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BREAKDOWN: THE HIGHLIGHTS
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Season 2018, Issue 4
COACHES CALL - Read the view of our Head Coach Dan McKellar on tonight’s Super Rugby encounter with our guests from Argentina, the Jaguares. FEATURE STORY - This week’s feature story, as we chat to one of the Brumbies stars about rugby, life outside the game, and more.
THE BRUMBY YEARS - Each week we take a chronological look back at a season from the Brumbies past, reviewing the campaign and seeing what else happened in the World. THE ACT AND THE WALLABIES - The ACT has always had a long association with the Wallabies and, in this eight-part series, we examine some of those connections.
OUR OPPONENTS - Our ten-page section on our visitors to GIO Stadium starts here and
includes everything you need to know about our guests including player profiles, opposition profile, their relevant statistics and the key men.
THE WORLD OF RUGBY - The section dedicated to the World of Rugby featuring stories from South Africa, New Zealand and globally. CLOSER TO HOME - The latest news and reports from the Griffin Legal John I Dent Cup, Canberra’s Premier Club Rugby competition.
TEAM MANAGEMENT Head Coach: Dan McKellar CLUB HONOU Forwards Coach: Laurie Fisher RS Backs Coach: Peter Hewat Super R ugby Ch Defence Coach: Peter Ryan a mpions Super R : 2001, ugb Scrum Coach: Dan Palmer 2004 1997, 2 y Runners-Up : Team Manager: Bill Swain 000, 20 Australi 0 2 , 2 an Confe 0 Media Manager: Russ Gibbs rence C 13 h Director of Athletic Performance Australi 2013, 2016, 2 ampions: 017 an and Innovation: Ben Serpell World C Provincial Cham pions: 2 World C lub Sevens Ch Head Physiotherapist / Rehabilitation: Byron Field 006 a lub Ten s Runne mpions: 2013 Team Doctor: Dr. Stephen Freeman rs-Up: 2 014, 20 Performance Consultant: John Pryor 16 Team Physiotherapist: Dave Wellington Performance Analyst: Angus Teece GPS Analyst / PHD Candidate: Carmen Colomer Strength & Conditioning Coach: John Mitchell Plus500 BRUMBIES RUGBY Strength & Conditioning Assistant: Barry Horgan Established: 1996 RUPA Player Development Manager: Robin Duff BREAKDOWN - Editor: Russ Gibbs Designer: Chelsea Wilson Contributors: Rian Murphy Photography: Getty Images.
All this and plenty more every week in your copy of Breakdown – Plus500 Brumbies Official Matchday Magazine
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facebook.com/GilbertRugby.AUSNZ @GILBERT_UNION gilbertrugby.com.au
GILBERT IS THE OFFICIAL BALL OF THE BRUMBIES
COACHES CALL with Dan McKellar Hello everyone and welcome back to GIO Stadium for this afternoon’s match against the Jaguares. I’d like to welcome our guests from Argentina, their players, officials and supporters to Canberra for the very first time. We had a terrific reception off the field when we travelled to Buenos Aires last year and trust that the Jaguares have been made to feel the same here in Australia.
Since my last notes we have had two contrasting results. I was very pleased with our performance against the Reds last time here at GIO Stadium where we showed tremendous skill and character to come from behind to score seven tries in succession and claim a bonus-point victory. It was excellent to see some of the things that we have been trying in training come off on the field and we scored some outstanding tries, running the ball well, carrying with purpose and making good metres that kept us on the front foot. We learned a lot from the game, including the fact that Rory Arnold has a fair turn of speed for a big fella!
Last weekend in Dunedin was disappointing, but the result didn’t really reflect the match in my opinion. There were crucial turning points throughout the game and the Highlanders capitalised on turnover ball with ruthless efficiency. We have welcomed James Verity-Amm and Michael Oakman-Hunt as the latest members of the Brumbies family in the last fortnight and are very proud that Rory Arnold and Allan Alaalatoa have brought up fifty caps for the club. It’s a tremendous achievement for all four players, winning your first cap or your fiftieth, it’s always a thrill to pull on a Brumbies jersey. This afternoon, given a successful week of training, may well see Henry Speight play his 100th Brumbies Super Rugby match. That will be a special moment for Henry, his family and everyone associated with the club. Enjoy the game and get fully behind the boy’s today. They truly appreciate your support.
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ARNOLD AND ALAALATOA REACH FIFTY CAP MILESTONE The Plus500 Brumbies exhilarating comeback win against the Reds at GIO Stadium in Super Rugby Round 8 will live long in the memory for several reasons. Firstly, the fact that the team showed character, grit and determination to overturn a fifteenpoint deficit to score seven unanswered tries, each one better than the last, was maybe justification on its own. Secondly, that deficit was the largest we have overcome since 2009 and the team were in fine voice singing the traditional club song in the changing rooms afterwards. If that wasn’t cause for celebration enough, for two of the team’s stalwarts the evening marked the occasion of their fiftieth cap in the club colours. Nation’s Capital at the young age of nineteen. The prop replaced great mate Scott Sio that Racking up half a century of appearances day and was a replacement again a week later is no mean feat in the rarefied atmosphere as the Waratahs ended any hopes of a Super of Super Rugby so for Allan Alaalatoa Rugby triumph in the last four. and Rory Arnold the match was of extra significance. Not that you would have heard A further five appearances off the bench either of these humble giants of the game followed in 2015 before he was finally asked mentioning as much in the build-up to what to pack down from the start as the Brumbies was a vitally important fixture in the scheme travelled to South Africa and faced up to the of the season. not inconsiderable challenge of the Lions at Ellis Park in Johannesburg. Lining up alongside Alaalatoa started his journey towards skipper Stephen Moore and Ben Alexander at fifty caps before his erstwhile colleague, the coalface, Alaalatoa helped steer the team making his bow in Brumbies colours in the to a 32-20 victory. Making a name for himself, 2014 Quarter Final clash against the Chiefs and learning his craft, Alaalatoa had to wait in Canberra having made the move to the until 2017 to become a regular starter, his
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impact off the bench being utilised to the full the year before. By that stage it was obvious that Alaalatoa had a huge future ahead of him and he earned his initial Wallabies cap in 2016 against the All Blacks in Sydney, since moving onto 22 Australian caps.
ball-winner starting fourteen of the eighteen matches played that year and coming on as a replacement in another. The Brumbies bowed out at the semi-final stage that year as the Hurricanes proved too strong at Westpac Stadium in Wellington.
Not renowned as a prolific try scorer, Alaalatoa only has one five-pointer to his name to date, that score pilfered in the match on Friday 5 June against the Force in Perth as the Brumbies won 33-20 and flanker David Pocock helped himself to a hat-trick of tries. A veritable beast in the set-piece, he is a well-loved member of the Brumbies family and is set to be around for a long time more.
His leggy stride meant that Arnold was tough to haul down when in the loose, as evidenced by the sensational burst and try during his fiftieth cap against the Reds last time out here at GIO Stadium. That was his fourth Brumbies try, his first coming just four matches into his debut season as he trundled over against the Force as the Brumbies defeated the Western Australians 27-15 in Canberra.
Rory Arnold’s Brumbies career began a year later than Alaalatoa as the giant lock became the tallest man ever to be selected at Super Rugby level when he ran onto the field as part of a second-row pairing with Sam Carter as the Reds were ravaged 47-3 at GIO Stadium.
His other tries were registered against the Rebels in Melbourne in 2016, as the Brumbies won 30-22, and against the Crusaders in Christchurch during the opening match of the 2017 Super Rugby season, the second of those being the Brumbies first try of last term.
Internationally, Arnold was first called into the Wallabies test match squad in 2016 as he Giving his all from the word go, Arnold was selected for the fixture against England in was a constant selection throughout his Brisbane going on to claim a further fourteen debut season of 2015, the hard-carrying international caps and crossing for a maiden international try against New Zealand at Eden Park in Auckland in October 2016.
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WHAT’S ON AT GIO STADIUM TODAY
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FAINGA’A EXPRESSING HIS INNER SUPERMAN
Flying through the air with the greatest of ease isn’t necessarily the first thing you think of when assessing the relative merits of a rugby union hooker. Can he carry the ball in the loose, for sure, or perhaps most importantly, can he hold his own and even dominate the set-piece? Rarely though is, can he finish like Superman with an inch of space outside him, a predominant thought.
Enter the villain of the piece. Referee Ben O’Keefe decided to take a look with his friends in the box and, after much deliberation, the TMO deemed that the grounding of the ball had been simultaneous with the hooker’s hand hitting the touchline thus denying us a moment that would have been replayed indefinitely. But what brought all that on in the first place?
Well maybe it’s time to rewrite the job description after the Plus500 Brumbies rake Folau Fainga’a stunned the watching crowd at GIO Stadium, and many more tuning in on Fox Sports, with an acrobatic effort to reach the try-line in the 39th minute of the team’s 45-21 success over the Reds.
“I have been watching a fair bit of Rugby League recently so I just thought I would give it a try as well!” Fainga’a said of his impressive finish. “It wasn’t a planned movement, it was just off the cuff after we saw the gap, and tried something new. However, I think I might just leave the diving for the leaguies next time!”
