Catalonia national rugby league team
| Governing body | Associació Catalana de Rugby Lliga | |
|---|---|---|
| Region | Europe | |
| Head coach | Eric Delherbe | |
| Captain | Albert Homs | |
| ||
| First game | ||
 Catalonia 12–62 Morocco  (Perpignan, 21 June 2008) | ||
| Biggest win | ||
 Czech Republic 16–66 Catalonia (Prague, 10 July 2010) | ||
| Biggest defeat | ||
|
Catalonia 12–62 Morocco (Perpignan, 21 June 2008) | ||
The Catalonia national rugby league team represents Catalonia in the sport of rugby league football, running under the auspices of the Associació Catalana de Rugby Lliga.
History
Rugby league started in Catalonia in autumn 2007, with the advice of people from the French Catalan region, where this sport has been played since the 1930s.
The number of clubs grew since 3 clubs participated in the first competition in southern Catalonia in 2008 (FC Barcelona, Aligots Girona and Nord-Català),[1] to reach 9 teams in the first Catalonia Championships in April 2009: CR Tarragona, CR Valls, CR Sant Cugat, INEF Lleida, GEiEG, Poble Nou Enginyers, BUC, RC Garrotxa and Vic Crancs.[2] Also, the first Rugby League Catalan University Championship was played in February 2009, with 9 teams in competition.[3]
Catalonia used to be an unranked member of the Rugby League European Federation;[4] however, their participation in some international rugby league competitions, such as the World Cup, has been questioned as Catalonia is not a sovereign nation.
Catalonia played their first match in January 2008 when they participated in the French Interleague Championship held near Perpignan, France. In June of the same year, Morocco beat Catalonia in a match played in Perpignan, 62–12.
In June 2009, Catalonia beat the Czech Republic[5] in a match played prior to the Catalans Dragons vs Warrington Wolves Super League game. This match was an international warm-up ahead of the Euro Med Challenge contested by Catalonia, Morocco and Belgium. They lost 6–29 at home to Morocco, and 28–22 at Belgium.[3][6]
In 2010 Catalonia played only friendlies, with a win over Czech Republic 16–66 in Prague.[7]
Following further disputes over their RLEF status, the Catalonia national team did not subsequently participate in international competition and their RLEF affiliation was later dropped. They are currently not active in international competition, and any further international activity will likely fall under the umbrella of the Spain national rugby league team.
All-Time Results
| Team | 1st Played | Play | Win | Draw | Loss | Points For | Points Agn. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morocco | 2008 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 18 | 91 |
| Czech Republic | 2009 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 118 | 26 |
.svg.png){kind=small} Belgium | 2009 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 22 | 28 |
Team Matches to Date
| French championships interleagues – Short game[8] | |||||
| Date | Opponents | Result | Venue | Crowd | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26 January 2008 | Languedoc-Roussillon | 0–24 | Saint-Laurent-de-la-Salanque | 200 | French Interleague Championship |
| 27 January 2008 | Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur | 4–14 | Saint-Laurent-de-la-Salanque | 200 | French Interleague Championship |
| 27 January 2008 | Île-de-France | 14–26 | Saint-Laurent-de-la-Salanque | 200 | French Interleague Championship |
| Date | Venue | Home | Result | Away | Crowd | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 June 2008 | Girona | Catalonia |
18–64 |  French Universities |
150 | Friendly |
| 21 June 2008 | Perpignan | Catalonia |
12–62 | Morocco |
2,000 | Friendly |
| 20 June 2009 | Barcelona | Catalonia |
52–10 | Czech Republic |
18,150 | Friendly |
| 4 July 2009 | Torroella de Montgrí | Catalonia |
6–29 | Morocco |
1,000 | RLEF Euro Med Challenge |
| 25 July 2009 | Wavre | Belgium |
28–22 | Catalonia |
400 | RLEF Euro Med Challenge |
| 10 July 2010 | Prague | Czech Republic |
16–66 | Catalonia |
Friendly |
Players
Squads
2009
Catalonia vs. Morocco, 4 July 2009
|
Catalonia vs. Belgium, 25 July 2009.[9]
|
2010
Catalonia vs. Czech Republic, July 10, 2010.[10] |
| Name | Position | Club |
|---|---|---|
| Pau Puigdollers | fullback | CR Sant Cugat |
| Raül Vall-llosada | wing | Free Agent |
| Richard Cottrell | centre | Free Agent |
| Xavi Zubero | centre | BUC |
| Marc Forman | wing | CR Sant Cugat |
| Alex Carrasco | five-eighth | Free Agent |
| Ermengol Alemany | halfback | BUC |
| Mariano Lago | prop | Free Agent |
| Joan Porras | hooker | BUC |
| Joan Miquel Petanàs | prop | CE INEF Lleida |
| Òscar Mercè | second-row | CE INEF Lleida |
| Sergio Calzada | second-row | BUC |
| Albert Homs | loose forward | GEiEG |
| Julien Lebon | Interchange | CNPN Enginyers |
| Calvin Tchoumi | Interchange | CE INEF Lleida |
| Jose Plegueauelos | Interchange | CR Tarragona |
| Joaquim Sala | Interchange | GEiEG |
| Javier López | Reserve | BUC |
| Marco Pasarello | Reserve | Free Agent |
|}
See also
References
- ↑ "El FC Barcelona guanya la primera Copa Catalunya de Rugbi Lliga". vilaweb.cat (in Catalan). 2011. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
- ↑ "Associació Catalana – Rugby Lliga – I Campionat de Catalunya de rugby lliga". rugbylliga.cat. 2011. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
- 1 2 "Catalonia – Introduction". rlef.eu.com. 2011. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
- ↑ Archived March 9, 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- ↑ "Catalonia won 52 to 10 in the Czech Republic". Associació Catalana de Rugby Lliga. 2009-06-22. Retrieved 2009-06-30.
- ↑ "Derrota per la mínima contra Bèlgica". rugbylliga.cat (in Catalan). 2011. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
- ↑ "Catalonia win over Czech Republic" (in Catalan). ACRL. July 13, 2010.
- ↑ "Debut molt satisfactori de la Selecció Catalana de rugbi a XIII". rugbylliga.cat (in Catalan). 2011. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
- ↑ "Catalunya prepara el partit contra Bèlgica". rugbylliga.cat (in Catalan). 2012. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
- ↑ "Roster Czech Republic-Catalonia" (in Catalan). ACRL. 2010-07-08.
External links
- Catalan Rugby League Association
- Rugby League European Federation
- Highlights video: Catalonia-Morocco
- Highlights video: Belgium-Catalonia
| ||||||||||||||