Image Gallery: May 2008
Army Rugby team takes on French
01 May 2008
It took more than a little wet weather to dampen the spirits of the Australian Army Rugby team as they dug deep to take a 21-18 point victory over the French Army in Caen. During the game the Australian Army Team showed the mettle that embodies the Army values of courage, initiative and teamwork.
The team drew from the sacrifices of soldiers lost overseas not only in previous wars but also within current conflicts including the recent loss of Lance-Corporal Jason Marks in Afghanistan.
The team proudly carried the trophy off the field, named in honour of the last surviving French WWI veteran who fought alongside ANZAC soldiers, Monsieur Ponticelli who died early last year.
Members of the Australian Army Rugby Union (AARU) Team took time out of their busy Army careers to tour France and Germany.
The tour is aimed at enhancing the Australian Army's relationship with the French and UK Armies and to promote rugby as the premier international military sport. The AARU will be on show to an international audience as representatives of the Australian Army and as elite athletes. The tour provides an excellent opportunity for selected players to further develop their playing skills while building international relationships and enjoying a unique range of cultural and historical activities, including battlefield tours.
Foremost, the AARU tour in Germany seeks to foster the Army key values of courage, initiative and teamwork. At the completion of the European tour, the AARU team will compete in the Australian Services Rugby Carnival at the Royal Military College Duntroon, Canberra.
| 20080429adf8208022_110 Australian Army Rugby Union Team Captain, Major Sean Kearns leads his team onto the Stade Helitas rugby field in Caen, Normandy prior to a game against the French Army team. (Date taken: 29 April 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20080429adf8208022_166 Australian Army Rugby Union Team second rower, Sergeant Shaun Jolley, reaches for the ball during a line out at the Stade Helitas rugby field in Caen, Normandy in a game against the French Army team. (Date taken: 29 April 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20080429adf8208022_408 Members of the Australian Army Rugby Union Team chase the ball during a game against their French counterparts at Stade Helitas rugby field in Caen, Normandy. (Date taken: 29 April 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20080429adf8208022_649 A French Army player tries to thwart Australian Army Rugby Union Team hooker Private Joseph Kirkland during the game at the Stade Helitas rugby field in Caen, Normandy. (Date taken: 29 April 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20080429adf8208022_1055 Australian Army Rugby Union Team hooker, Private Joseph Kirkland thanks a French Army player after a tough match at the Stade Helitas rugby field in Caen, Normandy. (Date taken: 29 April 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20080429adf8208022_1086 Australian Army Rugby Union Team captain, Major Sean Kearns, accepts the game trophy from a member of the French Army after winning in a close 21 - 18 at the Stade Helitas rugby field in Caen, Normandy. (Date taken: 29 April 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20080429adf8208022_1097 Members of the Australian Army Rugby Union Team proudly show off their trophy after defeating the French Army in a game held at Stade Helitas rugby field in Caen, Normandy. (Date taken: 29 April 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20080430adf8208022_091 Australian Army Rugby Team front rower, Lieutenant Gregory Jones, from the 1st Recruit Training Battalion, looks over a map of Omaha Beach at the Normandy American Ceremony and Memorial in France. (Date taken: 30 April 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20080430adf8208022_112 Australian Army Rugby Team members Lieutenant Trent Beilken (left) (from the 1st Battalion Headquarters), and Lieutenant Damien Cahill (from Training Technology Centre Brisbane), reflect upon a tombstone within the Normandy American Cemetary and Memorial at Omaha Beach, France. (Date taken: 30 April 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20080430adf8208022_120 (L-R) Captain Trevor Hogan, Major Sean Kearns, Lieutenant Damien Cahill and Lieutenant Trent Beilken, from the Australian Army Rugby Team, reflect upon a statue at the Normandy American Cemetary and Memorial at Omaha Beach, France. (Date taken: 30 April 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20080430adf8208022_143 Members of the Australian Army Rugby Team, Captain Stephen Wright (left), from Headquarters Combined Arms Training Centre, and Lieutenant Trent Beilken from the 1st Brigade Headquarters, look along a memorial board at Point De Hoc, overlooking the Normandy beach line, France. (Date taken: 30 April 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20080430adf8208022_150 Captain Mick Spruce, from the 31st/42nd Battalion, Royal Queensland Regiment and a manager of the Australian Army Rugby Team, pokes his head out of a man-hole in a WWII gun emplacement at Point De Hoc, overlooking the Normandy beach line, France. (Date taken: 30 April 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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