Poland national rugby union team
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The Poland national rugby union team (Polish: Reprezentacja Polski w rugby) represents Poland in men's international rugby union competitions. Nicknamed The White and Reds (Biało-czerwoni), is considered one of the stronger tier 3 teams in European rugby and currently compete in the second division of the Rugby Europe International Championships in the Rugby Europe Trophy, a competition which is just below the Rugby Europe Championship where the top 6 countries in Europe (apart from the teams in the 6 nations) compete. They are yet to participate in any Rugby World Cup and often play in white with red shorts as well as in red with white shorts.
| Nickname(s) | Biało-czerwoni (The White and Reds) |
|---|---|
| Emblem | Eagle |
| Union | Polski Związek Rugby |
| Head coach | Christian Hitt |
| Captain | Grzegorz Buczek |
| Most caps | Stanislaw Więciorek (65) |
| Top scorer | Janusz Urbanowicz (205) |
| Home stadium | Narodowy Stadion Rugby Stadion ŁKS Stadion Widzewa |
| World Rugby ranking | |
| Current | 34 (as of 20 March 2023) |
| Highest | 25 (2012, 2013) |
| Lowest | 42 (2010) |
| First international | |
| Poland 9–8 East Germany (Łódź, Poland 24 August 1958) | |
| Biggest win | |
| Poland 74–0 Norway (Riga, Latvia 24 September 1994) | |
| Biggest defeat | |
| Portugal 65–3 Poland (Gdansk, Poland 11 February 2023) | |
| Website | www.pzrugby.pl |
| Top 30 as of 18 March 2024[1] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Change* | Team | Points | |
| 1 | South Africa | 94.54 | ||
| 2 | Ireland | 90.69 | ||
| 3 | New Zealand | 89.80 | ||
| 4 | France | 87.92 | ||
| 5 | England | 85.75 | ||
| 6 | Scotland | 82.82 | ||
| 7 | Argentina | 80.68 | ||
| 8 | 1 | Italy | 79.41 | |
| 9 | 1 | Australia | 77.48 | |
| 10 | 2 | Wales | 77.26 | |
| 11 | Fiji | 76.38 | ||
| 12 | Japan | 74.27 | ||
| 13 | Georgia | 74.02 | ||
| 14 | Samoa | 72.23 | ||
| 15 | 1 | Tonga | 71.57 | |
| 16 | 1 | Portugal | 70.28 | |
| 17 | United States | 67.94 | ||
| 18 | Uruguay | 67.39 | ||
| 19 | Spain | 64.37 | ||
| 20 | Romania | 61.66 | ||
| 21 | Canada | 60.90 | ||
| 22 | Namibia | 60.56 | ||
| 23 | Chile | 60.49 | ||
| 24 | Hong Kong | 59.80 | ||
| 25 | Russia | 58.06 | ||
| 26 | Switzerland | 57.44 | ||
| 27 | Netherlands | 57.29 | ||
| 28 | 1 | Belgium | 55.89 | |
| 29 | 1 | Brazil | 55.37 | |
| 30 | 1 | Korea | 53.46 | |
| * Change from the previous week | ||||
| Poland's historical rankings | ||||
See or edit source data. | ||||
| Source: World Rugby[1] Graph updated to 4 March 2024 | ||||
History edit
Poland made their international debut against East Germany in 1958 in Łódź, which they won by just one point, 9–8. Later that year they played West Germany in Krasnoyarsk, who defeated them 11–3. The following year they played two matches at Dinamo Stadion in Bucharest, defeating Czechoslovakia and then losing to Romania. Poland continued to contest internationals with these nations over the coming years.
They defeated East Germany in Grimma the 1971, this was followed by strong form from the Polish, winning matches against the Netherlands, Morocco, Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union. In 1975 Poland played Italy in Treviso, and lost 13–28. In 1977 Poland played a France XV again, and lost 9–26; also that year they played Italy, and lost by only six points, with the final score being 6–12. They played a France XV again in 1978, losing 24–35. They also defeated Spain that year.
Poland played Italy in 1979, losing 3–13, and then played a France XV the following year, though they did not perform as well as previous meetings, losing 42–0. A subsequent match against a France XV in 1981 saw the France XV defeat Poland 49–6. A match between the two sides in 1984 produced a good result for the Polish, losing 19–3. A match against the Italian Barbarians the following year produced the same scoreline.
In 1987 Poland played two Italian teams, the Italian Barbarians and Italy under-21, although they lost to the Barbarians, they won against the under-21 team. Poland did not play at the 1987 World Cup. In 1990 they played the full Italy team in Naples, losing 34–3. Poland did not play in the 1991 World Cup in England. From 1992 to 1993 Poland won six matches in a row. Russia won five to 41 in a following match.
Poland played Italy A, but lost 19–107. Poland also played Romania in 1998, losing 74–13. Poland were grouped in Pool D of round two of the 2007 Rugby World Cup European qualify tournament. Poland performed very well in the pool, winning all four of their games, and finishing at the top of the pool. This saw them through to Pool A of Round three, but they were knocked out here, finishing fourth in the pool.
