4. Vlad Rotar (U Cluj), 5. Florian Rosu (Stiinta Baia Mare), 6. Cristian Chirica (Stiinta Baia Mare), 7. Razvan Ilisescu (Graulhet),8. Razvan Ailenei C (Stiinta Baia Mare), 9. Alexandru Palii (Stiinta Baia Mare), 10. Daniel Plai (Politehnica Iasi), 11. Vladut Zaharia (Timisoara Saracens), 12. Alexandru Bucur (Stiinta Baia Mare), 13. Denis Perju (L'Aquila), 14. Fili Lomani (CS Dinamo), 15. Robert Neagu (CSA Steaua) Subs: 16. George Tudor (CSM Olimpia), 17. Tudor Butnariu (Politehnica Iasi), 18. Alexandru Gordas (CSA Steaua), 19. Andrei Diaconu (U Cluj), 20. Ionut Muresan (Timisoara Saracens), 21. Marian Gorcioaia (Timisoara Saracens), 22. Jack Umaga (Timisoara Saracens), 23. George Croitoru (CSM Olimpia), 24. Julien Onutu (ROC La Voulte РValence F̩d̩rale 1), 25. Marian Ispir (CSM Olimpia), 26. Sione Fakaosilea (Stiinta Baia Mare), 27. Luke Samoa (Stiinta Baia Mare), 28. Florin Bardasu (Stiinta Baia Mare)

The match will be live on www.rugbytv.ro from 18:00 local time. As an opener, from 16:00 on the same stadium (also live on rugbytv.ro), the final of the national U20 competition between Steaua Bucharest and Timisoara Saracens.
 
On this date (June 5, 1960), the Oaks were beating France for the first time, 11-5 on the old 23 August Stadium in Bucharest.

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Yesterday's results:
Romania A - Crawshays Welsh RFC 14-7
Steaua U20 - Timisoara Saracens U20 27-20 (final of the national U20 competition)

Oaks squad for the World Rugby Nations Cup:

Props:
Constantin Pristavita (Stiinta Baia Mare)
Alexandru Tarus (Beziers)
Alexandru Gordas (CSA Steaua)
Gigi Militaru (Timisoara Saracens)
Silviu Suciu (Stiinta Baia Mare)

Hookers:
Otar Turashvili (Colomiers)
Andrei Radoi (Timisoara Saracens)
Florin Bardasu (Stiinta Baia Mare)

Locks:
Valentin Poparlan (Timisoara Saracens)
Marius Antonescu (Tarbes)
Johan Van Heerden (Stiinta Baia Mare)
Andrei Iurea (Stiinta Baia Mare)
Ionut Muresan (Timisoara Saracens),

Backrow:
Viorel Lucaci (CSA Steaua)
Stelian Burcea (Timisoara Saracens)
Razvan Ailenei (Stiinta Baia Mare)
Dorin Lazar (Timisoara Saracens)

Scrum half:
Valentin Calafeteanu (Timisoara Saracens)
Tudorel Bratu (Dinamo)
Alexandru Tigla (CSM Olimpia)

Fly half:
Jody Rose (Timisoara Saracens)

Centres:
Jack Umaga (Timisoara Saracens)
Florin Vlaicu (Calvisano)
Ionut Balaban (CS Dinamo)
Catalin Dascalu (CSA Steaua)
Dennis Perju (L'Aquila)

Wingers:
Adrian Apostol (Stiinta Baia Mare)
Stephen Shennan (Timisoara Saracens)
Ionut Dumitru (CSA Steaua)
Nicolas Onutu (ROC La Voulte – Valence)

Fullbacks:
Catalin Fercu (Timisoara Saracens)
Sabin Stratila (CSA Steaua)

If I counted right, there are 10 uncapped players in the squad. Some of the normal starters like Lazar have initially been called but they are not on the list.
 
