2008 Pacific Rugby Cup
Encyclopedia
The IRB Pacific Rugby Cup 2008 was the third edition of the annual
rugby union
club competition. First held in 2006, the 2008 edition, like its predecessors, featured representative teams from the three Pacific rugby union
s - Fiji
, Samoa
and Tonga
.
The participating teams were:
The teams participated in a home and away series culminating in a Grand Final between the first (Upolu Samoa
) and second-placed (Tautahi Gold
) teams in the final standings, with the first ranking team awarded home advantage.
Tautahi Gold
beat Upolu Samoa
11 points to 3 in the Grand Final match to win the 2008 IRB Pacific Rugby Cup, becoming the first Tongan
team, and the first team outside of Samoa
, to win the trophy.
, Samoa's National Provincial Championship
and Tonga's Provincial Championship and provided the coaches of the three national teams with a competitive player development pathway just ahead of the IRB Pacific Nations Cup 2008.
Upolu Samoa
began its title defence away to 2007 beaten finalists Tau'uta Reds
in Nuku'alofa on April 19, while Fiji Warriors
faced Tautahi Gold
in Lautoka and 2006 champions Savai'i Samoa played Fiji Barbarians
in Apia. Four further rounds followed on consecutive weekends before the top two ranked teams contested the Grand Final on May 24.
----
Round Two
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Round Three
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Round Four
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Round Five
----
Final
----
Year
A year is the orbital period of the Earth moving around the Sun. For an observer on Earth, this corresponds to the period it takes the Sun to complete one course throughout the zodiac along the ecliptic....
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...
club competition. First held in 2006, the 2008 edition, like its predecessors, featured representative teams from the three Pacific 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...
s - Fiji
Rugby union in Fiji
Rugby union is a popular team sport that is played in Fiji. It is considered to be the national sport of the country. The sport was introduced in the 1880s. Fiji is defined as a tier two rugby nation by the International Rugby Board . The national team has competed at the Rugby World Cup and made...
, Samoa
Rugby union in Samoa
Rugby union is the national sport of Samoa, and the national teams in both the standard 15-man game and its seven-man variant are consistently competitive against teams from vastly more populous nations.-Governing body:...
and Tonga
Rugby union in Tonga
Rugby union is the national sport of Tonga. Tonga are considered to be a tier 2 rugby nation by the International Rugby Board.Tonga has four main rugby playing islands, Vava'u which produced players like Epi Taione, Ha'apai which produced players like Jonah Lomu, Eua which produced the Vunipola...
.
The participating teams were:
- Upolu SamoaUpolu SamoaUpolu Samoa is a rugby union team controlled by the Samoa Rugby Union. It is one of the two Samoa rugby union teams participating in the Pacific Rugby Cup, the other being Savaii Samoa...
and Savaii SamoaSavaii SamoaSavaii Samoa is one of the Samoa rugby union two teams for the Pacific Rugby Cup. The other Samoan team is Upolu Samoa. Savaii Samoa and Upolu Samoa are selected from all tournaments that took place in Samoa...
from SamoaSamoaSamoa , officially the Independent State of Samoa, formerly known as Western Samoa is a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It became independent from New Zealand in 1962. The two main islands of Samoa are Upolu and one of the biggest islands in... - Fiji WarriorsFiji WarriorsThe Fiji Warriors are a Fijian rugby union team.They are one of the two Fijian teams that take part in the Pacific Rugby Cup competition, the other being the Fiji Barbarians...
and Fiji BarbariansFiji BarbariansThe Fiji Barbarians are a Fijian rugby union team.They are one of the two Fijian teams that take part in the Pacific Rugby Cup competition, the other being the Fiji Warriors...
from FijiFijiFiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island... - Tau'uta RedsTau'uta RedsTau'uta Reds is one of the two Tongan rugby union teams for the Pacific Rugby Cup; the other team being Tautahi Gold.-Name:Tau’uta Reds is the name of Tonga's land warriors which mainly fought the war that united Tonga as one Kingdom...
and Tautahi GoldTautahi GoldTautahi Gold is one of thetwo Tongan rugby union teams for the Pacific Rugby Cup; the other team being Tau'uta Reds.The home of the Tautahi Gold is the combination of Ha'apai, 'Eua and half of Tongatapu Town District...
from TongaTongaTonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
The teams participated in a home and away series culminating in a Grand Final between the first (Upolu Samoa
Upolu Samoa
Upolu Samoa is a rugby union team controlled by the Samoa Rugby Union. It is one of the two Samoa rugby union teams participating in the Pacific Rugby Cup, the other being Savaii Samoa...
) and second-placed (Tautahi Gold
Tautahi Gold
Tautahi Gold is one of thetwo Tongan rugby union teams for the Pacific Rugby Cup; the other team being Tau'uta Reds.The home of the Tautahi Gold is the combination of Ha'apai, 'Eua and half of Tongatapu Town District...
) teams in the final standings, with the first ranking team awarded home advantage.
