Lithuania national rugby union team
Encyclopedia
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
at rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
. They are governed by the Lithuanian Rugby Federation
Lithuanian Rugby Federation
The Lithuanian Rugby Federation administers rugby union in Lithuania-External links:* in Lithuanian* Lithuania dreaming of 2011 Rugby World Cup, AFP story published by rugbyweek.com...
, and have yet to qualify for the Rugby World Cup
Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is an international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board and held every four years since 1987....
.
History
Lithuania is traditionally a country of basketballBasketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
and football; rugby is still not very popular among Lithuanian sport fans. However, a 100 percent record in their 2006-2008 European Nations Cup Third Division
2006-2008 European Nations Cup Third Division
The 2006–2008 European Nations Cup Third Division will be contested over two years during which all teams meet each other home and away. The Third Division consists of four levels, which effectively constitute the 5th through 8th levels of European international rugby...
campaign earned them promotion from Division 3B to Division 3A. This effort was followed by a perfect 2008-2009 season in the 2008-2010 European Nations Cup Third Division
2008-2010 European Nations Cup Third Division
The 2008-2010 European Nations Cup Third Division will be contested over two years during which all teams meet each other home and away. The Third Division consists of four levels, which effectively constitute the 5th through 8th levels of European international rugby...
and victories over Israel and the Netherlands to advance to the semifinal round of European qualification for a spot in the 2011 Rugby World Cup Final Place Play-off. The rise in form of the national team is bound to increase the popularity of the sport in Lithuania.
During their 2008–10 European Nations Cup campaign, they set a new record for consecutive Test
Test match (rugby union)
Test match in rugby union is a match recognised as being a full international match by at least one of the participating teams' governing bodies. It is an unofficial but widely used term in the sport....
wins in men's rugby. Their 77–5 away win over Serbia
Serbia national rugby union team
The Serbia national rugby union team represents Serbia in international rugby union. Serbia are considered a tier three nation by the International Rugby Board , and have yet to make their debut at the Rugby World Cup...
on April 24, 2010 was their 18th straight, surpassing the previous record set by New Zealand in 1965–69 and by South Africa
South Africa national rugby union team
The South African national rugby union team are 2009 British and Irish Lions Series winners. They are currently ranked as the fourth best team in the IRB World Rankings and were named 2008 World Team of the Year at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards.Although South Africa was instrumental...
in 1997–98. This undefeated campaign, which could have led to a Lithuanian presence at the 2011 Rugby World Cup
2011 Rugby World Cup
The 2011 Rugby World Cup was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The International Rugby Board selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japan and South Africa at a meeting in Dublin on 17 November 2005...
, ended in the following Test, a 27–16 loss on May 8 to Ukraine
Ukraine national rugby union team
The Ukraine national rugby union team represents Ukraine at the sport of rugby union. Ukraine have been playing international rugby union since the early 1990s. So far they have not qualified for a Rugby World Cup. They participate in the European Nations Cup....
in the European qualifying semifinal.
Rugby World Cup record
- 1987 : did not exist
- 1991 : did not exist
- 1995-2011 : did not qualify
Current squad
Head Coach: Anatolijus Smirnovas- 1. Laurynas Tipelis (BaltRex, Šiauliai),
- 2. Darius Nosys (Vairas, Šiauliai),
- 3. Ignas DarkintisIgnas DarkintisIgnas Darkintis is a Lithuanian rugby union player. He plays as a prop.Darkintis played most of his career at the Lithuanian side of Vairas Siauliai. He moved to Enkoping RC in Sweden, for the 2009 season, where he won a Swedish Championship...
(Thanet Wanderers RUFC, England), - 4. Ignas Liukinevičius (BaltRex, Šiauliai),
- 5. Marius Andrijauskas (Peterborough RFUC, England),
- 6. Andrius Martinskas (Enköpings RK, Sweden),
- 7. Gediminas Švoba (BaltRex, Šiauliai),
- 8. Mindaugas Grigas (BaltRex, Šiauliai),
- 9. Mindaugas Misevičius (C) (Vairas, Šiauliai),
- 10. Kęstutis Marcišauskas (Vairas, Šiauliai),
- 11. Evaldas Štitilis (Vairas, Šiauliai),
- 12. Gediminas Liutkus (BaltRex, Šiauliai),
- 13. Gediminas MarcišauskasGediminas MarcišauskasGediminas Marcišauskas is a Lithuanian rugby union player. He plays as a centre.He first played for Vairas Siauliai in Lithuania, where he won the National Championship. He signed for one year to the French team of Bordeaux RC Guizerois, aged 19 years old. He then would play for half year in Stade...
(Peterborough RFUC, England), - 14. Irmantas Kukulskis (Vairas, Šiauliai),
- 15. Maxim Guseinov (Peterborough RFUC, England),
- 16. Tomas Zibolis (BaltRex, Šiauliai),
- 17. Rokas Daknys (Vairas, Šiauliai),
- 18. Audrius Ramančionis (Vairas, Šiauliai),
- 19. Vilius Kucinas (Vairas, Šiauliai),
- 20. Tomas Astrauskas (RK Šiauliai),
- 21. Egidijus Petronis (Vairas, Šiauliai),
- 22. Justas Vasliauskas (Vairas, Šiauliai),
- 23. Karolis Navickas (VVA-Podmoskovye MoninoVVA-Podmoskovye MoninoThe VVA-Podmoskovje is a Russian rugby union team currently playing in the Professional Rugby League. The team plays at Gagarin Air Force Academy stadium in Monino, a garrison town just outside Moscow. VVA-Podmoskovye have strong links to the air force and also supply the bulk of Russia, with which...
, Russia)
See also
- European Nations CupEuropean Nations Cup (rugby union)The European Nations Cup is the European Championship for tier 2 and tier 3 rugby union nations. The Championship is split into 7 divisions with 5 or 6 teams in each. The divisions play on a two-year cycle with the teams playing each other both home and away...
- 2006-2008 European Nations Cup Third Division2006-2008 European Nations Cup Third DivisionThe 2006–2008 European Nations Cup Third Division will be contested over two years during which all teams meet each other home and away. The Third Division consists of four levels, which effectively constitute the 5th through 8th levels of European international rugby...
- Lithuanian Rugby FederationLithuanian Rugby FederationThe Lithuanian Rugby Federation administers rugby union in Lithuania-External links:* in Lithuanian* Lithuania dreaming of 2011 Rugby World Cup, AFP story published by rugbyweek.com...
- Rugby union in LithuaniaRugby union in LithuaniaRugby union in Lithuania is a minor but growing sport.-Governing Body:The Lithuanian Union was founded in 1961, and joined the IRB in 1992, after Lithuanian independence. Although the union was formed in the sixties, it was not considered a proper national union until after the breakup of the...
External links
- Official Site
- http://www.rugbyweek.com/news/article.asp?id=24879 Lithuania dreaming of 2011 Rugby World Cup, AFP story published by rugbyweek.com