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Here's the Oaks squad against Namibia:

1.Constantin Pristavita (Stiinta Baia Mare)
2. Otar Turashvili (Colomiers)
3. Alexandru Tarus (Beziers)
4.Valentin Poparlan (Timisoara Saracens)
5. Marius Antonescu (Tarbes)
6. Johan Van Heerden (Stiinta Baia Mare)
7. Viorel Lucaci (CSA Steaua)
8. Stelian Burcea (c) (Timisoara Saracens)
9. Valentin Calafeteanu (Timisoara Saracens)
10. Jody Rose (Timisoara Saracens)
11. Ionut Dumitru (CSA Steaua)
12. Florin Vlaicu (Calvisano)
13.Jack Umaga (Timisoara Saracens)
14. Stephen Shennan (Timisoara Saracens)
15. Catalin Fercu (Timisoara Saracens)

Subs: 16.Andrei Radoi (Timisoara Saracens), 17. Alexandru Gordas (CSA Steaua), 18. Gigi Militaru (Timisoara Saracens), 19. Andrei Iurea (Stiinta Baia Mare), 20. Razvan Ailenei (Stiinta Baia Mare) 21. Tudorel Bratu (CS Dinamo), 22. Ionut Balaban (CS Dinamo), 23. Nicolas Onutu (ROC La Voulte – Valence)

There are six uncapped players in the match squad.
 
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Romania - Argentina XV 20-8

Romania wins the World Rugby Nations Cup 2016. It might be the last official match played on the current stadium because the construction of a new one will start next year, on the same location.

As a "reward" for winning this tournament, Romania continues to be treated like a Tier 3 country by World Rugby. We have not played a Tier 1 test in 10 years and we are the only Tier 2 nation not to play one this year. But that is not all, FRR president Harry Dumitras has confirmed that the November tests against Fiji and Japan have been cancelled. It seems that our opponents in November will be Uruguay, USA and Canada. So, not only we don't get a Tier 1 test but all our opponents are ranked lower than us in the World Rugby Rankings! As it stands, Romania will play a total of 11 matches this year, of which only one against a nation with a higher ranking.
 
Interview with Danny De Villiers (ex. Timisoara Saracens and CSM Bucharest coach) in Italian press (translation):


1) Let's begin from the start: when and why did you decide to become a rugby coach?


«To be honest I never thought of coaching as something that I would be doing full time. But I was very sure that coaching in some sort of capacity would always be part of my life. When I stopped playing I had a few job options to consider. I started a clothing company, Impact Sportswear. We produced mainly sports clothing to rugby clubs and schools. Impact Sportswear was a business I really enjoyed as it kept me in touch with the rugby community. We ended up being suppliers to a few Currie Cup teams and also the official clothing supplier to the Boland Cavaliers (Currie Cup) and the Namibia Rugby Union during the 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia. In 2002, Jerome Paarwater, the coach of Boland Cavaliers, asked me to get involve with his team. I was his team manager and also did game analysis for him. At that time I was also coaching a club side in Wellington. Even though both these 'rugby jobs' wasn't fulltime it took up most of my time. I realized that coaching rugby was my true passion. It was something I enjoyed very much and felt comfortable with. I saw that I was making a difference in player's lives on and off the field and that was a very satisfying feeling. It was then that I decided to further and better qualified myself and try to make a living from my true passion. I became a fulltime coach.»
2) Being Tunisian national team's head coach was one of your most particular experience, when you reached probably the highest point in the country's rugby history: the playoff to qualify to RWC 2007. What can you tell about that adventure? What kind of emotions have you felt in taking part to a barrage for the most important tournament in the world?