A quick lineout had caught the Reds napping as Fainga’a claimed a short pass from Tom Cusack, after Rory Arnold had gathered the ball from the top, to break down the blindside ten metres from the Queensland line. Reds replacement James Tuttle stood in his way, and to all intents and purposes, had it covered. Fainga’a though launched himself through the evening air to claim what appeared to be an amazing score.
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The performance that the Brumbies put in over the Reds was a vast improvement on an error-strewn effort against the Waratahs at the same venue a week earlier and Fainga’a put that down to a change in approach and, perhaps emphatically, a change in attitude precipitated by a gnarled veteran of the dark arts. “The attitude that we took into the game
was spot on,” Fainga’a revealed. “We really wanted it and that showed. We executed well and were pleased with what we did on the day. There was a big challenge laid down by Lord [Laurie Fisher] to battle up, muscle up, in the forwards and the boys managed to come through with that on the weekend. “We had a great week of preparation heading into the match and we were excited for the challenge. It’s something that we wanted to take into the match over in New Zealand as well as we understood that we had a tough task against a Highlanders team that like to play some fancy football.” It’s been a meteoric year for Fainga’a so far with the amiable front rower seeing his performance in training and in pre-season rewarded with game time in Super Rugby and, of course, a highly-prized new contract which the Brumbies revealed back in the first week of this month. “I am very happy to have committed myself to the Brumbies and am looking forward to the challenges that lie ahead,” Fainga’a said. “It’s been tremendous so far and I have really enjoyed my time with the Brumbies since coming to the club in pre-season. It’s a fantastic group of players and staff to work with and in Robbie Abel and Josh Mann-Rea we have two experienced hookers who I can
learn from. The Brumbies is a special club to play for and I have been made to feel so welcome to Canberra by everyone involved and the loyal Brumbies supporters. I look forward to an exciting future.” The skill-set that the Sydney-born player brings to the club is not inconsiderable and Head Coach Dan McKellar was effusive in his praise of Fainga’a when discussing his new contract with the assembled media a few weeks ago. “Folau brings great energy, is very dynamic in both attack and defence and his set piece game is developing nicely,” McKellar said. “He was a standout player in the NRC with the Vikings last season and he has produced that form in his first few games of Super Rugby on the back of an excellent pre-season. Folau has impressed in his short time at the club, he has quickly become a popular member of the group and it is pleasing to see him take the opportunities he has been given. If he continues to work hard on all areas of his game I am confident he has a long career ahead of him at Super Rugby Level.” We can expect to see much more from Folau Fainga’a as his career progress throughout the next two and a half years with the Brumbies, just maybe not as many horizontal leaps to the try line from distance!
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M I LW A R D L E A D I N G B Y E X A M P L E
Wallaroos flanker Shellie Milward was handed a huge responsibility at the commencement of the 2018 season. The lock was selected by Head Coach Tony Doherty as the very first Captain of the Brumbies Women Buildcorp Super W team and it’s an honour that she has taken in her significant stride.
Originally, I was playing soccer though my older brother, who played rugby, used to tease me and say that I played fairy ball! Being a stubborn person, I had to prove that I could do anything he could. So, I joined up and played with the boys until the age of 13 where girls were no longer allowed to play, I then played touch football in the meantime and re-joined Milward had the privilege of leading rugby at the age of 23.” the team onto the field for its inaugural Buildcorp Super W match against the Reds The Buildcorp Super W has opened the eyes in Canberra and, although her day may have of many who may not have been aware of the ended early when being dismissed having sport through its exposure on Fox Sports and received two yellow cards in the second half, the extensive coverage it has been receiving she certainly has many happy memories of in both mainstream, and social, media. For the experience. Milward that can only be a positive. “Running out leading and representing the Brumbies for our first ever Super W game was an unforgettable moment in my career, that I’m sure I share with the rest of my teammates,” she commented. “The girls were all pumped and the atmosphere from the crowd was amazing to experience, hopefully we get the opportunity to play out at GIO Stadium again in the future.”
“The best thing the Super W competition is the exposure of our sport to rugby fans outside of the ones that may catch a women’s game in passing when they attend the men’s club games,” she confirmed. “It’s provided a stage for Australian sporting fans to appreciate the talent our female athletes possess and maybe, more importantly, it’s giving some hardearned recognition to the amazing players that sacrifice so much to compete at this level. It was a long road for Milward into the No doubt if this competition is given the space ranks of the Brumbies Women team and and time to grow, it will be a huge success and it’s a journey that she is justifiably proud of. show on the international stage.” Milward initially showed some promise at football but was prepared to switch to the Having been a standout player on the Women’s oval ball game to prove a point to her sibling. rugby stage for several years now Milward has “I started playing rugby as a junior with experienced at first-hand how the changes to Vikings at the age of 10,” Milward recalled. a more professional environment have helped
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the game. With the promise that the game will continue to grow, there appears to be no limits to the heights that the Women’s game could achieve in this country. “The overall standard on display is fantastic and improving week to week,” Milward said of the Buildcorp Super W. “I think teams have had to adjust on the run to a different level of refereeing we may not have previously been exposed to at club land, which in turn makes for a stop start type of game, but with more games and coaching at a higher level, skills and knowledge of the game will only improve. As for the fundamental skills, I have seen plenty of outstanding passages of attack and defence by all teams across the Super W competition.”
commitments for this competition is quite tough,” Milward confirmed. “I work 12-hour shifts so I have to do a lot of swaps with my coworkers to meet the commitment standards of our team, but luckily enough my work is quite understanding and supportive, so it makes it that little bit easier. Though the joy I get out of playing and being on this journey with the girls makes it all worthwhile.
For Milward the sport isn’t a full-time occupation at present and she, like most of her teammates has been forced to juggle the demands of the competition around her everyday life. That, as the lock admits, can be a tough challenge but one that she is determined to overcome and one that she would highly recommend to those determined to follow in her footsteps.
“I would and do recommend rugby to any young girl who is thinking of having a run. Personally, rugby has taken me around the world and provided me the platform to represent my country. I’ve met some of my best mates through the sport and it has taught me some valuable life lessons. Women’s Rugby is only getting bigger and with this new Super W competition it’s an exciting time to “I think any player competing in the Super be a female in rugby, who knows where this W will tell you juggling personal life and sport will have grown to in 5-10 years’ time?”
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THE BRUMBY YEARS: 1999 THE SEASON Final Position: 5th The Brumbies were left kicking themselves at the end of the 1999 Super Rugby season when they missed out on a place in the semi-finals by a mere five points. The Crusaders pipped the Australian side to the post and went on to win the title from fourth position on the ladder. In what was a remarkably open season, the Brumbies lost more matches than they won, six defeats against five victories, and it was those losses to teams below them that were to prove costly. The Cats, Sharks and Chiefs all won against the ACT side who, nevertheless, pushed the top four all the way. The champion Crusaders squeezed a 28-21 win in Canberra in early April whilst the Highlanders, who also made the Final, were narrow 9-8 winners in Dunedin later the same month. Taken in isolation, those results proved there was something stirring down in the Australian Capital city.
THE KEY PLAYER The 1999 campaign was a much better one for the Brumbies and that was illustrated by the number of players who were on the plane to Europe and the Rugby World Cup in October. Pivotal to the Wallabies plans was the Brumbies scrum-half George Gregan and the livewire number nine was to have an amazing year. Named the Brumbies best at the traditional end of year awards, claiming the Players’ Player of the Year trophy, Gregan’s sniping from the base of the scrum, eye for a gap, and bullet-like, precision passing, was to be a constant throughout the season. Gregan dominated the Brumbies best moves and scored five tries, being second highest try-scorer after the ever-reliable Joe Roff. His form was to continue at the global showpiece where he helped the Australian side to claim a second Webb Ellis Cup in Cardiff, South Wales.
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ONE TO REMEMBER
ONE TO FORGET
28/03/1999 Brumbies 73 Bulls 9 (Canberra Stadium, Canberra) A comprehensive dismantling of the Bulls reignited the Brumbies season as they looked destined to spend the year at the wrong end of the table once more. Incredibly, after such a huge win, the team trailed off to lose two in a row, but recovered to push for finals. On this occasion, the Canberra Stadium crowd was witness to some explosive rugby with the Brumbies putting in a fifteen-man display that evoked memories of better times. The Brumbies ran in eight tries on the day with Rod Kafer leading the way with two. Joe Roff, George Gregan, Jim Williams, Stephen Larkham, Mark Bartholomeusz and Gordon Falcon added the others. The hapless Bulls were the proverbial lambs to the slaughter and the home crowd enjoyed every minute of it in what was one of four home wins that season.
26/02/1999 Cats 33 Brumbies 22 (Ellis Park, Johannesburg) As far as season openers go this was a disaster. The Cats were perennial underachievers in Super Rugby and would finish the 1999 season in a lowly eleventh, out of twelve teams. They claimed only four wins in eleven matches but, crucially for the Brumbies finals aspirations, one of them was in Round 1. After a difficult 1998 Eddie Jones’ team had settled in the offseason and were looking strong heading into the opening round of the competition. However, it all went wrong at Ellis Park in Johannesburg. The Brumbies did outscore their opponents by three tries to two, a penalty-try added to by scores from Mitch Hardy and Stirling Mortlock, but terrible discipline kept the Cats in the match and Kobus Engelbrecht kicked seven penalties to see the South Africans home.