In the 2021/2022 season, the Polish team secured 2nd place in the Trophy(2nd Division), trailing behind Belgium. This achievement earned Poland a spot in the Championship (1st Division, for the 2023 and 2024 editions.
During the first edition, unfortunately, Poland suffered its largest defeat in history, losing 65-3 against Portugal. In a subsequent game, Poland secured its first historic victory in the Championship by defeating Belgium in Gdansk, Poland. Despite this milestone, Poland finished 8th, placing last in this edition of the Championship.
Between the two editions, a commemorative friendly match was organized in honor of the Armistice and the Polish National Independence Day, featuring the Polish rugby team and the British Armed Forces team. Held at the National Stadium in Gdansk, the match concluded with a narrow victory for Poland, 17-14, marking a moment of pride and shared remembrance between the two nations.
In the 2024 edition, they lost all their games and finished 8th once again, which resulted in their relegation to the Trophy (2nd division). This marked the last match for the iconic player of the team, Grzegorz Buczek (as a captain), which took place at the Jean Bouin Stadium of the Stade Français club in Paris, in a ranking match against Belgium.
Record edit
World Cup edit
| World Cup record | World Cup Qualification record | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | P | W | D | L | F | A | P | W | D | L | F | A | |
| 1987 | Not Invited | Not Invited | ||||||||||||
| 1991 | did not qualify | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 61 | 79 | |||||||
| 1995 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 28 | 47 | ||||||||
| 1999 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 58 | 152 | ||||||||
| 2003 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 177 | 109 | ||||||||
| 2007 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 188 | 180 | ||||||||
| 2011 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 94 | 118 | ||||||||
| 2015 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 208 | 183 | ||||||||
| 2019 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 73 | 73 | ||||||||
| 2023 | Automatically eliminated | |||||||||||||
| Total | 0/9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 24 | 0 | 21 | 941 | 862 | |
European Competitions Since 2000 edit
| Season | Division | G | W | D | L | PF | PA | +/− | Pts | Pos |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | European Nations Cup Third Division | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 112 | 69 | +43 | 10 | 2nd |
| 2000-01 | European Nations Cup Second Division | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 105 | 53 | +52 | 13 | 1st |
| 2002-04 | European Nations Cup Second Division Pool A | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 130 | 164 | -34 | 13 | 4th |
| 2006-08 | European Nations Cup Second Division 2B | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 266 | 67 | +199 | 22 | 1st |
| 2008-10 | European Nations Cup Second Division 2A | 7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 94 | 118 | -24 | 13 | 4th |
| 2010-12 | European Nations Cup First Division 1B | 10 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 238 | 189 | +49 | 31 | 2nd |
| 2012-14 | European Nations Cup First Division 1B | 10 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 208 | 183 | +25 | 22 | 4th |
| 2014-16 | European Nations Cup First Division 1B | 10 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 191 | 262 | -71 | 18 | 5th |
| 2016-17 | Rugby Europe Trophy | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 73 | 73 | 0 | 12 | 4th |
| 2017-18 | Rugby Europe Trophy | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 106 | 147 | -41 | 7 | 5th |
| 2018-19 | Rugby Europe Trophy | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 104 | 164 | -60 | 10 | 4th |
| 2019-20 | Rugby Europe Trophy | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 44 | 112 | -68 | 5 | 6th |
| 2021-22* | Rugby Europe Trophy | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 85 | 65 | +20 | 12 | 1st |
Overall edit
Updated on 2 March 2024, after match with Netherlands.
| Opponent | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | % Won |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andorra | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Belgium | 17 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 52.94% |
| Bulgaria | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Croatia | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 66.67% |
| Czechoslovakia | 22 | 11 | 10 | 1 | 50% |
| Czech Republic | 14 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 50% |
| Denmark | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| East Germany | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 50% |
| France | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| France A1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0% |
| France XV | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0% |
| Georgia | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Germany | 13 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 46.15% |
| Italy | 9 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 11.11% |
| Italy A | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Latvia | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Lithuania | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Madagascar | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Malta | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Moldova | 10 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 40% |
| Morocco | 13 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 84.62% |
| Netherlands | 22 | 12 | 9 | 1 | 54.55% |
| Norway | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Portugal | 13 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 23.08% |
| Romania | 18 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 0% |
| Romania A | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Russia | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0% |
| Serbia and Montenegro | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Spain | 16 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 37.5% |
| Sri Lanka | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Sweden | 15 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 86.67% |
| Switzerland | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 57.14% |
| Tunisia | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 66.67% |
| Ukraine | 14 | 3 | 11 | 0 | 21.43% |
| Soviet Union | 21 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 4.76% |
| West Germany | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 57.14% |
| Yugoslavia | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0% |
| Total | 282 | 124 | 151 | 7 | 43.97% |
Recent Matches edit
| Matches | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Current squad edit
The following players were selected for the 2021–22 Rugby Europe Trophy match against Switzerland on 20th November 2021.[2]
Caps updated: 22nd November 2021, after match with Switzerland.
