Colombia national rugby union team
 | |||
| Union | Colombian Rugby Federation | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Coach(es) | Raul Vesga | ||
| |||
| First international | |||
 Mexico 10 - 10 Colombia  (1996-01-08) | |||
| Largest win | |||
 Ecuador 0 - 112 Colombia (2014-08-31) | |||
| Largest defeat | |||
 Brazil 74 - 0 Colombia (2004-10-13) | |||
The Colombia national rugby union team represents Colombia in the sport of rugby union. The team is classified as a tier three nation by the International Rugby Board (IRB). They have thus far not qualified for a Rugby World Cup, but have participated in qualifying tournaments. Colombia made their debut against Ireland in 1996.
History
Colombia attempted to qualify for the 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia, participating in the Americas qualifying tournaments during November 2001. They contested matches in the Round 1 (South) group, against nations including Brazil, Venezuela and Peru in Round 1.
Colombia was involved in qualifying for the World Cup (France 2007) in 2004 when they contested Round 1b (CONSUR 2nd division). They finished fourth in the final standings which knocked them out of contention, though their fixtures against Peru and Venezuela were close, losing 15-10 and 27-31 respectively.
Rugby has little support by the government or media, as football (soccer) has a stronger tradition in the country. The Colombian rugby team is called Los Tucanes.
The team has competed in the B Division of the South American Rugby Championship since its second edition in 2001. It won the competition in 2009, and again, three times in a row in 2014, 2015 and 2016. However, there is no direct promotion to the A Division; to win promotion it must beat the lowest-place team in the A Division in a playoff. [1]
World Cup record
- 1987 - Not invited
- 1991 - Did not enter
- 1995 - Did not enter
- 1999 - Did not enter
- 2003 - Did not qualify
- 2007 - Did not qualify
- 2011 - Did not qualify
- 2015 - Did not qualify
Current Squad
The following squad was selected to play the 2015 South American Rugby Championship repechage against Brazil.[2]
Head Coach: Raul Vesga
- Jaider Pemberthy Muñoz (Antioquia)
- Manuel Correa Quintana (Antioquia)
- Emanuel Mendoza Mosquera (Antioquia)
- Andrés Quintero Espinosa (Antioquia)
- Jhoann Mantilla (Santander)
- Gerson Ortiz Cañas (Antioquia)
- Ferney Rodríguez (Antioquia)
- Sebastían Mejía Gil (Antioquia) (c)
- Jeferson Borja Restrepo (Antioquia)
- Emmanuel Bedoya Pulgarín (Antioquia)
- Pablo Arboleda (Bogotá)
- Camilo Cadavid Cardona (Antioquia)
- Brayan Campino Riascos (Valle)
- Dani Giraldo Mesa (Antioquia)
- Jhon Urrutia (Antioquia)
- Vásques Eduardo Montoya (Antioquia)
- Mauricio Espinal Vargas (Antioquia)
- Juan Gabriel Dávila Metaute (Antioquia)
- Andrés Tarazona (Norte de Santander)
- Andrés Echeverri (Antioquia)
See also
References
- ↑ "Colombia, tri-campeón del Mayor B". Sudamerica Rugby. 8 October 2016. Retrieved 28 October 2016.
- ↑ 2015 South American Championship
External links
- Colombia on WorldRugby.com
- on RugbyData.com