MANILA, Philippines - Philippine rugby got a big boost with the entry of CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) Phils. as its sponsors with the top real estate services firm putting up the CBRE Juniors Rugby Tournament for the second straight year at the British School Manila recently.
Eight teams took part in the event, held in cooperation with the Philippine Rugby Football Union, the governing body of rugby football union in the country. They included the Makati Mavericks, the Manila Hapons, British School Manila, Eagles Rugby, European International School, Bahay Bata, Tuloy and Duyan.
“Through this tournament and other efforts geared toward the promotion of this sport, we hope to provide more opportunities for our teams to gain international recognition,” said Rick Santos, CBRE chairman and CEO.
Matthew Cullen, the national coach of PRFU, also said the Filipinos have a great agility, great hand-eye coordination, great speed, and teamwork, which are traits excellent rugby football players possess.
True enough, while rugby union initially developed in the Philippines through expatriates residing in the country, PRFU is now able to field 100 percent Filipino heritage players in the national team or the Philippine Volcanoes.
The Philippines’ recent silver medal finish in the 2011 Asian Men’s Rugby 7s Championships in Borneo underscored the tremendous rise to fame by the Volcanoes.
They beat the Chinese in the semis and though they bowed to the Japanese in the finals, the Volcanoes booked a berth in the 2012 Hong Kong Rugby 7s in March.
The Volcanoes now play in both female and male categories (men’s 15s, men’s under 20s, men’s 7s, women’s 15s, and women’s 7s) and has recently ranked seventh in the Shanghai leg of the HSBC Asian Men’s 7 Series, defeating both the United Arab Emirates and South Korea.
The team has risen to the top of the Asian 5 Nations Rugby Tournament in just a span of two years, starting in Division 4 in 2008 and now retaining a spot in Division 1 rankings.