SUPER RUGBY FINALS RESULTS
SEMI-FINALS Reds 22 Crusaders 28 Stormers 18 Highlanders 33 FINAL Highlanders 19 Crusaders 24
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ELSEWHERE IN….1999 • • •
• • •
The Wallabies won the Rugby World Cup for the second time after dismantling France in the Final at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales. Australia also tasted success in the World Netball Championships in 1999 as the Diamonds defeated New Zealand in the Final. In 1914, British WWI soldier Thomas Hughes tossed a beer bottle with a letter to his wife into the English Channel. He was killed two days later. In 1999, a fisherman dredged up the bottle in the River Thames. Although Hughes’ wife had died in 1979, it was delivered to his 86-year old daughter. Australian Bill Morgan was hit by a truck and was clinically dead for 14 minutes. When he woke up he bought a scratch card and won a car worth $25,000. When asked to recreate this for the news he won the $250,000 jackpot live in air. The North Melbourne Kangaroos won the AFL Championship whilst the Melbourne Storm were NRL Champions for the first time. Finally, Pac-Man’s Perfect Score! Billy Mitchell, played Pac-Man for six hours non-stop to reach the 256th screen and achieve a score of 3,333,360. Pac-Man was released in 1980.
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THE ACT AND THE WALLABIES: PART 4 THE NINETIES AND RUGBY WORLD CUP GLORY Canberra, and the Australian Capital Territory in general, has had a close relationship with the Wallabies, and the international game, for over sixty years. In this new series, each week we will look at some of the stories that link our City, and its surrounding region, with the Australian international team. Part 4 takes a look at the 1990’s and double World Cup glory. If the 1980’s were a resurgent time for Australian rugby, it’s fair to say the 1990’s took that to a new level. Arguably, the 1990’s was the pinnacle of the game in this country so far with the Wallabies claiming two Rugby World Cups, bookending the decade with victories at Twickenham, against England in 1991, and the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, against France in 1999.
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Two players with ACT connections took part in the first of those successes, with prop Ewen McKenzie and winger David Campese at the heart of Australia’s 12-6 win over the host nation. McKenzie, who went on to receive 51 caps for Australia and play 36 times for the Brumbies, was a relative newcomer to the team when he appeared in the showpiece match in November 1991. McKenzie had made his Australia debut in 1990 when France were the visitors to Sydney for the first of three test matches on an eight-match tour. McKenzie lined up in a front row alongside Tony Daly and Phil Kearns,
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a combination that would be together for that memorable day that Australia claimed the Webb Ellis Cup a year later. On this occasion, Australia defeated the French 21-9 at Sydney Football Stadium. The Wallabies claimed the second test as well, 48-31, before succumbing in the third, 19-28 back in Sydney. The second match, at Brisbane in Queensland, saw a debut cap for centre Paul Cornish who crossed for a try. He would win three caps for his country, including the third test of this series. The mid-nineties saw a plethora of players gain their Wallaby caps whilst based in
the ACT, in the main due to the formation of the Brumbies and the implementation of the Super-12 competition. Pat Howard claimed the first of twenty caps as the Australians met New Zealand in Dunedin in 1993, a game the All Blacks won by 25 points to 10. Following Howard into Wallaby Gold was Matt O’Connor, the centre winning his only Australian cap in a 33-13 win over Ireland at Ballymore in 1994. Matthew Pini, who by this stage was a resident of Queensland, made his international bow in the same game but was to have more luck than O’Connor, going on to win eight caps before his last game in 1995. 1994 also saw the Italians arrive in Australia for a rare tour, playing eight matches including two tests, both of which they lost. The Azzurri pushed the Wallabies all the way in both games, particularly the opening fixture in Queensland, a 23-20 Wallaby win marking the test arrival of scrumhalf George Gregan. Gregan, of course, would win 139 full caps for his country. The following year was notable for the test debut of winger Joe Roff, who won the first of his 86 caps against Canada in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, during the rainbow Nation’s hosting of the Rugby World Cup, whilst the formation of the Brumbies later in the year saw five players capped in 1996, namely Marco Caputo, Owen Finegan and Stephen Larkham, all
against Wales on their 1996 tour, and Brett Robinson and David Giffin. Mitch Hardy was next to get a taste of test match football, being introduced as a blood-bin replacement for Larkham in the first test against France at the Sydney Football Stadium. His 1997 debut brought him two tries in three minutes, a remarkable start to an eightmatch test career. James Holbeck and John Langford were also capped that year. As we approached the end of the decade, there were five further players with ACT links that played for the Wallabies with Jeremy Paul having the most success, debuting in 1998 against Scotland in Sydney and winning 73 caps. Fellow front-rower Patricio Noriega won 24 caps for Australia, the first against France in Paris, whilst Jim Williams made his first appearance at the elite level as a replacement for fellow ACT man Giffin in a 46-10 win over Ireland. Finally, Rod Kafer, now an eminent TV pundit for Fox Sports, received his maiden international call up prior to the 1999 Rugby World Cup when the All Blacks came to Sydney. The Wallabies continued their impressive form with a 28-7 defeat of the New Zealanders, going on to claim the Webb Ellis Cup for the second time, Kafer playing two matches during the tournament.
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ONE-CAP WONDERS NAME:
Scott Barton
POSITION:
Wing
THE GAME:
Brumbies 38 Sharks 8
THE DATE:
8 March 2002
THE VENUE: Canberra Stadium, Canberra Some Brumbies play for one season. Some play for several seasons and a rare few even reach the magical century of appearances. However, for each one of those players there are the guys at the other end of the spectrum, the one’s that only ever pull on the jersey in a competitive game once. This series looks back at those players continuing with Scott Barton. Qualified electrician Scott Barton joined the Brumbies for the 2002 Super Rugby season and, in doing so, took a unique place amongst the squad for that campaign. For Barton was the only player named in the Brumbies squad that had ever scored a try against the men from Canberra. That came in the 2000 National Ricoh Championship when Barton shone for the Queensland Reds. It was the Reds’ only try in a 23-16 win over the ACT at Ballymore and Barton, who was a product of the Wests club in Brisbane, sufficiently caught the eye of the Brumbies coaching staff to be integrated into the Super-12 team for 2002. He came to the national Capital with plenty of potential having been a member of the Australian Sevens team from 2000.
Blessed with genuine pace and superb athleticism, Barton was an exciting acquisition for the champion Brumbies who had swept all before them in the 2001 edition. Barton had looked the goods in the trial match in Palmerston North when he blitzed the Hurricanes Development XV, crossing for a hat-trick in a 72-0 rout, and he was used off the bench in the subsequent 29-10 tour win over the Hurricanes in Hastings. Despite that good start to life in Canberra, Barton was not involved in the first two weeks of Super Rugby when the Brumbies defeated the Reds (29-19) and the Cats (64-16). He had to wait until Round 3 to get on the field, coming on as a replacement for Damien McInally as the Brumbies saw off the Sharks 38-8 and earning his one appearance as Brumby #66.
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PROGRAMS FROM THE PAST THE DETAILS
Competition: Super Rugby Game: Jaguares 15 Brumbies 39 Date: 27 May 2017 Venue: Estadio Jose Amalfitani, Velez Sarsfield, Argentina Scorers: Jaguares – T: Tomas Lavannini, Guido Petti Pagadizaval, C: Santiago Gonzalez Iglesias, P: Nicolas Sanchez; Brumbies – T: Sam Carter, Tom Banks (2), Henry Speight, Andrew Muirhead (2), C: Wharenui Hawera (3), P: Wharenui Hawera
THE MATCH
The Plus500 Brumbies took a stranglehold on the 2017 Australian Conference with a 39-15 victory over the Jaguares running in six tries in a convincing victory. The Jaguares went in front with a well-struck penalty from Nicolas Sanchez before the Brumbies took control of the fixture. Captain Sam Carter was first across the line, burrowing over from close range after the Brumbies maul had sent the Argentinean pack back-
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pedaling at a rate of knots. Jaguares hit back well and second row Tomas Lavannini crashed over following excellent approach work by the Argentineans, but the Brumbies were back in the ascendancy when Joe Powell and Banks executed a perfect backline move for the full-back to cruise over unopposed. And Banks was at the double only minutes later, pouncing on a fantastically weighted kick-through by flanker Chris Alcock to win the race to the ball, gather, and dive in the corner. The Brumbies increased their lead after the half-time siren when Jaguares hooker Agustin Creevy was sent to the sin-bin. Hawera landed the mid-range penalty and the visitors led 20-10 at the break. It was a lead that they were never to relinquish as Henry Speight added to the tryscoring, putting the visitors into bonus point territory with his seventh try of the season. A late double form replacement Andy Muirhead, the first coming with his first touch, completed a superb performance.