«Going to Tunisia was an incredible adventure. When I 1st met Mr. Hachicha in December 2007 (at the George 7's) who was the president of the Tunisia Rugby Federation I was very excited about his proposal. I would be the coach for both the Tunisia 7's team and the Tunisia National team. He had 2 main objectives namely to qualify for the 2009 Sevens World Cup in Dubai and the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand. Going to Tunisia was my first taste of coaching outside of South Africa, coaching in a very different environment than what I was use to, coaching a different culture with a very different approach to rugby. I loved every second. In Tunisia I found people with a real hunger to learn and a desire to be successful. The Tunisian player's work ethics and commitment was incredible to witness. From a Sevens point of view we had an incredible journey. We had many highlights and won a few tournaments. My 1st ever Sevens game in charge of Tunisia was at the 2008 Hong Kong Sevens. We played the main game Friday night against the All Blacks. Half time the All Blacks were leading only 7-0. We created a few opportunities to score in that 1st half. For me it was an incredible occasion. That Tunisia team of 2008 still holds the record for the highest score at the Hong Kong Sevens, 66-5 against Chinese Taipei whose coach was the legendary Mr. Waisale Serevi. One of the most memorable moments for me was winning the Cup Final in Tangiers Morocco, beating France in the semi-final and then absolutely destroying South Africa in the final 50-5. We did manage to qualify for the 2009 Sevens Rugby World Cup in Dubai and had a good tournament. We came within 2 points of beating England during the pool stages. We managed to qualify for the Plate competition during that World Cup and ended up losing to Tonga. So we were able to reach Mr. Hachicha's 1st objective. The process of qualifying for the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand was a long outstretched process. The qualification process was over 2 seasons. In 2008 the pool stages of the Africa Cup that doubled as the RWC qualification took place. We managed to win our pool by beating Cameroon and Kenya. In 2009 we had to play the semi-finals against Uganda, who at that stage was the defending Africa Cup Champions and my good friend Chester Williams was their coach. The semi Final was played over 2 legs. The 1st leg was an away game in Kampala. My focus in this game was more on Chester's coaching style and philosophy (knowing it very well from our time together at Pumas). I felt that if I could put some doubt into his mind it would transfer over to his team. The boys stuck to what we thought would be the correct strategy and completely outplayed them. We comprehensively beat them 41-17. We also won the 2nd leg in Tunis setting up Final against Namibia. We have done A LOT of homework on Namibia. They had a very very good team with some high level Currie Cup players and a few of their players playing in Europe. We were excited about this challenge, knowing that the winner goes to the 2011 RWC in New Zealand. We had some added pressure, because if we qualified we would have been the 1st Muslim Country to be at a RWC. We had a much wider audience that just our Country rooting for us, and belief me when I say that it added much much more pressure. But I was very proud of the way the boys embraced this added pressure. The Final would also be played over 2 legs. The 1st game was in Tunis and we were confident of going to Windhoek a few weeks later with a win under our belts. We had a disastrous start to the game. We won the toss and decided to kick off. Namibia scored from that vey 1st kick-off. Down 7-0 after about 20 seconds in an important game like this was not ideal. Namibia ended up winning that game 18-13. The 5-point difference meant that we have to beat them by 6 points in Windhoek to directly qualify for the RWC in NZ. Halftime in Windhoek we were leading 10-9. I can remember the scene in our change room at halftime like it happened yesterday. Players were almost in disbelief of what potentially could happen over the next 40 minutes. It was a tough job getting the guys to relax and focus on the job they still had to do. We started the 2nd half very strong and our scrumhalf, Sabri Gmir broke blind from a ruck with an open tryline, just to be called back by the ref. The touch judge ruled he had put a foot in touch. I couldn't belief what had just happened, because there was no way Sabri was even close to the touchline. At 1st I thought the ref blew the whistle for another offence but really couldn't belief it when he awarded a lineout to Namibia. That try and conversion would've meant a 17-9 lead and a very different mindset and approach to the game. That call had a very decisive impact on the game, but two very different ones. As a team we lost our composure and focus on the game, Namibia rallied together and finished strong. In the end they won 22-10, scoring a converted try and 2 penalties after that incident. I was completely heartbroken, because I know how close it was and also because I know how incredibly hard the Tunisian boys had worked for it. But personally I have learned invaluable lessons from this. That evening at the function we also experienced a bit of an awkward moment. As coaching staff and team we accepted the defeat (as hard as it was) and acknowledge and congratulated Namibia on qualifying for the 2011 World Cup. Coincidently the match officials were all from South Africa and friends I've known for a long time. Me, my assistant coach Jaco Stoumann (also from South Africa) was sitting at a table with the match officials while the speeches were being made. When we thought everything was finished someone (we will not name the person) from the Tunisia delegate demanded to also say a few words. It went very quiet. After a while he said that all he wanted to say is that Namibia didn't beat Tunisia, but Tunisia lost today because of a South African while looking at our table. That was ALL he said. Here we were, a South African coach and a South African referee looking at each other a bit confused not knowing which one of us has just openly been blamed for the loss. Well I got the answer a few weeks later. After the loss Tunisia still had a chance of qualifying for the RWC via the repechage. This tournament was going to be in Bucharest and Tunisia will play Romania in the one semi. Ironically enough in 2009 we played a International friendly against Romania in Tunis. We won 15 – 7. Even though it wasn't a full Romania Test team I felt that we would have a realistic chance of upsetting them in Bucharest. But I was told that I would not be taking the team to Bucharest. The Tunisian Federation decided that the loss in the Africa Cup Final was my last action as the Tunisia Coach and decided to terminate my contract. I felt devastated, because I desperately wanted to proof that we deserve to go to the World Cup. So Even though things in Tunisia didn't end the way I was hoping for I had an incredible time there, made many friends and until today still have contact with players and staff I worked with there.»


