04/05/09

Resume of the final of “Divisão de Honra” 1/5/2009 Agronomia-Direito

It was a very good game between both teams, well played and very emotional. The game started with a lot of pressure by Agronomia, but it was Direito who opened the score with a penalty at the minute 4 with a penalty (3 points) scored by scum-half Pedro Leal. 3 minutes later Direito scored its first try of the day, after a good kick picked up by wing Aderito Esteves, who scored Direito’s first try in the final. After the conversion from number 9 Pedro Leal, Direito led the score 10 to 0. Minute 11, Australian born full-back Joe Gardner kicked his first penalty of the day, which reduced the score to 10-3. Agronomia started to put more pressure in the defence of Direito and after a big mistake by Direito’s full-back, fly-half Duarte Cardoso Pinto scored the first try for Agronomia that after the conversion from Joe Gardner putted the teams together in the score board, 10-10, with 20 minutes gone. The crowd had to wait 15 minutes to see the score changing again with another penalty from Agronomia but only 5 minutes later Direito draw the result again, 13-13 the result achieved before Portuguese referee Joao Mourinha weaselled for half time.

Agronomia came in its best in the second half and capitalized its domain with a try at minute 3 scored by South-African Jack le Roux. Conversion missed and the score was 18-13. But this was the Aderito Esteves day and after just 4 minutes Direito and the wing made their second try of the day. With a successful conversion, Direito led 20-18.
Minute 28, after a series of rucks, veteran Miguel Portela got in a situation of one-to-one with Joe Gardner and was happier than the other, scoring a try that gave Direito the feeling that the victory was near. The conversion was missed. Agronomia knew that they could not let Direito get way in the board and came with all its strengths to score, putting a lot of pressure in Direito’s defence, but a huge mistake by Duarte Cardoso Pinto with a pass to number 6 Luis Portela saw the Portuguese man run about 80 metres to the try-line and score the final try from Direito, with 9 minutes remaining to the final weasel. 32-18 was now the score and it was an almost impossible task for Agronomia to win this game, but with a spirit hart they did not wanted to give the game so easily to the black-and-red man so with only one minute to go they scored their third try of the day by South-African Conrad Stikling, the score now 32-25. In the injury-time Agronomia still had one chance to score but inside the 22-line of Direito, they lost possession of the ball and Direito kicked the ball out, ending the game and becoming for the 6th time in 10 years Champions of Portugal.

03/05/09

PETITION RUGBY IN RTP

One of our principal objectives concerning Rugby is to make it more visible, available for all its supporters, more divulgated.
For that we made a petition, RUGBY IN RTP, to create a Television program in RTP about Rugby.
We think that RTP should have at least one monthly program about rugby, about the Portuguese National Team, about the Portuguese League, about the youth players, the expatriated players and also about the major new in the international Rugby panoram

go to this link and join our cause!

http://www.peticaopublica.com/PeticaoVer.aspx?pi=P2009N21

Together we will put Rugby where it deserves to be!



New Zealand All Black's Haka and Portuguese Anthem (football players version Vs Rugby players)

This is one of the Haka's from the All Black's
scary, intimidating, distinctive, unique and with several roots to this Nation's traditions.

One of the most magnificent thing in Rugby's culture!





This second video is just to show you some differences about Rugby and Football, the way Rugby's National players feel the Portuguese Anthem, their intensity, their dedication...
This is a very good example that clearly differentiates Football and Rugby!

The basics of Rugby

This is just a simple explanation about the basics of Rugby, the essential rules, the most important and used tactics and movements, in sum, a very good instrument to introduce Rugby to the so many persons in Portugal that don't know it!

Enjoy it!

02/05/09

Our Mission

We are only 5 simple students that share a passion for Rugby. Our mission as supporters from this sport is to communicate with other supports, and to make others share our passion, and our link with this sport. Rugby is a unique sport, with a distinctive culture and values that no other sport has! Portuguese National Team is an example of dedication, courage and strength to the Portuguese society! Also known as "Lobos", our National Team was the first amateur team to participate in the Rugby world cup in 2007, France, and even though without the best results, they played with all they could, and they came out from this competition with proud and improving their image in the Portuguese society and in the Rugby's Universe! One of our major intentions is to Honor the efforts and the dedication from the "Lobos".

Moreover, Rugby, as many other amateur sports in Portugal, is almost always forgotten and left aside from the Medias and from the public in general, rather than football, that represents in our country a kind of BlockBuster from sport. Football gathers almost all the attentions from the general TV's channels, leaving almost no space to Rugby. We don't think this is fair so we are claiming, and we will claim as loud as we need, for a space for Rugby. Visibility is in our opinion one of the things that must be changed in Rugby; we are working for changing it. Our first move was this Blog, that will work with 5 major objectives: give information about Rugby in Portugal; to teach/explain the public some things about Rugby; to gather more Supporters; to serve as a launching platform to our future initiatives; to really help changing Rugby's visibility; and to be an example for many others amateur sports, that like Rugby don't have the deserved space. Our next initiative will pass by put some pressure in RTP to create a simple monthly magazine about Rugby. We think that if football deserves the massive attention that it gets, Rugby at least should have a simple program on the public Tv Channel to inform its supports about what happened during the month and to work as a cultural transition object, broadcasting to the Portuguese society that does not know Rugby at all, what is Rugby and what is going on in its universe.




For us this is just a start for improving the Rugby's visibility, but we think that it will be a necessary step to take while claiming for the deserved space for Rugby! We believe that Rugby deserves a window in a Public Tv Channel, because in our opinion, it represents a very cultured niche from the Portuguese society, that has the entire right of having its voice heard and because Rugby's National Team is a proud representation of our Nation that is not well recognized and therefore we want to promote public interest.