THE PROGAM The Jaguares produced a glossy, full-color, 66-page ‘program colleccionable’ for the Brumbies first trip to Argentina with this edition being their seventh of the season. The program was entirely in Spanish, of course, with the match details and a picture on a striking orange, yellow and blue front cover. After adverts on pages 2 and 3 we get a welcome from the president of the Argentinean Rugby Union and from the Jaguares Board. Five pages are dedicated to the Jaguares penpictures with photos and statistics provided for each member of the home team’s squad. An advert for Gatorade follows before we get into the meat of the issue where it becomes apparent that this isn’t really a program at all, more of a magazine dedicated to Super Rugby. The Brumbies don’t get a mention until page 32. The first feature we stumble upon is a page on the Bulls, showing their team colours, a note on the Head Coach, the squad – with positions – and a short news piece. This is
replicated throughout the magazine for each of the eighteen Super Rugby franchises. Quite bizarrely, some of the teams are granted a feature on their club, a kind of potted history in Spanish, but this isn’t afforded every side and the Brumbies are one that misses out on this treatment. For more up to date news we turn to page 34 where we are given the current standings in the four Conferences with an amalgamated Australiasia and South African ladders. The following page brings us some match statistics of the Jaguares and Brumbies ahead of the match. A three-page feature on Santiago Gonzalez Iglesias features a boxout on Tomas Cubelli, whilst another twopage feature over the pages gives Stephen Larkham the same treatment. The rest of the magazine is given over to history and line-ups of the rest of Super Rugby as mentioned. Whilst this is not a conventional program in any sense, it does provide the reader with a good background on each team, providing you speak the language of course. How much of this issue is replicated each week is, however, not apparent.
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MATCH STATISTICS
V OVERALL - Played: 1
IN CANBERRA - Played: 0
LAST FIVE 2017 JAG 15 BRU 39 BIGGEST WIN 2017 JAG 15 BRU 39 BIGGEST DEFEAT NONE
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MATCH PREVIEW - Plus500 Brumbies v Jaguares The Plus500 Brumbies are back home, ready to revive their season against the Jaguares after suffering a heavy loss in Dunedin against the Highlanders last week. Things did not go to plan at Forsyth Barr Stadium, the Highlanders punishing the Brumbies mistakes to win comfortably. However, the score was probably not a fair reflection of the game. The Brumbies were competitive for most of the match and will feel with some luck they may have faired better in New Zealand. Confident in their ability to bounce back, they will go into tonight’s test confident that they can handle Los Jaguares.
the second time the Brumbies have faced the Jaguares. Their first meeting came in Round 14 last season, Tom Banks sparking a 39-15 win in Buenos Aires.
This will be the Argentinian sides first visit to the Nation’s capital, though some of their stock played for the Pumas against the Wallabies at GIO Stadium in 2017. In fact, this is just
The Jaguares blend of power and skill stunned the Rebels. Steered by flyhalf Nicolas Sanchez, the Jaguares scored 25 unanswered points in the final 30 minutes of the game. Once they got rolling, they
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The Jaguares arrive in Canberra having come from behind to shock the Rebels at AAMI Park in Round 9. It’s the latest in slew of surprise results for the visitors. Wins over the Waratahs and the Lions in previous rounds were certainly unexpected, though they didn’t back those wins up the following week. Still, there is little chance they will have any fear when they come up against the Brumbies tonight after their stellar win in Melbourne.
looked unstoppable. The Jaguares share the Pumas identity in that way. When they are on, their relentless style of play overwhelms team. On the flip side, if you catch them cold, they are far more beatable, the Rebels mistake was not killing off the game when they were 22 up. For the Brumbies it would appear on the surface that it would be panic stations in the Capital this week following the Highlanders defeat. Any game where you ship over points needs a tough review, but it’s not excuses to say the Brumbies were hard done by with the final score. The home side will have to improve in three areas to get things back on track tonight. The first area is red zone attack. The Brumbies gave the ball away too easy in the final third. Wharenui Hawera’s intercept pass is an obvious example but there were plenty more. It’s finding the balance between calmness and chaos that the Brumbies need to find in scoring zones. With guys like Isi Naisarani and Tevita Kuridrani finding form, the Brumbies have the firepower to find the final effort to score against the Jaguares.
The Line-out was another area of concern against the Highlanders. It would be easy to single out Folau Faing’a’s throwing but it’s not all the rookie hookers fault. It’s an area of strength for the Brumbies, so last Saturday’s struggles were most likely an exception rather than the rule. Still, it must be better if the Brumbies are to get a win tonight. The last area that needs improving is the fringe defence. The Brumbies got caught a couple of times out wide, particularly for Ben Smith’s brace of tries. The Jaguares scored all their tries in the flanks against the Rebels, so the Brumbies will have to tighten up from the inside out. The Jaguares are feared for their forwards, but that backline demands respect. If they are let dictate the game in the wide channels, it could be a long night for the home side. However, the Brumbies have shown their resolve before. The Reds performance is still in this side, and back in front of the Brumbies crowd tonight, the Brumbies will be determined to prove the doubters wrong and tame the Jaguares at GIO Stadium.
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WHAT YOU MAY HAVE MISSED
Our last home match at GIO Stadium was one for the ages as the Plus500 Brumbies turned around a massive fifteen-point deficit to run away with a bonus-point win over the Reds, avenging the earlier season loss in Brisbane, retaining the Rod Macqueen Cup, and claiming five vital Australian Conference points with a 45-21 success. The Brumbies have started slowly in most matches this season but rarely will they have suffered such a despondent beginning as this one. Tries from prop Taniela Tupou and centre Chris FeauaiSautia gave the Reds an early cushion and seemingly on the way to a second win of the year over the hosts. That they didn’t achieve that was a credit to a team that finally found their groove in an attacking sense roaring back into contention via scores from hooker Folau Fainga’a and number eight Isi Naisarani. Fainga’a almost added a second of his own moments before half-time, taking advantage of a training ground routine off a line-out to acrobatically dive into the corner, only to be denied what would have been a sensational try by the intervention of the TMO.
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Far from being deflated the second half response was phenomenal as Dan McKellar’s team threw off the shackles and ran riot adding a further five tries to their tally whilst restricting the visitors to a solitary penalty. Winger Chance Peni forced his way over and was joined amongst the try-scorers by a rampaging Rory Arnold, who burst fully forty metres and showed a clean pair of heels to the defence to cross, the returning Sam Carter who came off the bench to great effect, the irrepressible David Pocock and a second to bullocking backrower Naisarani. With Christian Lealiifano adding five conversions the scoreboard began to actively reflect the home team’s dominance of territory and possession in the second stanza.
Earlier in the afternoon Tony Doherty and his Women’s team ended their maiden Buildcorp Super W season with a 29-10 home defeat to Western Force to end the season in fourth position on the ladder. In a dogged first-half performance the team defended stoutly and refused to be swayed as Western Australia were repelled at every turn. And the Brumbies led at the break after Captain Shellie Milward had found a way past the Western Australian defence for the only score of a tight opening forty minutes.
with Lima Sopoaga in the sin-bin, and pushing for a try. However, an intercept of an Hawera pass from winger Waisake Naholo turned the whole momentum of the contest.
The visiting team continued to push after the interval and eventually wore down the home defence crossing for a couple of tries in quick succession. The sin-binning of a Force player allowed the Brumbies an opening and Milward claimed her second try of the night, and third of the season, to reduce the arrears and offer fresh hope. However, the Force reply was solid and, despite giving their all, the Brumbies couldn’t find a way back into the match.
It was probably a flattering scoreline for the home side who were ruthlessly effective in exploiting any Brumbies errors, making the visitors pay for any lapse in concentration. There were tries for rampaging number eight Isi Naisarani and scrumhalf Joe Powell, plus a Brumbies debut for new boy Michael OakmanHunt, but ultimately it wasn’t the result the club was hoping for.
The giant winger showed a clean pair of heels to race away and score under the posts, making the conversion a formality, and rather than being 15-15 or better, the Brumbies were behind by twelve. Classy fullback Ben Smith went on to claim a double with Shannon Frizzell and Fletcher Smith adding to the game’s opening score from Sopoaga.
Last weekend the Brumbies travelled to the Highlanders hoping to claim that elusive win against a Kiwi side at the wonderful Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin. For large parts of the match it appeared as if they might just do that as well, pressing the Highlanders line when playing against fourteen men
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TRIES PENALTY GOALS CONVERSIONS DROP GOALS HALF TIME FULL TIME
STARTING XV 1 Scott Sio 2 Folau Fainga’a 3 Allan Alaalatoa 4 Rory Arnold 5 Sam Carter 6 Tom Cusack 7 David Pocock 8 Isi Naisarani
Replacements
16. Robbie Abel 17. Nick Mayhew 18. Mees Erasmus 19. Darcy Swain 20. Michael Oakman-Hunt 21. Matt Lucas 22. Jordan Jackson-Hope 23. Andrew Smith
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9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Joe Powell Wharenui Hawera Chance Peni Kyle Godwin Tevita Kuridrani Henry Speight Tom Banks
Match O Referee: Angus Gardner Assistant referee: Nic Berry Assistant referee: Will Houston
Officials:
BRUMBY JACK’S FUN ZONE COLOURING PAGES
BRUMBY JACK’S FUN ZONE COLOURING PAGES
BRUMBY JACK’S FUN ZONE COLOURING PAGES
BRUMBY JACK’S FUN ZONE COLOURING PAGES
TRIES PENALTY GOALS CONVERSIONS DROP GOALS HALF TIME FULL TIME
STARTING XV 1 Santiago Garcia Botta 2 Agustin Creevy 3 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro 4 Guido Petti 5 Tomas Lavanini 6 Pablo Matera 7 Marcos Kremer 8 Javier Ortega Desio
9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Martin Landajo Nicolas Sanchez Sebastian Cancelliere
Jeronimo De La Fuente
Matias Orlando Ramiro Moyano Emiliano Boffelli
Replacements
No. 4: TBA No. 5: TBA TMO: Ian Smith
16. Julian Montoya 17. Javier Diaz 18. Juan Pablo Zeiss 19. Matias Alemanno 20. Leonardo Senatore 21. Gonzalo Bertranou 22. Bautista Ezcurra 23. Joaquin Tuculet
*team subject to change, official line-up not available at time of publication
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YOUR BRUMBIES LIVE, EVERY ROUND.
