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Philippine National Games 2014 Rugby 7s

5/19/2014

The PRFU was delighted once again to be invited to this year's Philippine National Games (PNG) by the Philippine Sports Commission and Philippine Olympic Committee. The games were held last May 17 at Nomad Sports Club in Merville Subdivision, Parañaque City.

This year's PNG 7s saw an increase in number of registered teams. From last year's 12 men's teams and 4 women's teams, this year saw 15 men's teams and 4 women's teams. Now on it's third year, this PNG 7s was made more special with the debuts of three regional teams - the Davao Durians, the Cagayan de Oro Rugby Club, and the Cebu Lady Dragons.

Rugby 7s is an exciting sport and promotes action, speed, agility and teamwork. It is a perfect sport for any young Filipino athletes who enjoy the challenge of playing a dynamic contact sport. The PRFU restricted participation to the PNG Rugby 7s tournament to Filipino Heritage players only. It was exciting to see over 200 Filipino athletes take the field to compete to become the top Rugby 7s teams in the country.

CUP DIVISION: Alabang Eagles - Cup Champion for 3 Straight Years

The mighty Alabang Eagles team captured the Cup division title for the third consecutive year with a 45-0 win against the CBRE Maverick Vipers A. Composed by Volcanoes and National Development Team players, the Eagles proved once again why they are the best sevens team in the country. They scored a whopping total of 126 points for the whole tournament with no points scored against them. Rupert Zappia set up most of his team’s tries and was later awarded the MVP medal. The CBRE Maverick Vipers A team fought hard in the finals game but was outran and out muscled by the more experienced Eagles team. The Maverick Vipers had to overcome a gutsy Cebu Dragons side in the semis to earn the right to face the Eagles. The Maverick Vipers team won by a successful conversion kick (14-12) to gain a spot in the finals.

WOMEN’S DIVISION: Xena Win Nail-biter Against Cebu Lady Dragons

The women’s division finals match was once again the most exciting game in the tournament. Manila-based Xena won by a slim margin (14-12) against VISMIN’s pride, the Cebu Lady Dragons. With both teams having a record of 2 wins and a draw after the pool rounds, it was the Cebu ladies which topped the ranking with 35 F-A points compared to Xena’s 27 F-A points. Awesome defense by both ends resulted to scoreless 2 minutes into the game. An opportunity opened up for Xena when an overlap of players on the blind side of a ruck 80 meters from the score line saw a 2 versus 1 situation. Winger Nikki Lira used her superb speed to outrun her defender and score in between the posts to score the game’s first try. It was skipper Ada Milby who ran the length of the field to score Xena’s second try when an advantage was given after a knock on play. Both tries were converted and half time score was 14-0 for Xena.

Cebu Lady Dragons were able to regroup on the break and came out on fire at the second half. Skipper Luisa Jordan led the charge with a huge tackle and counter ruck right after their kick off. The Lady Dragons stole the ball and caught Xena unprepared for defense. Ching Alerta found a gap and scored the Lady Dragons’ first try of the match which was successfully converted. With a few minutes remaining in the match, Jordan made a break on the wing 60 meters from the try line and was able to offload the ball to a supporting Dixie Yu. Yu outran her defenders and scored her team’s second try. Try wasn't converted and score remained at 14-12. Few seconds remained in the match and Xena only needed to maintain possession of the ball while the Lady Dragons needed to steal the ball. A penalty for a high tackle from a Cebu player gave the chance to Xena to kick out the ball and secure their win. Hats off to both teams for a very exciting and intense finals match for PNG 7s. Lira was awarded the MVP of the tournament for scoring the most points for her team and for her courageous defense. Watch these teams play again against each other in the PRFU Women’s 15s Invitational tournament next month.

PLATE DIVISION: Alabang Ibons Win Plate Trophy Over QCPU Questors B

Alabang Ibons won the Plate championship against the QCPU Questors B team with a score of 15-7. The Ibons team, composed mostly of former university basketball players, used their size to their advantage against the speedy QCPU boys. Most of these players only started playing the sport mid last year and has already shown a lot of potential because of their natural athletic abilities. The QCPU boys played well and managed to sneak in a try and conversion but time was not enough for them to make a comeback. Ibons’ Kenneth Balasote was awarded the Plate MVP.

BOWL DIVISION: QCPU Questors A Beat UMAK Herons A to Win Bowl

University rivals QCPU Questors A and UMAK Herons A faced off again in a finals match for this year’s PNG 7s. Last year, the QCPU boys beat the UMAK boys in a tightly-contested Plate finals match to secure their gold medal finish. This year, QCPU gave the same results and won 15-0 to secure another gold medal finish. Because of his speed and strength combination and overall team leadership, QCPU captain Mark Jerald Esteban was awarded the MVP of the Bowl division.