3) In Italy, you have been Rugby Roma's head coach, in the very last season of its history and in a very difficult logistic situation. Living inside of Italian rugby, which was your idea of it?


«There has always been a special connection between South Africa and Italy. Many players from SA went there to play club rugby and quite a few coaches went there to coach. Because of this the rugby scene in Italy was well known to me. I was very excited when asked if I would be interested in coaching Roma. What happened with us as a team during that season is well documented. The dream soon turned into an absolute nightmare. No group of players or team deserves to be treated the way we were treated. Ironically enough I went through the very same thing with CSM Bucuresti in 2015. What I will remember for the rest of my life is the manner in which that Roma team decided to stick together. Nothing could break us. Apart from the very difficult logistical situation with Roma I had an incredible time in Italy. Being able to live and work in Rome felt like a dream. I enjoyed the Italian lifestyle. The players I worked with made it special. I enjoyed the Top10 competition. It was a tough competition and the quality of rugby was really really good. Being able to win a trophy for Roma, under those conditions and their 1st in 11 years was a very special occasion and something I was very proud of.»


4) And now, even if by the outside, how do you judge Italian rugby? You saw that 3 Italian teams widely lost to Timişoara in Qualifying Competition and the national team and the 2 franchises had one of the worst season ever. What is the reason, or the biggest reason, of this collapse?


«I was at Timisoara for 2 seasons. 99% of those players I have worked with and Grainger Heikell who is now their Head coach I recruited from New Zealand to be my asst. coach. I have been asked many times to compare the Romania league with that of Italy. So when it was clear that in order for Timisoara to play in the Eur Challenge Cup next season they will need to beat 3 Italian teams. I haven't seen any Italian Top10 games recently but still follow via the scores I see and because a lot of the players I still know and have contact with. I've seen that some coaches have moved on and that lesser familiar coaches were now in charge of some of the better teams. I've heard from friends that things in Italian rugby are not good and that things need to change. I always assumed that by that they were talking about the National team (who has had some very disappointing results) and the two Pro 12 teams who for years have been struggling to make a real impact on that competition. I was asked before these games to give an opinion of how I think it will go. The way I remembered and experienced the Super 10 in Italy and being in Romania at the current time suggested to me that especially the Rovigo game will be a close encounter. I honestly couldn't belief what I saw. The level of both Rovigo and Fiamme Oro Roma was to say the least shocking. I didn't recognize Rovigo at all. It was a very big disappointment to see this. Even the games against Calvisano where Timisoara didn't play their best rugby, they were still completely dominant. For me to suggest that I know the reason for the recent decline in quality of Italian club rugby would be unfair. I am sure there are many reason and I honestly hope that it is something that the people in charge will have a serious look at and try to change things to ensure Italian club rugby can reach the high levels we (fans of Italian rugby) were used to. I had a few players who left from here (Romania) to go and play club rugby in Italy (at 3 different clubs). They say that the coaching for example is very different from what they have experienced in Romania and on a much lower level


5) As a "globetrotter head coach", you flew to Romania: to Timişoara, where you also won the Superliga in 2013, and then to Bucharest. Can you describe us the level of Romanian championship?