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SEASON IN STATS
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TAKING A CLOSER LOOK AT OUR OPPONENTS FOR TODAY’S SUPER RUGBY ENCOUNTER AT GIO STADIUM, CANBERRA.
OPPOSITION PROFILE: JAGUARES
WHO ARE THEY? The Jaguares were formed in 2015 for entry into the expanded Super Rugby competition from 2016 onwards representing Argentina who had been admitted to the Rugby Championship in 2012. The team were formed to follow on the success of the Pampas XV that participated in the South African Vodacom Cup competition from 2010 to 2013, winning the competition in 2011 with an 11-match unbeaten run, and latterly the Pacific Rugby Cup, an important step as there is no professional rugby in the country. The Jaguares first game in the competition saw them defeat the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein winning a thriller 34-33.
WHERE DO THEY COME FROM? The team is located in Buenos Aires, the Capital City of Argentina, which translates from the Spanish as ‘Fair Winds’. The city of Buenos Aires was first established as Ciudad de Nuestra Señora Santa María del Buen Ayr in 1536 by a Spanish expedition led by Pedro de Mendoza. The city, which has a current population of around 17 million, is a top tourist destination and is well-known for its preserved Spanish
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and European style architecture. It’s split into 48 different official barrios (neighbourhoods) and was, of course, the backdrop of the famous musical Evita, based on the life of the popular political leader Eva Peron.
WHO ELSE IS FROM THERE? Global football superstar Diego Maradona was born in Lanus, in the Southern suburbs of the greater metropolitan area of Buenos Aires and won the World Cup with Argentina in 1986, finishing runner’s-up in 1990. Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who would become Pope Francis I on 13 March 2013 is a son of the Argentine Capital City. Former Brumbies scrumhalf Tomas Cubelli was born there, the number nine playing two seasons with us here in Canberra, playing eighteen matches and scoring three tries in that time. Actor Juan Diego Botto, famous for playing Zorro in the 1990 film version, is also a native of here.
RAISING THE BAR OR UNDERACHIEVING? That’s an interesting question as far as the Jaguares are concerned. Rugby writer Greg Crowden famously tipped the Argentines to spring a major upset in their debut season of Super Rugby, claiming that they would go all the way and win the whole thing. His assumption was based on the team being chock-a-block full of Pumas international players and, as such, were almost the Argentina national team playing Super Rugby. However, they have yet to really kick into gear and have ended up third in the South Africa 2 Conference, behind the Lions and Sharks, in both of their completed seasons to date.
WHO’S THEIR GREATEST? Again, it’s a tough call as they have only been around for a short space of time, but common perception would be that skipper and hooker Agustin Creevy is not only a Jaguares great, but an Argentinean rugby legend. He was born in the city of La Plata and played club rugby in France for Biarritz, Clermont and Montpellier before moving to England for a stint at Worcester Warriors. A mainstay of the Jaguares since their inception, Creevy
has been capped at under-19, under-21, A and Jaguars level, as well as having over sixty international caps.
CLOSEST RIVALS? It’s hard to have a fierce rivalry when you have only been in the competition for three seasons, including this year, but if we were plumping for someone it would probably be the Sharks. In the main this is because it’s the South African province who the Jaguares are aiming to catch in their Conference, looking to usurp their position in the rankings and challenge the Lions for top spot. In their four meetings to date the Sharks have edged home on each occasion, but there has been little between the teams every time, a combined total of 24 points in favour of the South Africans over 320 minutes of rugby.
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PLAYER PROFILES JAGUARES
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PLAYER PROFILES JAGUARES
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PLAYER PROFILES JAGUARES
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Season Record P 8
W 3
D 0
L 5
PD 12
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OFFICIAL APPAREL PARTNER OF THE BRUMBIES 2018
FROM THE ARCHIVE: THE FIRST & LAST
A different take on our first and last feature this week as our opponents, the Jaguares, have only ever played the Brumbies once and that was in last season’s competition. We look back at the game that day.
THE FIRST TIME
Date: 27 May 2017 Result: Jaguares 15 (T: Tomas Lavannini, Guido Petti Pagadizaval, C: Santiago Gonzalez Iglesias, P: Nicolas Sanchez) Brumbies 39 (T: Sam Carter, Tom Banks (2), Henry Speight, Andy Muirhead (2), C: Wharenui Hawera (3), P: Wharenui Hawera) The city of Buenos Aires bore witness to a Brumbies side that was aiming to make their mark in Super Rugby and push on towards the Australian Conference title and the team did just that with a scintillating victory over the Jaguares at the Estadio Jose Amalfitani, Velez Sarsfield, running in six tries in a convincing display. The Brumbies crossed first through skipper Sam Carter before the Argentines enjoyed their best spell of the match, second row Tomas Lavannini crashed over following excellent approach work by the home side. The Brumbies were back in front within minutes however as scrumhalf Joe Powell and Tom Banks executed a perfect back-
line move for the full-back to cruise over unopposed. The lively Banks was at it again minutes later, as the Brumbies disrupted Jaguares possession allowing flanker Chris Alcock to send a perfectly weighted kick in behind the defence for Banks to win the race. The Brumbies increased their lead after the half-time siren when Jaguares hooker Agustin Creevy was sent to the sin-bin. Hawera landed the mid-range penalty and the visitors led 20-10 at the break. It was a lead that they were never to relinquish as leading try-scorer Henry Speight added to the try-scoring, putting the visitors into bonus point territory with his seventh touchdown of the season. A late double form replacement Andy Muirhead, the first coming with his first touch as he collected a grubber behind a flat Jaguares defensive-line, completed a superb performance and gave Stephen Larkham and his team a 100% record from their tour and set-up a Conference clincher against the Rebels upon their return.
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J A G U A R E S Opposition: The Key Players
The Playmaker: Nicolas Sanchez
Nicolas Sanchez has made a strong start to the 2018 Super Rugby Season with the precision and care that the flyhalf brings when lining up for a conversion or penalty keeping the scoreboard ticking over nicely at critical moments. Alongside his boot, Sanchez is proving to be a further aid in attack with his elusive footwork allowing him to skip the around covering defenders at will. His ability to attack and rack up the points is balanced by his defensive skills, with the flyhalf making big hits against the opposition at the breakdown and frequently stopping any opposition surge for the line. Sanchez, it’s fair to say, has been a mainstay during the beginning of this campaign. Sanchez made a real name for himself when picked for the Argentina 2015 Rugby World Cup squad. He was the top point scorer in the competition with 97 points and he had the second highest number of penalties scored, finishing with 20. His display of talent in the tournament helped his team to achieve a fourth-place position.
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The Try Threat:Emiliano Boffelli
Emiliano Boffelli has made a strong start to the Super Rugby campaign continuing his rapid improvement from 2017. Boffelli represented Argentina at both Under 18 and 19 level before being selected in the Under-20 sides which competed in the World Championships in 2013, 2014 and 2015. In 2015, he also turned out five times for Argentine representative side the Pampas XV on their Pacific Rim tour.The 23-year-old utility back has provided spark to the Super Rugby side this year, running strong support lines at the offload and with his undoubted ability to run the ball down field for a try. Boffelli has gone one step further in helping the Jaguares put points on the board this term however, by adding a genuine scoring threat a try from the kick-off through his rapid acceleration and excellent timing. The international also adds plenty of fancy foot work to the mix when one-on-one with opposing defenders and is a real asset to the Jaguares and their fast-paced game style.
The Enforcer: Pablo Matera
Flanker and captain, Pablo Matera is setting a strong defensive standard for his side in the early parts of the South African Conference and in Super Rugby in general. The 24-year-old flanker, who took over the captaincy at the beginning of 2018, stands at an imposing 1.93m tall. Matera is not only known for making tackle but also is strong physically in carrying the ball offensively. Making sure his focus is to hold the standards he sets, and to lead by example as captain in defence, the backrower has been pushing the Jaguares forward throughout the season and has yet to take a backwards step throughout 2018. Internationally, Matera represented Argentina U20 in the 2012 and 2013 U20 World Championships. He made his senior debut for Los Pumas against Chile in May 2013 and was subsequently named in the squad for the 2013 Rugby Championship where he featured in all the games of that campaign. Matera was a big feature for Argentina in the 2015 Rugby World Cup playing six of seven games for Los Pumas and helping them finish fourth overall.
cross the line. Not content with making his own chances, Delguy has also created opportunities within the side for others and is providing some extra magic within and around the back line. Delguy is young and is still proving himself however he will surely be someone to watch throughout the 2018 season and could be an Argentine bolter for the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.