SHIELD DIVISION: CDO Rugby Club Win Shield on their PNG 7s Debut

Newly formed Cagayan de Oro Rugby Club proved they are a team to watch out for in the future when they won the Shield finals match (27-5) against the UMAK Herons B. Playing only for a few months, the Rafters impressed the spectators with their impressive tackling technique and strength in contact. Noel Villa, founder and playing coach for the Rafters, led the team’s attack. Luis Banaag showed everyone that there’s no backing out in a game of Rugby when he continued to play the remaining games after he got hit hard from a previous game. For his courageous effort, he was awarded the Shield MVP medal.

The PNG allowed the PRFU to showcase the growing sport of Rugby 7s and the Filipino athletes were extremely proud to compete to win National PSC medals. Rugby 7s is now played at the SEA, Asian and Olympic Games, and the PSC are looking to build further Rugby 7s programs to claim medals at these events.

The PRFU would like to thank the Philippine Sports Commission for inviting Rugby 7s to be a sport once again at the 2014 Philippine National Games and Nomad Sports Club for once again hosting the tournament.

Official PNG results that are registered with the Philippine Sports Commission for 2014:

GOLD MEDAL

CUP DIVISION

Alabang Eagles

WOMEN'S DIVISION

Xena

PLATE DIVISION

Alabang Ibons

BOWL DIVISION

QCPU Questor A

SHIELD DIVISION

CDO Rugby Club

SILVER MEDAL

CUP DIVISION

CBRE Maverick Vipers A

WOMEN'S DIVISION

Cebu Lady Dragons

PLATE DIVISION

QCPU Questors B

BOWL DIVISION

UMAK Herons A

SHIELD DIVISION

UMAK Herons B

BRONZE MEDAL

CUP DIVISION

Clark Rugby Club

WOMEN'S DIVISION

UMAK Lady Herons

PLATE DIVISION

Immortals

BOWL DIVISION

MAAP Warriors B

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER

Men's Cup Division: Rupert Zappia
Ladies Division: Nikki Lira
Men's Plate Division: Kenneth Balasote
Men's Bowl Division: Mark Jerald Estebam
Men's Shield Division: Luis Banaag

FINAL RANKINGS

Cup Division
Alabang Eagles
CBRE Maverick Vipers A
Clark Rugby Club
Cebu Dragons

Women's Division
Xena
Cebu Lady Dragons
UMAK Lady Herons
QCPU Lady Questors

Plate Division
Alabang Ibons
QCPU Questors B
Immortals
Davao Durians

Bowl Division
QCPU Questors A
UMAK Herons A
MAAP Warriors B
CBRE Maverick Vipers B

Shield Division
CDO Rugby Club
UMAK Herons B
MAAP Warriors A

Photo gallery (All photos on this page by Mark Cristino)

PRFU JML 10s League Results and Log Points Table

2/18/2014

Match results of the PRFU JML 10s League round 1 and 2 last February 8 and 15 at Southern Plains and Nomads Sports Club.

TEAMS:

Cup: Alabang Eagles, Manila Nomads, Cebu Dragons

Plate: Nomads Carabaos, Manila Hapons, Alabang Ibons, MAAP Warriors, CBRE Mavericks

Bowl: Falcons, Clark Rugby Club, CBRE Vipers, Quezon City Men’s Rugby Club, Makati Men’s Rugby Club

Women's: Xena, Makati Women's Rugby Club, Quezon City Women’s Rugby Club Ladies, Cebu Lady Dragons

February 8, 2014 - ROUND 1 at Southern Plains

February 15, 2014 - ROUND 2 at Nomads Sports Club

Log points tables as of February 18, 2014:

Women's Log Points

Cup Log Points

Plate Log Points

Bowl Log Points

The next round of the PRFU JML 10s league will be on Saturday, February 22, at Southern Plains field, Laguna.

First VISMIN RFU League Festival

2/17/2014

The VISMIN Rugby Football Union in partnership with the Philippine Rugby Football Union, will be holding the first ever VISMIN RFU League starting on February 22, 2014. The matches will be held at the Don Gregorio Pelaez Sports Complex in Cagayan de Oro. Four men's teams will compete for rugby supremacy in the south. The Cebu Dragons, Davao Durians, host Cagayan de Oro RFC, and the Paradise Hunters (a Papua New Guinean students' team from Cebu City) will compete in the said tournament.

The schedule of the event is as follows:

8:00 am - Kids' Get Into Rugby and Touch Rugby session by the PRFU regional development officers (led by PRFU Head of Development and Lady Volcanoes captain, Ms. Ada Milby)

1:00 pm - Seniors matches kick off
Davao Durians
Cagayan de Oro
Cebu Dragons
Cebu Lady Dragons exhibition match

Support one of the fastest growing sport in the country today. Support local rugby. Come down to Pelaez Sports Complex on February 22 and watch the games.