Note: Flags indicate national union for the club/province as defined by World Rugby.
| Player | Position | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Club/province |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kamil Bobryk | Hooker | 9 February 1984 | 48 | CS Vienne |
| Grzegorz Buczek | Hooker | 17 May 1986 | 22 | RC Lechia Gdańsk |
| Thomas Fidler | Prop | 22 October 1986 | 7 | Ogniwo Sopot |
| Radosław Bysewski | Prop | 3 December 1993 | 25 | Ogniwo Sopot |
| Quentin Cieslinski | Prop | 28 June 1997 | 2 | ASV Lavaur |
| Sylwester Gąska | Prop | 22 February 2002 | 4 | Ogniwo Sopot |
| Edward Krawiecki | Lock | 1 January 1995 | 7 | Bromsgrove RFC |
| Mateusz Bartoszek | Lock | 20 January 1990 | 38 | RC Bassin d'Arcachon |
| Krystian Olejek | Lock | 28 November 1995 | 3 | Pogoń Siedlce |
| Michał Krużycki | Lock | 28 November 2000 | 33 | RC Lechia Gdańsk |
| Jan Cal | Back row | 8 November 1995 | 6 | Skra Warsaw |
| Dawid Rubaśniak | Back row | 3 September 2000 | 5 | Ebbw Vale |
| Piotr Zeszutek (c) | Back row | 31 January 1991 | 27 | Ogniwo Sopot |
| Dawid Plichta | Scrum-half | 26 January 1992 | 20 | Orkan Sochaczew |
| Mateusz Plichta | Scrum-half | 4 September 1997 | 16 | Ogniwo Sopot |
| Wojciech Piotrowicz | Fly-half | 23 March 1990 | 18 | Ogniwo Sopot |
| Daniel Gdula | Centre | 8 January 2001 | 18 | RC Posnania |
| Michal Haznar | Centre | 17 January 1994 | 2 | Griquas |
| Siokivaha Taufui Halaifuana | Centre | 28 November 2000 | 3 | Skra Warsaw |
| Ross Cooke | Wing | 1 January 2000 | 7 | Tynedale RFC |
| Stasio Maltby | Wing | 28 November 1998 | 4 | Brighton Blues |
| Krystian Pogorzelski | Fullback | 3 October 1996 | 10 | Master Pharm Rugby Łódź |
| Patryk Reksulak | Fullback | 25 February 1998 | 15 | Master Pharm Rugby Łódź |
Recent call-ups edit
The following players have also been called up to the squad within the last 12 months.
| Player | Pos | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Club | Latest call-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michał Gadomski | Prop | 28 November 1995 | 2 | Orkan Sochaczew | v. Germany, 13 November 2021 |
| Marcin Siemaszko | Prop | 28 November 1997 | 2 | Juvenia Kraków | v. Germany, 13 November 2021 |
| Adam Piotrowski | Lock | 22 April 1997 | Ogniwo Sopot | v. Ukraine, 9 October 2021 | |
| Jakub Małecki | Lock | 29 October 1995 | 1 | Burry Port RFC | v. Germany, 13 November 2021 |
| Jędrek Nowicki | Fly half | 4 June 1999 | CA Pontarlier | v. Ukraine, 9 October 2021 | |
| Szymon Sirocki | Wing | 4 April 2000 | 16 | RC Arka Gdynia | v. Germany, 13 November 2021 |
| Artur Fursenko | 8 January 2001 | Orkan Sochaczew | v. Ukraine, 9 October 2021 |
Current coaching staff edit
The current coaching staff of the Polish national team:[3]
Former coaches edit
- Marian Bondarowicz (1958–1969)
- Eugeniusz Rogatka (1959–1960)
- Marian Bondarowicz (1960–1961)
- Jan Frankowski (1961)
- Marian Bondarowicz (1962)
- Józef Koter (1963)
- Józef Grochowski (1964)
- Franciszek Nowak (1965)
- Józef Sokołowski (1965–1968)
- Zbigniew Janus (1969–1970)
- Józef Sokołowski (1970)
- Józef Grochowski (1971–1975)
- Józef Sokołowski (1975)
- Ryszard Wiejski (1976–1989)
- Andrzej Kopyt (1990)
- Zdzisław Szczybelski (1990–1991)
- Andrzej Kopyt (1991–1994)
- Ryszard Wiejski & Maciej Powała-Niedźwiecki (1994–1995)
- Maciej Powała-Niedźwiecki (1995–2000)
- Jerzy Jumas (2000–2006)
- Tomasz Putra (2006–2013)
- Marek Płonka (2013–2016)
- Blikkies Groenewald (2016–2017)
- Stanislaw Więciorek (2017–2018)
- Duaine Lindsay (2018–2020)
- Christian Hitt (2021–)
See also edit
References edit
External links edit
- Polski Związek Rugby - Official Site (in Polish)
- Polish Rugby Portal (in Polish)