The One to Watch: Bautista Delguy
The Jaguares have backed rookie full back Bautista Delguy to make a big impact during the 2018 Super Rugby season handing him a debut during the current campaign. The 20-year-old speedster is making a real name for himself with a strong start to his Super Rugby career having crossed for a try in his debut match against the Lions in Johannesburg. Delguy often drifts into space to either attempt the intercept of to provide a backline option and utilise his natural pace to cruise down the field to
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test of Super Rugby having made his debut a week earlier in the dying embers of the match against the king sin Port Elizabeth.
CONNECTIONS: JAGUARES
Whilst the Brumbies have only ever played the Jaguares once before in Super Rugby, see elsewhere in today’s official match program for more details on that match from last season, the club do have some links with Argentinean rugby and our opposition from South America.
Connections with Argentina as a country go back to the inaugural season of Super Rugby and the official Brumby cap number 1, prop forward Patricio Noriega. Born in Buenos Aires, Noriega made 24 appearances for the country of his birth and represented Los Pumas in two Rugby World Cup tournaments, traveling with the squad to the United Kingdom (1991) and South Africa (1995).
Looking at the most recent links, we can see that prop forward Faalelei Sione made his Brumbies debut in the fixture against the Jaguares at the Estadio Jose Amalfitani, Velez Sarsfield, last May. Sione came onto the pitch for the final six minutes of the 39-15 victory replacing ben Alexander in the front row.
He would have made it a remarkable treble in 1999 after emigrating to Australia and earning selection of the Wallabies. Only an untimely shoulder injury sustained in the run-up to the finals prevented him taking part in what was, ultimately, a second global success for the Wallabies. In total, he played 25 times for Australia, and 53 for the Brumbies, before playing for Stade Francais and the Waratahs.
Another replacement that day, Andy Muirhead, also grabbed a first in the clash as he claimed his first Brumby tries, crossing twice in six minutes after coming on for Wallaby international centre Tevita Kuridrani, the same time that Sione made his bow. The match was only Muirhead’s second
Scrumhalf Tomás Cubelli made his Brumbies debut in the memorable hammering of the Hurricanes at the start of 2016 and stayed for two seasons, playing his final game in the Quarter Final against the Hurricanes last season.
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YENDA BREWERY SITS IN THE NSW RIVERINA IN THE SMALL TOWN OF YENDA, FARM 1471. We’ll never play for the Wallabies, but we make cracking beers.
PROUD TO BE THE OFFICIAL BEER OF THE WALLABIES AND SUPER RUGBY COMPETITION.
NEVER SETTLE.
THE WORLD OF RUGBY: Commonwealth Games
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The 2018 Commonwealth games was supposed to be a perfect opportunity to celebrate Australian Sevens Rugby. With both the Women’s and the Men’s sides performing at all time levels, the timing could not have been better. That makes the disappointing results that much harder to take, the heartbreak of the Women’s Final being the enduring memory of the Gold Coast tournament. The Aussie teams had their share of hardship however. First the men lost Captain Lewis Holland to injury, then there was the despicable incident which caused stand-in skipper James Stannard to miss the Games. His health will no doubt bring perspective to the team, a loss in the Commonwealth tournament means little when your friend and teammate is alive and well. Indeed, the players could be forgiven for an under-par showing given the circumstances. A fifth placed finish certainly wasn’t the goal for Australia, but it wasn’t all bad. Really, the entire success or failure rested on getting a result against England. The final score in that game was
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26-17 to England and Australia’s medal hopes were shattered. It’s a brutal format. Four groups of four teams play for four spots in the semi-finals. That makes the tournament exciting of course, but it puts a lot of importance on luck of the group draw. Australia were just unlucky to draw England, who ended up claiming a bronze medal. Fiji won silver, losing to gold medallists New Zealand in the grand-final. So, no medal for the Men’s side, a bitter pill to swallow at their home games. However, the players did rally around departing Head-Coach Andy Friend and put in two great performances against Kenya and Scotland to finish fifth. A disappointing outcome, but the squad will now have to push forward. As will the Women’s side. A silver medal not much consolation given that they will feel they should have grabbed gold. Tim Walsh’s charges were outstanding in the group stages, dusting off all comers including a 45-0 victory over Wales. Canada didn’t pose much threat to the Aussie’s either, a 33-17 win at Robina Stadium
booking their place in the gold-medal game against New Zealand. The grand stand finish was all set up. Australia, the Olympic Champions from Rio going up against the team they beat in the Olympic final. That win 18-months previously would have filled Australia with confidence, despite losing captain and ACT resident Sharni Williams to injury. With plenty of quality still in the team, they would have hoped to win the game. Cassie Staples thought they had won. After the final hooter has sounded, the Netball convert misheard a call from her teammates to go for the win with the score at 12-12. Staples heard “kick it out” instead of “have a crack” and booted the ball into Row Z, sending the game to sudden-death extra time.
get the result they wanted. However, they did achieve something potentially more important. The Women’s team caught the eye of the nation, and the tournament as a whole overshadowed the Men’s. Following the games, World Rugby announced their intention to add a leg of the Women’s Sevens series for next year. This Australian Women’s sevens team is changing perceptions everywhere, their talent and quality changing the minds of those who may still see the Women’s game as a sideshow. They are true inspirations; here’s hoping their effort at the Commonwealth game will inspire young Australian girls to take up the sport, an outcome far more important than a gold medal.
Staples was visibly distraught, and the team could not recover. The Kiwi’s scored an 80-metre breakaway match winner and the game was over. It’s unfortunate for Staples that her gaffe grabbed the headlines because in truth Australia had their chances. Ultimately, they failed to
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Notes From – SOUTH AFRICA The Lions continue to dominate the South African Conference after recording yet another victory as their racked up over fifty points in a 52-31 success over the Stormers. The beaten finalists of 2017 look outstanding going forward having scored in excess of thirty points in six of their eight matches so far this season. But, they look shaky defensively having conceded over thirty, five times. The crowd at Emirates Airline Park in Johannesburg saw the home side score eight tries including four for left winger Michael Tambwe. Tambwe had a sensational start to the match crossing for a hat-trick in the opening eighteen minutes of the contest. Robert Du Preez accumulated seventeen points for the Sharks in their heart-breaking last-minute defeat to the Hurricanes in Wellington as the South Africans conceded ten points in the final three minutes of action. Tyler Paul, Lukhanyo Am (2) and Louis Schreuder were try-scorers for the visitors who racked up 100 points on tour to New Zealand but the ‘Canes squeaked home 37-38.
The Jagaures fell to defeat at home to the Crusaders in Round 8 being defeated 1440 at the Estadio Jose Amalfitani. Thirteen points from Mitch Hunt and an early double to George Bridge had the Kiwi-side in total control of match as they eased to victory. The prolific Emiliano Boffelli registered his seventh try in seven games this season for the hosts, with Joaquin Tuculet also crossing. Over in Melbourne a week later, the Jaguares put in a much better performance against the Rebels stunning the hosts by winning 2522. To do so they were forced to come from 19-6 down to take the four points. Three tries in the second half from left wing Sebastian Cancelliere, right wing Ramiro Moyano and replacement Bautista Ezcurra secured a memorable turnaround for the Argentineans who played some exceptional front-up rugby under adversity. Meanwhile, the Bulls slipped into second place on the Conference ladder as they blitzed the returning Sharks in Durban winning 4010. Fullback Warrick Gelant scored a hat-trick as the Bulls ran in five tries in a consummate away performance that left the Sharks in their wake.
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Notes From – NEW ZEALAND The Hurricanes claimed a three-tries-toone win over the Chiefs in Wellington last weekend to take a three-point lead at the top of the New Zealand Conference after seven games. Ben Lam, Beauden Barrett and Ngani Laumape claimed tries and Jordie Barrett added ten points from the boot. Flanker Lachlan Boshier got the Chiefs back into it with a 58th minute try after they trailed 22-6 but the ‘Canes were able to claim the win. This was a return to form for the Hurricanes who, a week before, had been pushed the whole distance by the Sharks. Indeed, heading into the final three minutes the Sharks led 37-28 only for a penalty from Ihaia West to put the home team within touching distance and set-up a dramatic finale. Laumape then crossed for the second time in the match allowing West to land an 81st minute conversion, taking his points tally for the match to eighteen, and steal a magnificent win. Round 8 had seen the Chiefs keep in touch with conference leaders with a penalty try in the 73rd minute securing a narrow
two-point win over the Blues in Waikato. Damien McKenzie kicked nine points for the Chiefs who scored first through Sean Wainui. James Parsons crossed for the Blues only try five minutes before half-time with Stephen Perofeta adding fourteen points from the tee. The Crusaders are second on the New Zealand Conference ladder having returned from Argentina with five points and a 40-14 win over the Jaguares at Estadio Jose Amalfitani. The reigning champions scored six tires including two for George Bridge and a brace for Manasa Mataele. They rounded out a comfortable win with two tries in two minutes from Ryan Crotty and Mataele. The Blues were made to work extremely hard for their win against the Sunwolves in Round 9 as they came from 10-0 down to win by fourteen points in Tokyo. Right wing Jordan Hyland scored two tries, either side of a try from replacement Dalton Papali’i. The Blues remain bottom of the New Zealand ladder with twelve points from seven matches. For news of the Highlanders versus Brumbies at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin see pages 3435: ‘What You May Have Missed.’