«I truly belief the Romanian SuperLiga is one of the most underestimated leagues. It is not a very big league (only 6 teams) but it is a very hard, tough league; apart from 1 these team are fully professionals. Also a big percentage of the Romania National team players play their rugby in Romania. So there is always an incentive for players to stay in Romania rather than going to play elsewhere in Europe, but I must say that it is changing. Belief me it has its problems but the quality of rugby is good and if the clubs invest correct, not only in players but coaches as well it can become even stronger. Romania is a great place to work and live and many overseas players see Romania now as legit option to further their rugby careers. There is an element of corruption and bad management, which causes some problems off the field. Not all clubs have fully embraced the culture of a truly professional rugby team. In this regard a team like Timisoara is a very good example to follow where the way the team is managed off the field reflects the results on the field. If clubs can sort this out I think that the SuperLiga can become one of the strongest national leagues in Europe. If we look back at last season's the top 3 teams Timisoara, Baia Mare and CSM Bucuresti they would dominate the Italian Eccellenza. Romania currently attracts quality players from all over the world. To give an example, my squad at CSM Bucuresti in 2015 consists of 45 players. 25 of those players played Test Match rugby for 6 different countries.»

*personal note: Now Super Liga have 7 pro teams and is an objective to get an 8th next year.


6) Next season Timişoara will play the Challenge Cup for the first time in his history: you gave a contribution to her rise, do you expect they will make a good impression?
«I am very glad to see Timisoara play on this level. They deserved it. They should've played in the competition already but the Romanian Federation favored the Bucharest Wolves (a combination team from the clubs in Romania) rather than the winner of the SuperLiga. They will surprise many people. Not only with results but also with the brand of rugby they play. They will be very competitive. I know that they will make a few new signings over the summer to even further strengthen their squad. I can't wait to see them compete against some of the big name clubs in Europe. And I think it is safe to say that they just might surprise one or two at home in front of a very passionate Timisoara home crowd.»


7) We love Romanian rugby, that is growing, but we have some doubts concerning the big number of foreigners who may will play for Romanian national team. What is your opinion about this policy? Is it in some ways necessary?


«I think in many ways yes it was necessary. Romania traditionally has always been a forward orientated team. They have incredible forwards, but in my opinion lack the quality backs to really make them a serious contender on the global stage. Most of the foreign players that were recruited in the beginning were backline players. This has had not one but a few positive effects. Firstly it changed the way some of the clubs started playing. Timisoara for example when I got there had a Romania pack of forwards with an almost complete foreign backline. These backline players had Super Rugby and International Test Rugby experience. So from being mainly a forward orientated team, relying on scrums and mauls and forwards taking the ball up, all of a sudden we could add a wider more skillful alternative. We went from playing a 10-man type of rugby to a more spectacular, spectator friendly complete rugby. The second positive effect this had was the fact that many of the Romania players had a choice, learn from these foreign players and improve your level and try to get into the team OR get out of rugby. The 3rd positive effect was that other clubs also had to either invest in coaches or players to stay competitive. Over the 3 years that I have been involve with Romanian rugby the level of especially the Romanian club's backline players have improved tremendously. The number of foreign players now eligible to play for Romania is not that many. Currently Otar Turashvilli (Georgia), Johann van Heerden & Jody Rose (South Africa), Stephen Shennan (New Zealand) and Paula Kinikinilau (Tonga) are the only foreign players representing Romania. Kinikinilau got injured earlier in the year and is not available for the rest of the year. So it is only 4 players. Compared to, for example the number of foreign players Italy have used over the years (Even the Italian Captain is not Italian) it is nothing.»


8) By the way, how do you feel living in Romania? Have you learnt the language, that must be not so easy?!?


«Living in Romania has been incredible. It's a beautiful country with an incredible history. The scenery is breathtaking and it's a country I can without a doubt recommend to be visited. Bucharest is a very vibrant city with a mixture of so many cultures. I loved Timisoara because it reminded me very much of Stellenbosch back home. Timisoara was also the city where I met a very special lady and hopefully this year we will get married. Regarding the language, I have tried my best. I do understand some and can communicate the basic words and sentences. I am not very good with languages but it is one of my goals to be able to fully communicate in Romanian one day.»


