June 7, 2016

MANILA, PHILIPPINES – Saturday June 4, after fifty-seven games of rugby throughout the competition, the Alabang Eagles Rugby Club claimed victory over the Manila Nomads in the grand final of the 2016 SPI 15s league. The SPI 15s League acts as Philippine Rugby’s local domestic tournament aimed at improving the development of rugby in the Philippines. It is the sports equivalent to the sanctioned Philippine Football Federations United Football League (UFL).

It had taken the visitors and reigning 2015 league champions up until the final 3 minutes to secure a back-to-back title after a desperate last haul from the Manila Nomads. Philippine Volcano and Alabang Eagles team captain Timothy Bweheni led from the front with both his try scoring ability and conversion rate proving valuable in his teams’ victory. The Manila Nomads looked to experienced campaigners to withhold the Eagles dominance however the absence of star player and current Philippine Volcano and U19s team captain Kai Ledesma Stroem for the grand final proved costly.

“We went down six to nothing in the first few minutes of the game but the Eagles didn’t keep their heads down. The team also made a few errors towards the end that almost lost us the game but no one panicked, all I saw was determination in the players’ eyes. Everyone believed in each other, trusted each other and played for each other. I think that’s the reason why we picked ourselves up from trailing 6 points down on the first quarter of the game to come on out on top for the grand final” shared Bweheni, team captain after the Eagles ran out eventual winners 24 points to 16.

The Plate Division final saw the CBRE Makati Mavericks Plate Champions for the first year after a close encounter over their close rivals the Alabang Ibons. The Alabang Ibons went undefeated throughout the tournament rounds however the pressures of finals football fell in favor to the Mavericks. The Mavericks welcomed back Philippine Volcano Alexander Norona Aronson from injury and with Lito Ramirez continuing his stellar form the Mavericks it proved favorably to withhold a spirited Alabang team. A final minute penalty goal in the dying minute by U19 Philippine Volcano Ryan Santos secured a 13 points to 10 victory for the Mavericks.

"I was really proud of the effort our players put in. I felt we played some brave and gutsy defense, fronting up to a much bigger and on the whole more experienced Ibons side. I'm also proud of the development and improvement of our local Filipino players and grassroots high school players. We suffered a 60 to nil loss to them earlier in the year and we able to regroup and best them in the final. It really shows how far we've come as a group, and it was a great way to finish the season." Added Philippine Volcano and Makati Maverick Aronson.
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After the announcement of the forced closure of Nomads Sports Club, the birthplace of Philippine Rugby, it was an emotional end to what may have been the last game of rugby at the century old venue, with rugby dating back to the early 1960s. The Philippine Rugby Football Union now looks to August for the launch of the 2016 PRFU Corporate 7s League to a new venue within Metro Manila. And with Rugby 7s inclusion into the Rio Olympic Games the sport looks to gain valuable exposure with the fast paced and exciting style of 7s rugby being displayed on the world’s most exclusive stage.

Dear Captains and Managers,
 
The Globe 7s League Finals will take place at the Southern Plains Rugby Field this Saturday September 8th. Please preview the match schedule below.
 
Games will begin at 1pm and teams need to be ready to play at least 30 mins prior to their first game. Teams need to make sure all players are registered and are reminded of the PRFU Insurance Policy.
 
The finals will be played with 2 x 6 mins halves with a 1 min halftime break, teams CANNOT leave the field at halftime. There will only be a 1 min break between games so teams MUST be ready to take the field for their scheduled games.
 
We will make the awards and presentations at the field at 5pm and this allows players the option of taking a swim and eating at the Eagles Clubhouse or driving back to Manila to watch the Rugby Championships game Australia v South Africa at 6.30pm.
 
The second round of the Globe 7s league will be run during October and we will be playing two round at Nomads as the field reopens on Sept 29th.

Dear Captains and Managers,

Please preview the attached GLOBE 7s League schedule for this Sat Aug 25th at Southern Plains.

The Bowl Division games will begin at 10.20am, please be at the field at 10am for a managers meeting.

The Men's and Women's Cup games will begin at 12nn and will include the Cebu teams.

At 3.30pm the Philippine A v Hong Kong A International Friendly game will be played. All players are encouraged to stay and watch this game and support the Philippine A team. 

Food and drinks will be available for sale at the Southern Plains Clubhouse.

Teams are also reminded that the GLOBE 7s League finals will be played at Southern Plains on September 8th. 

Map to Southern Plains field

Dear Captains and Managers,
 
Please see the attached schedule for the Globe 7s Round 2 games which will be held at Southern Plains Field this Sat Aug 18th from 12nn to 5pm.
 
The Bowl Division teams will remain the same, with the Plate A and B teams changing this week so that every team plays each other over the two rounds.
 
The CUP division teams of Eagles, Nomads and Cebu will play against each other next Saturday on Aug 25th and the two top teams will play in the CUP finals on September 8th.
 
The Plate teams will be ranked over all three round games and then will all play in the Plate Finals on September 8th.
 
The team listed first will kick off from the Southern or Overpass end as the field became very wet in one section the last time we kicked off from the northern end.
 
The rules, points and waiver forms are still the same as Round 1. Any new players attending the tournament must complete the team waiver forms at the Administration Desk before they can take part in any games. Captains and managers are responsible for registering new players at each round of the Globe 7s tournament.
 
Players are reminded that they can avail of the PRFU Insurance Policy that covers the sport of Rugby Union and any other injuries for up to Php 200 000, the policy is only Php 2,080.00 and players can register for this at the officials desk this Saturday.
 
Attached is the map to Southern Plains. Please do not hesitate to contact Coach Matt Cullen if you have any other questions.

Round 2: Saturday, August 18
Round 3: Saturday, August 25
Finals: Saturday, September 8