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MAKING HEADLINES AROUND THE WORLD A wrap of Rugby stories making Headlines around the Web
TAHITI EXPELLED FROM RUGBY WORLD CUP QUALIFYING
Following a formal request from the Cook Islands Rugby Union, World Rugby has investigated claims that the Tahiti Rugby Union fielded ineligible players during the Rugby World Cup 2019 qualifier against the Cook Islands in Rarotonga on 4 August 2017, a match which Tahiti won 13-9. Independent Judicial Officer Tim Gresson (New Zealand) heard the case and, having considered all the facts, including submissions from the Tahiti RU, he determined that the Tahiti RU had breached Regulation 8 by fielding two ineligible players for the match. In his determination, the Judicial Officer decided that the result be overturned and directed that Cook Islands be confirmed as the winner of the match. Cook Islands therefore progress to the next round of Rugby World Cup 2019 qualification.
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FIJI WIN FOURTH SUCCESSIVE HONG KONG SEVENS
Fiji secured their fourth consecutive title at the Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens after they beat Kenya 24-12. In a repeat of last month’s final in Vancouver, Fiji ran in four tries to move within just three points of series leaders South Africa in the overall standings and take their third tournament win of the 2018 world series. Two yellow cards in the first half for Kenya’s Collins Injera and Willy Ambaka allowed the Pacific islanders to take a 17-0 lead at half-time. Despite tries from Kenya’s Billy Odhiambo and Oscar Ouma in the second half, Fiji were uncatchable and cemented their reputation in Hong Kong as the team to beat.
JAPAN PROMOTED TO HSBC SEVENS CIRCUIT
Japan have been promoted to the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series 2019 after beating Germany in the annual world series qualifier in Hong Kong. After three days of pulsating action, head coach Damian Karauna’s side finished up 19-14 winners against a powerful German outfit, who have suffered their second qualifier final defeat in as many years. The victory in front of a packed Hong Kong Stadium means Japan will become one of the 15 core teams contesting the 10-round world series, beginning next December.
WALES TO TRIAL ALCOHOL-FREE ZONE
Wales Rugby Union have announced they will trial “an alcohol-free zone” and will have a 30 percent increase in disabled seating at the Principality Stadium when they host Scotland, Australia, Tonga and South Africa during the 2018 autumn internationals. WRU chief executive Martyn Phillips acknowledged that after conducting extensive research with supporters over the last seven games, they will now cater for a different section of the Welsh support. “We know that, for the vast majority, having a drink is an important part of the match-day experience,” Phillips said. “Equally we have also identified a customer group who would welcome an alcohol-free zone and we are pleased to confirm that this will be trialled at each of the four matches this November.”
BROWN & TEW APPOINTED TO RWC BOARD
World Rugby Council members Steve Brown (Rugby Football Union) and Steve Tew (New Zealand Rugby) have been appointed to the Rugby World Cup Limited Board by the international federation’s Executive Committee. The pair, who presided over the delivery of two of the most successful Rugby World Cups ever – RWC 2015 in England and RWC 2011 in New Zealand – will take up their positions in May and join with a wealth of hosting and rugby administration experience. They join Bill Beaumont (Chairman), Agustin Pichot
(Vice-Chairman), Gareth Davies (Wales), Mike Hawker (Independent) and Brett Gosper (Chief Executive) on the body that presides over all Rugby World Cup matters.
CHINA ONTO WOMEN’S SEVENS CIRCUIT
China won promotion to the HSBC World Rugby Women’s Sevens Series 2019 after beating South Africa in the annual world series qualifier in Hong Kong. After two days of thrilling action, head coach Lu Zhuan’s side finished up as 3114 winners over a strong South African outfit, conceding just eight tries in six games at the 12-team tournament. Despite going down 7-0 in the final following a try from Unathi Elis Mali, Keyi Chen scored a hat-trick to tip the game in China’s favour. Further scores from Min Yang and Wan Yu Wang secured the match. China will now feature as one of the 12 core teams on the world series, taking in events such as Dubai, Sydney and Paris. However, before joining the series they will contest the Rugby World Cup Sevens in San Francisco on July 20-22.
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WORDSEARCH
BRUMBY JACK’S FUN ZONE
Can you find these ten words connected with The Players in our grid below? SPEIGHT ALAALATOA ABEL
S I O A S P F G J A A E
P S V A D D O H K T S N
POWELL ENEVER AH-WONG
E H G B F R W W L G F E
I J B E N B M J E J K V
GODWIN KURIDRANI
G T T L L H H Y G L U E
H Y G F F G U Y Y H L R
T G H G A H W O N G G R
SIO LEALIIFANO
T O G O D W I N W E S D
O F T G F G U S D F G T
C T A O T A L A A L A E
E D L E A L I I F A N O
H K U R I D R A N I T D
BRUMBY JACK’S FEARLESS MATCH PREDICTION Buenas tardes (good afternoon) to our friends from Argentina here supporting the Jaguares today! Unfortunately, we think you’ll be heading home disappointed in the end!
BRUMBIES 38 JAGUARES 18 WHAT DO YOU THINK? PUT YOUR PREDICTION IN THE BOX BELOW!
BRUMBIES (
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) JAGURES (
)
MIX AND MATCH
Can you match the correct stadium on the left of the column below with their correct city’s on the right? Twickenham Chichibunomiya Suncorp Stadium AAMI Park, Melbourne GIO Stadium McLean Park Etihad Stadium Ellis Park
Tokyo Canberra London Johannesburg Napier Melbourne Brisbane Melbourne
BRUMBY JACK’S PACK – Maths & Rugby Today’s Brumby Jack’s Pack, seven quick-fire questions, is all about rugby and maths! Test yourself and your friends with these questions below! If in doubt ask Mum or Dad! Follow the questions and gather the answers together to get a total at the end of the quiz! 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
How much is a conversion worth? Add that to the amount of what a try is worth? Minus the amount of a penalty? Add in the number of teams in the Australian Super Rugby Conference? Times that by the amount a drop-goal is worth? Minus the number of teams that are in Super Rugby?
MY FAVOURITES
MATT LUCAS
COLOUR: Blue FOOD: Seafood TV SHOW: Crocodile Dundee HOLIDAY DESTINATION: Woodgate Beach HOBBY: Fishing / Golf GROUND I’VE PLAYED AT: The Shark tank (Kings Park, Durban)
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Half-time Entertainment The Plus500 Brumbies are pleased to announce that our half time entertainment during the season will consist of several junior U7’s game, the ACT & SNSW Junior clubs march pass, Foxtel Touch 7’s, as well as our ‘Beat a Brumby Segment’, in which members of the public will take on members of the Plus500 Brumbies in various activities. Our next two U7’s clubs to take the field feature a couple of our regional sides as the Wagga Crows battle it out with the Goulburn Fizzy Reds in what should be a highly entertaining clash. These two teams wouldn’t normally play each other due to the distance involved, so this afternoon’s fixture is a very special occasion for everyone involved.
Wagga Crows U7’s • • • • • • • • • •
Will Tindall Billy Hamilton Luke Henderson Max Henderson Colby Mansfield Lachlan Hardie Edward Bull Henry Willaton Toby Brabin Hamish Beggs
Coaches: Glenn Henderson Manager: Alex Mansfield
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Goulburn Fizzy Reds U7’s • • • • • • • • •
Tyie Cain Porcha Cain Oliver Belgrave Buddy Green Levi Fainga’a Olivia owen Olivia Trotman Oliver Picker Mitchell Nicholson
Coaches: Ben Green
COMMERCIALLY SPEAKING: Brumbies Sign Three Major Partners The Plus500 Brumbies Commercial team have been busy off the field during the early months of the 2018 Super Rugby season, signing up three major partners to help build the profile of the club and the game in the ACT and Southern New South Wales. ActewAGL, Griffin Legal and The Architecture Practice have joined the Brumbies family covering a broad spectrum of partnerships across the range of the Brumbies business. ActewAGL have become the Official Partner of the Brumbies Academy and will appear on the front of Academy training jerseys and are also Official Partner of Brumbies Buildcorp Super W team and appear on the back of their game day jerseys. The John I Dent Cup will now be known as the Griffin Legal John I Dent Cup following an agreement between the legal firm and the Plus500 Brumbies which sees Griffin Legal become the Naming Rights Partner for the ACT’s premier rugby competition. The Architecture practice meanwhile enjoys advertising and brand exposure and networking opportunities through Brumbies corporate hospitality as part of their agreement with the club.
the ACT and Southern New South Wales region and to welcome back ActewAGL to our Partner family,” Plus500 Brumbies CEO Michael Thomson commented. “The support that the provide is invaluable in helping us to promote the game of rugby in our community, and across our region, making the game more accessible to its many participants of any age and gender. “Rugby is an all-inclusive sport that promotes strong values of sportsmanship, camaraderie and mateship throughout all age grades from juniors up to and including veteran’s rugby. “We thank ActewAGL, Griffin Legal and The Architecture Practice for their commitment to the game and look forward to enjoying a strong and continuing partnership.” For Commercial or Sponsorship Opportunities please contact Plus500 Brumbies Sponsorship Manager Kieran Walsh on k.walsh@brumbies.com.au.