9) You trained in South Africa, in North Africa, in Italy and in East Europe: so, you have a big knowledge of international rugby. Which Tier 2 or also Tier 3 country do you think can grow more in the future?


«It was very evident during last year's World Cup that the gap between Tier 1 and Tier 2 teams are getting smaller. The way teams like Japan, Georgia performed were inspirational. It's important that for the game to grow globally that these so-called 'smaller' nations get more exposure and be more competitive. I am curious to see if Japan without Eddie Jones can continue the form they showed during the World Cup. But the Tier 2 teams that I think would have the biggest impact on the game going forward are Georgia and the USA. Georgia has invested a lot of money in their rugby, but it was intelligent investment. Their National Junior teams are performing very well which means the development been done on grassroots level was seen as vital to ensure that rugby at the top level will stay strong and competitive for years to come. They have an incredible coaching staff and a lot of very good players are coming through their system. They have also established a rugby culture in Georgia. Going to Tbilisi for a test match you can expect 50000 crazy fans to show up to support their team. The USA didn't have the best of World Cups but a lot has changed since. In John Mitchell they have appointed a well-established coach who has coached at the highest level. The USA for many years has been known as the sleeping giant of World Rugby. They have also now established a professional league within the USA for the first time. This will have a huge impact on the game there. Another team that I would've wanted to add to this group is Romania. I know from first hand experience that Romania has the potential to be a top rugby nation. They have the players. After the World Cup it was the perfect opportunity for them to move into a new direction. My opinion is that they needed a coach with a more up-to-date modern approach to the way the game is played. Unfortunately they decided to keep the current coaching staff. I guess time will tell if I was wrong in my assessment.»

10) Can you reveal one dream of yours? In the future, do you see yourself still in Romania or in another special experience?


«I still have many dreams. One of them is a Rugby World Cup. I have been part of a Sevens World Cup but to be involved with a 15's World Cup would be the ultimate. I miss International rugby and hope to one-day coach on that stage again. I would've loved to continue in Romania but my contract with CSM Bucuresti ended in December 2015. I am in the process of negotiating with a new club in a different country and hope to make an exciting announcement very soon.»
 
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dragos03 said:
As a "reward" for winning this tournament, Romania continues to be treated like a Tier 3 country by World Rugby. We have not played a Tier 1 test in 10 years and we are the only Tier 2 nation not to play one this year. But that is not all, FRR president Harry Dumitras has confirmed that the November tests against Fiji and Japan have been cancelled. It seems that our opponents in November will be Uruguay, USA and Canada. So, not only we don't get a Tier 1 test but all our opponents are ranked lower than us in the World Rugby Rankings! As it stands, Romania will play a total of 11 matches this year, of which only one against a nation with a higher ranking.
Click to expand...

Wow. That is quite disappointing for Romania. (looking at wikipedia) It's really a 16 team club with 4N <4/wk> 6N <2/wk> P6N. Only USA is swapped out (Georgia included here as they were effectively in the Pacific competition this year). That takes up every tier 1 team for 3 weeks and then out of the 12 free P6N slots, the best ones are taken by Japan/Georgia/Fiji/Samoa playing each other.

All that's left:
1x Fiji (vs Barbarians - that must be annoying to see)
1x Samoa (who do they play in week 4? maybe USA? Barbarians?)
And under rank 14:
2x Tonga (Uruguay, and who do they play in week 3? I'll laugh if it's Canada!)
2x Canada - You say Romania is getting that one. On current rankings Romania is 7/1 favourites to win that.


I hope you can at least arrange a contest with the Maori All Blacks or a top Champions Cup team, and take some consolation from having a team in the Challenge Cup again.

What are the prospects for June 2017? With the Lions touring NZ, any chance it will become a club of 17 and include Romania? (I guess games would be hosted in P6N countries even vs European teams)
Not a great hope for Nov 2016 I guess if the Stadium is under construction.
 
