Sports
Rugby begins its planning for South America
By Barry Rollings

Volume 49, No. 4, March 22, 2007
 
GAME PLAN: A South American rugby tour is in train for ASRU.
 
THE Australian Services Rugby Union (ASRU) is planning for its tour of South America later this year.

The possibility of a tour to Argentina, home of the flamboyant Pumas, and Chile was first raised at the recent ASRU annual meeting.

It is expected the 24-day tour will take place from October 1-25 after an intensive weekend preparation camp in Sydney.

The ASRU representative team will be selected from the extant ASRU men’s playing list (during the past three seasons, a list of identified players deemed capable of playing at the representative level has been developed).

The ASRU will play the Chilean national team or a team of similar level in Santiago between October 1 and 5 before departing for Argentina on October 6.

Three games are proposed for Argentina with the first in Mendoza around October 10, against the Argentinean Military Forces or a similar team, and the second in Rosario, against Rosario Jockey Club or similar, around October 14.

The final match will be in Buenos Aires, against the Buenos Aires Provincial Representative team or similar, around October 20.

The 2007 tour accords with the year three program of the ASRU Five Year Development Plan and is seen as pivotal in re-establishing Services rugby at an elite level in the Australian Rugby Union hierarchy.

To continue to attract top class players to represent their Service and ASRU, international tours (normally held every three to four years) are vital to exposing Defence Force players to top quality/elite rugby levels.

This, in turn, will expose players to selection for ARU and/or state/provincial representative honours, including possible selection in Super 14 and other high-level competitions. Such players will then be ale to return skills and experiences learned to ASRU and the single Service unions.