“It’s fantastic that these two new organisations in Griffin Legal and The Architecture Practice have committed to the support of the Brumbies and rugby in
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VI SI TC AN BE RR
A. CO M .A U
CLOSER TO HOME: LOCAL CLUB SCENE BOB HITCHCOCK TERRITORY SHIELD There’s a new piece of silverware up for grabs during the 2018 Griffin Legal John I Dent Cup as teams compete for the Bob Hitchcock Territory Shield throughout the duration of the regular season of competition. The Shield, which takes the form of a challenge like the famous Ranfurly Shield in New Zealand, is put up for grabs at the next home fixture of the current holders with the victors of that game claiming the Shield until their next home match, when it goes up for grabs again.
Uni-Norths Owls 22-20 in a thriller to kickstart the 2018 Griffin Legal John I Dent Cup. The win, which also ended Easts’ remarkable winning drought of 1,106 days, was achieved in some style as flyhalf Jacob Angelatos bagged a conversion of George Morseu’s match-winning score to enable the hosts to nab the Shield. Easts put the Shield up for Challenge in their Round 4 match next weekend, Saturday 28 April, when they welcome the reigning Champions Canberra Royals to Griffith Oval, one of a trio of matches set for next week alongside Queanbeyan Whites against Tuggeranong Vikings and Gungahlin Eagles versus Wests. So just who is Bob Hitchcock?
This format will see whichever team holding the Bob Hitchcock Territory Shield at the end of the season proclaimed the winners and having their name engraved on the trophy before the recommencement of the challenge in 2019. This will mean that every club in the competition should, at some stage, have a For those who may be unaware Bob Hitchcock OAM is an ACT Rugby Life Member as well chance to compete for and win the trophy. as being a Life Member of the Queanbeyan Already the competition for the Shield has Whites club. He has been a significant been fierce with the inaugural match allowing contributor to ACT Rugby Union as a player, Easts to become the maiden victors, downing coach and volunteer throughout many years
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of service to the game in Canberra and the surrounding region. His extensive coaching career included several ACT Representative Teams, the National U21s, and the Emerging Wallabies. Bob is also a huge advocate of the Women’s game and was coach of the Australian Women’s team from 1995-1998, a stint that included the 1998 Women’s Rugby World Cup. He was later Assistant Coach of the national team in 2001-2002, being part of the squad that travelled to the 2002 Women’s Rugby World Cup as well as coaching the Australian Women 7’s side. Awarded ACT Coach of the Year on two occasions, Hitchcock’s other extensive involvement in Rugby, both internationally and locally saw him inducted into the ACT Sports Hall of Fame and subsequently be awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 2012. A quite incredible career and a lifetime devoted, mostly as a volunteer, to the game he loves.
competition in Canberra, with the action captured by BarTV Sports as part of a new arrangement with the broadcaster that will see one match per week shown live and the other two scheduled games shown in full on delay through the Plus500 Brumbies media platforms. While clubs will continue to have access to footage from their games for review and analysis purposes, excitingly BarTV Sports will also be producing a weekly highlights package, further enhancing our fan offerings. Local sports media identity Brett McKay will lead the live streaming coverage alongside local club co-commentators throughout the season providing expert analysis of the competition. Under the one-year deal BarTV Sports will film all Premier Grade games (1st Grade, 2nd Grade and Colts) including finals.
The Easts fairytale of winning the Shield in its first outing was part of a sensational opening round of matches for the local club rugby
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HOW THEY STAND Australian Conference #
Team
P
W
D
L
F
A
PD
BP
PTS
1
Waratahs
7
5
1
1
248
178
+70
2
24
1
Rebels
7
4
0
3
229
186
+43
5
21
3
Brumbies
7
3
0
4
155
181
-26
2
14
4
Reds
7
3
0
4
131
183
-52
1
13
5
Sunwolves
7
0
0
7
151
294
-143
2
2
New Zealand Conference #
Team
P
W
D
L
F
A
PD
BP
PTS
1
Hurricanes
7
6
0
1
224
130
+94
3
27
2
Crusaders
7
5
0
2
213
141
+72
4
24
3
Chiefs
7
5
0
2
213
170
+43
1
21
4
Highlanders
6
4
0
2
176
139
+37
3
19
5
Blues
7
2
0
5
196
234
-38
4
12
South African Conference
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#
Team
P
W
D
L
F
A
PD
BP
PTS
1
Lions
8
5
0
3
292
251
+41
5
25
2
Bulls
7
3
0
4
185
195
-10
2
14
3
Sharks
8
2
1
5
234
260
-26
4
14
4
Stormers
8
3
0
5
214
256
-42
1
13
5
Jaguares
8
3
0
5
189
252
-63
0
12
CLUB STATS Name
2018 APPS
2018 PTS
CAREER APPS
CAREER PTS
Robbie ABEL
5
-
21
15
Allan ALAALATOA
7
-
51
5
Ben ALEXANDER
2
-
147
105
Richie ARNOLD
4
-
11
5
Rory ARNOLD
7
5
51
20
Tom BANKS
7
5
19
20
Sam CARTER
5
5
98
40
Tom CUSACK
7
-
9
0
James DARGAVILLE
3
-
35
20
Blake ENEVER
5
-
37
5
Mees ERASMUS
-
-
0
0
Folau FAINGA’A
5
5
5
5
Lolo FAKAOSILEA
3
-
15
0 62
Kyle GODWIN
6
5
69
Mack HANSEN
-
-
0
0
Wharenui HAWERA
7
35
23
157 0
Ben HYNE
-
-
5
Jordan JACKSON-HOPE
-
-
8
5
Tevita KURIDRANI
7
5
96
100 815
Christian LEALIIFANO
7
17
125
Leslie LEULUAIALII-MAKIN
6
-
28
0
Ryan LONERGAN
-
-
1
0
Matt LUCAS
7
-
40
14
Josh MANN-REA
3
5
60
35
Nic MAYHEW
3
-
27
0
Lachlan MCCAFFREY
6
5
22
10
Connal MCINERNEY
1
-
1
-
Andrew MUIRHEAD
3
-
6
10 25
Isireli NAISARANI
7
20
22
Michael OAKMAN-HUNT
1
-
1
-
Chance PENI
5
10
12
30
David POCOCK
3
5
102
90
Joe POWELL
7
10
33
15
Scott SIO
5
-
78
20
Faalelei SIONE
4
-
6
0
Andrew SMITH
1-
-
68
30
Henry SPEIGHT
5
10
99
180
Darcy SWAIN
-
-
0
0
Lausii TALIAULI
4
10
19
25
Rob VALETINI
1
-
1
0
James VERITY-AMM
1
-
9
5
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HOME AND AWAY
You don’t have to wait long to see the Brumbies in action again as we have another home match here at GIO Stadium next Saturday, 28 April. The mighty Crusaders are the visitors to Canberra for a 19:45 kick-off in Super Rugby Round 11 with the defending Champions, and eight times Super Rugby winners, bringing a team packed full of stars to Australia. They were last here in 2016 and left with the points after winning 1440. Always a popular attraction, you can buy your tickets in advance from www. ticketek.com.au or from the ticket office at the stadium on Matchday. Corporate Hospitality packages are available for this fixture under the Tier A pricing structure. Following the visit of the Crusaders, we have a bye week before the Rebels are our next opponents, again at GIO Stadium on Saturday 12 May at 19:45. The Brumbies clinched the Australian Conference Championship against this opponent last season, winning the corresponding fixture 32-3 in early June. Make sure you’re at the Stadium to cheer on the Brumbies in this one by buying tickets from www.ticketek.com.au. Corporate Hospitality packages are available for this fixture under the Tier C pricing structure.
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SUPER RUGBY FIXTURES NOW ROUND 10 Friday 20 April Blues v Highlanders (Eden Park, Auckland) Waratahs v Lions (Allianz Stadium, Sydney) Saturday 21 April Crusaders v Sunwolves (AMI Stadium) Reds v Chiefs (Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane) Bulls v Rebels (Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria) Sunday 22 April Sharks v Stormers (Growthpoint Kings Park) Brumbies v Jaguares (GIO Stadium)
NEXT ROUND 11 Friday 27 April Hurricanes v Sunwolves (Westpac Stadium) Saturday 28 April Stormers v Rebels (DHL Newlands) Reds v Lions (Suncorp Stadium) Blues v Jaguares (Eden Park) Brumbies v Crusaders (GIO Stadium) Sunday 29 April Bulls v Highlanders (Loftus Versfeld)
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