Tautahi Gold
Tautahi Gold
Tautahi Gold is one of thetwo Tongan rugby union teams for the Pacific Rugby Cup; the other team being Tau'uta Reds.The home of the Tautahi Gold is the combination of Ha'apai, 'Eua and half of Tongatapu Town District...
beat Upolu Samoa
Upolu Samoa
Upolu Samoa is a rugby union team controlled by the Samoa Rugby Union. It is one of the two Samoa rugby union teams participating in the Pacific Rugby Cup, the other being Savaii Samoa...
11 points to 3 in the Grand Final match to win the 2008 IRB Pacific Rugby Cup, becoming the first Tongan
Rugby union in Tonga
Rugby union is the national sport of Tonga. Tonga are considered to be a tier 2 rugby nation by the International Rugby Board.Tonga has four main rugby playing islands, Vava'u which produced players like Epi Taione, Ha'apai which produced players like Jonah Lomu, Eua which produced the Vunipola...
team, and the first team outside of Samoa
Rugby union in Samoa
Rugby union is the national sport of Samoa, and the national teams in both the standard 15-man game and its seven-man variant are consistently competitive against teams from vastly more populous nations.-Governing body:...
, to win the trophy.
Schedule
The 2008 tournament followed the completion of Fiji's Colonial CupColonial Cup
The Colonial Cup was the second highest level of competition within Fijian rugby union and was intended to be a stepping stone for local players into international rugby union...
, Samoa's National Provincial Championship
National Provincial Championship
The National Provincial Championship, or NPC, is the major domestic rugby competition in New Zealand. The NPC has seen many alterations to its format and brand. Since 2006 the National Championship has been split into 2 competitions, the ITM Cup and the Heartland Championship...
and Tonga's Provincial Championship and provided the coaches of the three national teams with a competitive player development pathway just ahead of the IRB Pacific Nations Cup 2008.
Upolu Samoa
Upolu Samoa
Upolu Samoa is a rugby union team controlled by the Samoa Rugby Union. It is one of the two Samoa rugby union teams participating in the Pacific Rugby Cup, the other being Savaii Samoa...
began its title defence away to 2007 beaten finalists Tau'uta Reds
Tau'uta Reds
Tau'uta Reds is one of the two Tongan rugby union teams for the Pacific Rugby Cup; the other team being Tautahi Gold.-Name:Tau’uta Reds is the name of Tonga's land warriors which mainly fought the war that united Tonga as one Kingdom...
in Nuku'alofa on April 19, while Fiji Warriors
Fiji Warriors
The Fiji Warriors are a Fijian rugby union team.They are one of the two Fijian teams that take part in the Pacific Rugby Cup competition, the other being the Fiji Barbarians...
faced Tautahi Gold
Tautahi Gold
Tautahi Gold is one of thetwo Tongan rugby union teams for the Pacific Rugby Cup; the other team being Tau'uta Reds.The home of the Tautahi Gold is the combination of Ha'apai, 'Eua and half of Tongatapu Town District...
in Lautoka and 2006 champions Savai'i Samoa played Fiji Barbarians
Fiji Barbarians
The Fiji Barbarians are a Fijian rugby union team.They are one of the two Fijian teams that take part in the Pacific Rugby Cup competition, the other being the Fiji Warriors...
in Apia. Four further rounds followed on consecutive weekends before the top two ranked teams contested the Grand Final on May 24.
Full Schedule
Round One----
Round Two
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Round Three
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Round Four
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Round Five
----
Final
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Table
| Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | For | Against | Point Difference | Bonus Points | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upolu Samoa Upolu Samoa Upolu Samoa is a rugby union team controlled by the Samoa Rugby Union. It is one of the two Samoa rugby union teams participating in the Pacific Rugby Cup, the other being Savaii Samoa... |
5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 90 | 49 | 1 | 17 | |
| Tautahi Gold Tautahi Gold Tautahi Gold is one of thetwo Tongan rugby union teams for the Pacific Rugby Cup; the other team being Tau'uta Reds.The home of the Tautahi Gold is the combination of Ha'apai, 'Eua and half of Tongatapu Town District... |
5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 97 | 75 | 1 | 13 | |
| Savaii Samoa Savaii Samoa Savaii Samoa is one of the Samoa rugby union two teams for the Pacific Rugby Cup. The other Samoan team is Upolu Samoa. Savaii Samoa and Upolu Samoa are selected from all tournaments that took place in Samoa... |
5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 81 | 81 | 0 | 1 | 13 |
| Fiji Barbarians Fiji Barbarians The Fiji Barbarians are a Fijian rugby union team.They are one of the two Fijian teams that take part in the Pacific Rugby Cup competition, the other being the Fiji Warriors... |
5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 72 | 90 | |||
| 2 | 10 | ||||||||
| Tau'uta Reds Tau'uta Reds Tau'uta Reds is one of the two Tongan rugby union teams for the Pacific Rugby Cup; the other team being Tautahi Gold.-Name:Tau’uta Reds is the name of Tonga's land warriors which mainly fought the war that united Tonga as one Kingdom... |
5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 84 | 95 | |||
| 1 | 9 | ||||||||
| Fiji Warriors Fiji Warriors The Fiji Warriors are a Fijian rugby union team.They are one of the two Fijian teams that take part in the Pacific Rugby Cup competition, the other being the Fiji Barbarians... |
5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 70 | 104 | |||
| 3 | 7 |