Alabang Eagles Win the Head & Shoulders 7s League Finals

10/30/2013

The Alabang Eagles Rugby Club proved once again they are the best 7s team in the country. After they made history as Philippine National Games Rugby 7s inaugural champions last June, the Eagles won the Cup finals in the PRFU Head & Shoulders 7s League last October 26, 2013 at Nomads Sports Club.

Led by Volcano player Tim Bweheni and National Development Team player Jovic Paypon, they beat a gutsy Cebu Dragons side 24-0. The boys from Alabang showed a combination of speed and strength plus awesome teamwork. The Dragons, led by former Volcano Noel Flowers, fought hard until the last second but failed to answer the Eagles' attacks. Great job to both teams for this hard-fought and exciting finals match. Finals MVP was awarded to Jovic Paypon.

In the Plate finals, it was the Alabang Ibons who ran away with the trophy with a convincing win 38-0 over the Manila Hapons. Former Volcano David Carman led the Ibons' attack while teammate Johnny Leo scored the tries by using his stepping skills and superb speed. Leo was later awarded the MVP of the finals match.

The Bowl finals saw a David vs Goliath matchup between the Falcons and the Clark Rugby Club Boys. The CRC boys, despite the disadvantage in height, showed everyone why 7s rugby is a game of speed. With Falcons leading most of the game, the CRC boys almost made a comeback with their 2 hard-earned tries in the last few minutes. Full time and score ended with a 21-12 Falcons win over CRC. For his outstanding effort and never-give-up attitude, CRC's Michael Maralas was named the finals MVP.

Cebu Lady Dragons captured the Women's division 7s crown with a 26-0 win over rival Manila Mayhem. Finals MVP Aiumi Ono, led the Lady Dragons' attack during the finals game. Manila Mayhem gave a good fight despite the absence due to injuries of 3 of their key players. Great job to both teams and congratulations to the Cebu Lady Dragons for a well-deserved win.

This finals match was the Lady Dragons' tribute game to their long-time captain, Ono, who is set to leave for Japan in a few weeks. She is one of the pioneers of the Lady Volcanoes 7s and 15s squad and a PRFU Regional Development Officer. PRFU wishes miss Aiumi Ono best of luck. The union highly-appreciates her contributions to the development of the grassroots program in the country.

No team photo:

Manila Nomads (Cup)
Makati Mavericks (Plate)
Falcons (Bowl)
UMAK Questors (Bowl)
Clark Rugby Club (Bowl)

Nomads Win FILA 15s League in a Tough Encounter Against Alabang Eagles

6/25/2013

Manila Nomads (Cup Champions)

The Manila Nomads proved once again that they are the reigning 15s Rugby team in the Philippines with a close win over the Alabang Eagles in the Fila 15s Cup division final last June 22. Nomads relied on their bigger forwards, their aggressive pick and drive style of play, and rolling mauls to gain territory. The younger Eagles took advantage of the experience of several Volcanoes players on their backs line. Tim Bweheni, Robert Jones, and Adam Clarke suited up for the Eagles for this very important match.

Nomads skipper and Volcanoes player, David Feeney, started the scoring with a pick and drive off the 5 meter line. Fly half Danny Williams converted the try to add cushion to the Nomads lead. Eagles responded instantly with a counter attack from a kick off. Jones outpaced several defenders and scored a try for the Eagles. As the try wasn’t converted, the score remained at 7-5 by the half.

After the break, Nomads were on the board again with a try by Williams. Conversion was unsuccessful but they were up by 7 points. An Adam Clarke try made the score even at 12-all. With the Cup championship on the line, both teams tightened up their defensive line and tried to outmuscle their way to gain territory. A successful penalty kick by Williams gave the Nomads a slim lead in the last 20 minutes of play. It was a defensive battle from there, as both teams tackled hard and forced a series of turnovers. Eagles were able to sneak in a try to take the lead for the first time in the match. Their try was converted for a score of 17-15 to the Eagles. Nomads turned to their experienced forwards pack for control over the last minutes of the match. A rolling maul from a lineout gave MVP Paul Retzlaff a chance to steal the match from the Eagles. Retzlaff scored a try and Williams converted it, sealing the win for the defending champions at 22-17.

Alabang Eagles

Ladies Division: Manila Defeats Cebu at PRFU FILA 15s League Championship

Manila Mayhem (Ladies Division Champions)

The north and south ladies teams battled for another PRFU league championship title. The Cebu Lady Dragons, who won last year’s 15s match against Manila Mayhem, came to the field ready to defend their title. The Manila Mayhem, who won the 10s league championship against the southerners last March, were up for the challenge.

