Union | Česká Rugbyová Unie |
---|---|
Coach(es) | Thomas Putra |
Captain(s) | Robert Voves |
First international | |
Czechoslovakia 5 - 21 Romania (22 May 1927) Andorra 6 - 3 Czech Republic (15 May 1993) |
|
Largest win | |
Czech Republic 95 - 5 Croatia (7 April 2002) |
|
Largest defeat | |
Italy 104 - 8 Czech Republic (18 May 1994) |
The Czech Republic national rugby union team is the third tier rugby national team of the Czech Republic.
They first started playing as the Czech Republic in 1993 after the split of Czechoslovakia and now compete in the European Nations Cup. They have yet to qualify for the Rugby World Cup, but have entered the qualifiers since the 1995 edition. Rugby union in the Czech Republic is administered by the Česká Rugbyová Unie. The sport is still amateur in the country, but there are several Czech players who are professionals in France, including Martin Jágr.
As of February 2017[update] the team is ranked 31 of 102 in the IRB Rankings.
In 2005, they took on Australian Super Rugby side the Waratahs in Prague, losing 3-94.
The nation played against Hong Kong at the Synot Tip Arena in Prague on 16 December 2009. They won 17-5. It was the final match for six players: Antonín Brabec, Jan Macháček, Jan Oswald, Pavel Syrový, Ladislav Vondrášek and Jan Žíla.
The Czech Republic were relegated from the European Nations Cup First Division to the Second Division in 2014, after finishing 6th in their group.
On 9 November 2016 The Czech Republic played in a historical match against the Barbarians to celebrate the Czech Rugby Union's 90th anniversary. The match was held at the Marketa Stadium in Prague. They lost the match to the Barbarians, 71-0.