Romania do seem to have fallen through the cracks with world rugby, presumably because it isn't as lucrative a market as Italy, US, Canada and Japan. I'd like to see some kind of commitment to arrange that every tier 2 and 3 team gets at least one test a year against a team ranked up to five points above them. Maybe a commitment to play one test every two years against a team up to 10 points above them but there isn't much to be gained by getting thrashed by a top team. If fixtures were arranged based on team rankings it'd be much fairer all round and would probably result in more competitive fixtures.

I think a team with a ranking like Romania should be getting regular exposure to the likes of Japan, Italy and the Pacific nations if they are ever going to be allowed to develop.
 
I like the ideas you're saying, but you'd need to go to more ranking points than 10. At 10, the only tier 1 Romania would ever see is Italy, and there are only 3 teams that would ever play the All Blacks.

One test per year about 6-9 points above, and one in-between RWCs about 12-15 points above. Fixed. (This would also mean Romania offering an occasional test to teams like Chile, Korea, Kenya)
In terms of rankings points calculations, you're supposed to have *some small chance* of winning a home game up until there's a 13 point gap. (7 for an away game).
 
Bruce_ma_goose said:
Romania do seem to have fallen through the cracks with world rugby, presumably because it isn't as lucrative a market as Italy, US, Canada and Japan. I'd like to see some kind of commitment to arrange that every tier 2 and 3 team gets at least one test a year against a team ranked up to five points above them. Maybe a commitment to play one test every two years against a team up to 10 points above them but there isn't much to be gained by getting thrashed by a top team. If fixtures were arranged based on team rankings it'd be much fairer all round and would probably result in more competitive fixtures.

I think a team with a ranking like Romania should be getting regular exposure to the likes of Japan, Italy and the Pacific nations if they are ever going to be allowed to develop.
Click to expand...

It's a quite interesting alternative, to think about world ranking point differential.
We usually talk about matches between T1 and T2 countries. However, the true is that there are some differences between T2 countries, and also bigger differences between T1 nations.
Also an important point is the reciprocity that the T2 countries should have with lower ranked nations.

However, the particular case of Romania is a clear example of lack of quality opponents, no matter the way we think about it.
IMHO, no playing the Nation Cup is the better thing they can do.
 
It's a sad predicament Romania find themselves in, they're one of the few Tier 2 countries with a fully professional league, they're slightly better than USA/Canada and probably just about on par with Italy in terms of ability. The quality in Super League is probably a little higher than Italian Excellenza and I anticipate Timisoara to surprise a few people in the Challenge Cup. Romania have been treated quite unfairly IMO.
 
With all that, I am eagerly waiting the Autumn test.

Howells announced at the weekly TV show from Dolce (every Thursday) that most likely Romania will travel next summer in Pacific Islands as Nations Cup will be organized somewhere else.

Also he declared that he is lobbying around WR that Romania need better opposition and also need to play abroad more; he thinks that main aim of these tests is to prepare for RWC and since it will be a tournament abroad it makes sense to play away more often.

Super Liga is one month away from kick off.

Poli Iasi is preparing for its first season after promotion (or being admitted) in Super Liga; there are rumors about the transfer or 4 South Africans and 3 Tongans to cover the holes in some positions. Some of the young guys of Poli Iasi had offers from Steaua, Dinamo or U Cluj but they are staying with their actual club.

Also they'll play to warm up matches, one in Chisinau (Moldova) and one in Odessa (Ukraine) with the local sides from Eastern European League Rugby - 15 which is played by teams from Moldova and Ukraine.

Later edit:
Timisoara Saracens is in Pool 5 of Challenge Cup with Harlequins, Edinburgh and Stade Francais.
 
Last edited:
Steaua is strengthen its squad for Super Liga:


Petru Tamba, loosehead prop
Vlad Badalicescu, tighthead prop
Amirani Chiteashvili, lock (Georgia)
Quinton Crocker, fly-half (South Africa)
Florin Surugiu, scrum-half
Florin Vlaicu, center


and they're in talks with 3 other players.


This is a very strong transfer campaign and I think Steaua is closer and closer of Timisoara and Baia Mare, with some luck they may challenge the ***le.
 

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