With both teams having at least 8 rookies– and missing a few key players on the lineup– it was an evenly matched game from the start. The match started off very physical, as both sides tackled hard to prevent each other from gaining ground. The Lady Dragons showed quality passing, which enabled them to swing the ball from side to side. In contrast, Mayhem demonstrated their forwards’ strength by creating a solid defense and coming up fast off the line. Mayhem opened up the scoring with a quick ball to the backs on the 5 meter line. Fullback Loujen Saldo found a gap and dove for the try. The Lady Dragons answered back with a blind side play off the scrum. After quickly picking up the ball, Number 8, Tonette Gambito, sped straight towards the line, outrunning Mayhem’s winger. Try was converted and the Lady Dragons were up 7-5.

Cebu Lady Dragons

Substitute player Lima, an 18 year old Papua New Guinean player from Cebu, made her presence felt early as she broke through several tackles and popped the ball to their speedy captain, Aiumi Ono. Ono then crossed the line and her try was converted. After a short regroup, Mayhem girls came back with two quick tries before the half. Mayhem’s forwards worked hard to draw defenders, creating scoring opportunities for their speedy backs. Ada Milby bulldozed her way to the line, while Nikki Lira scored a try between the posts after a quick pass from the backs.

The second half saw stronger defence and more aggression from both ladies teams. A yellow card was given to Lima of Cebu, which resulted to a penalty try for Manila Santos of Mayhem. Try was converted, bringing Mayhem up 22-14. Another yellow card from a high tackle resulted to Lira sitting out for a few minutes. The Lady Dragons were not able to take advantage of the overlap and remained unable to score on several opportunities. A loose ball from a broken play resulted to a breakaway try by Saldo. This sealed the win at 29-14 for Manila Mayhem, and Loujen Saldo was awarded the Most Valuable Player of the Women’s Division.

Plate Division: Ibons Dominate Globe at PRFU FILA 15s League Championship

Alabang Ibons (Plate Champions)

It was a tough battle for the much improved Globe Immortals as they played against an Alabang Ibons team composed mostly of speedy Papua New Guinean players. The Immortals, who were able to secure a spot in the finals by beating rival Maverick Vipers, were outran several times by the PNG players. The first 10 minutes looked promising as the Immortals held their ground and contained their speedy opponents. It was a physical match, but the local boys were able to gain yards and match up to the strength of their opponents. Fitness and experience spelled the difference as the Ibons finally out-muscled their opponents and swung the ball to their swift-running backs. A series of runaway tries gave momentum to the Ibons and disheartened the Immortals. A bad cut above the eye forced Immortals skipper and Volcano player, Jay Coronel, to be pulled out of the game, much to his team’s dismay. David Brissonnaud, Immortals’ inside-center, managed to put in a penalty kick, making the score 19-3 at the half.

Globe Immortals

The second half was still an all-Ibons show as their PNG players scored try after try. Coronel was unable to return to the field because of the cut sustained in the first half. The match ended at 62-3 with Chris Karo, a PNG player, being awarded the MVP. It was a tough loss for the Immortals, but this match gave them the experience they needed to compete in 15s rugby.

Bowl Division: Clark Rugby Club Come From Behind to Beat QCPU and Win the Bowl Championship

Clark Rugby Club (Bowl Champions)

Quezon City Polytechnic University

Clark Rugby Club made the biggest comeback in the PRFU Fila 15s League as they snuck up from behind to beat the QCPU Questors 24-22. QCPU started the scoring feast in the first half with quick passing and overall speed. They scored four unanswered tries with one conversion. Down 22-nil at the half, the CRC boys regrouped and relied on experience to crawl back from the huge deficit. A series of penalties in the ruck after the half gave CRC several scoring opportunities which they quickly took advantage of. Joe Mari Rauras started the scoring spree for CRC. They followed their structure by giving the ball to their forwards, allowing them to draw defenders, cause overlaps, and quickly swing the ball to the backs. True to the formula, they scored four tries and successfully converted twice. The last try came seconds before the end of the match. When the whistle was blown, CRC boys erupted in cheers while the QCPU boys stood in disbelief. It was a great win for the CRC boys, who showed everyone that no one gives up in the game of Rugby. It was a lesson learned for the QCPU boys: The match is never finished until the referee blows his whistle.

Thank you to all the teams who participated in this year’s Fila 15s League. Congratulations to all the champion teams. Next League games will be in August for 7s Rugby.

Cup MVP – Paul Retzlaff
Women’s MVP – Loujen Saldo
Plate MVP – Chris Karo
Bowl MVP – Jonel Madrona

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