Brussels Barbarians
Encyclopedia
The Brussels Barbarians Rugby Football Club (also known as the Babas) are a Rugby Union
club in Belgium. The club consists of two men's teams and one women's team.
Brussels Barbarians are one of two expatriate rugby clubs in Belgium
. The club was formed in 1968. The men play competitively in matches every Sunday afternoon between September and May in the Belgian National 3rd Division. The 2nd men's team play their rugby in the Flander's Regional 2nd Division. The ladies play every Saturday in the Belgian National Second Division. Matches are played throughout Belgium.
Teams play at their home ground, named the Elephant Pitch, in Tervuren, a suburb of Brussels. The home off the pitch is "The Pub", located in the Schuman area of Brussels
. The Babas are a multi-national, multicultural club, with members from over 30 nationalities turning out in the last 2 seasons.
The Babas are a partner club of Saracens
.
Over the next few years things developed rapidly. In 1970, the second XV was born, by 1972 the Belgian National side had been beaten and the Belgian Cup won.
In 1973, the third XV was launched and with a steadily improving fixture list they were playing with credit such sides as Coventry
, Blackheath
, Newbridge
and Public School Wanderers.
In 1974 the Barbarians won the Belgian Cup for the second time, and in May 1978 they went on a successful seven-match tour of the USA
, winning all their games.
Since 1978 the club has remained one of the most active and successful expatriate clubs in Europe
. During this latter period the standard of Belgian Rugby and the number of clubs has increased significantly.
In 1982 they won the Belgian Cup for the third time and finished off with a successful tour to Canada.
In 1980 the Babas entered the Belgian League division five. During the following years they worked their way through the divisions gaining promotion in successive seasons and took the championship of the Premier Division at their first attempt in 1985.
At the end of that season the club celebrated with their third major tour, this time to Colorado
, USA. Whilst since then they have failed to repeat their championship win, they have had successful tours to Spain
, Czechoslovakia
, Boston
, Estonia
and Majorca.
The club has also organised International charity rugby matches in 1986,1987, 1990 and 1991. These brought to Belgium many of the most famous rugby players of the 1970s and early 1980s from the Five Nations to play against a Belgian Select side, which at the same time raised over 2.5 million Francs
for various deserving charities. The last occasion in 1991 was for the support of the Belgian wife and children of Brussels British's captain Leslie Joyce following his death in a car crash a few months earlier.
Whilst the majority of players come from Great Britain
and Ireland
, there are nearly always members from Australia
, New Zealand
, South Africa
, USA plus other neighbouring European countries. At one point, all three sons of the ambassador of Western Samoa played for the club. The eldest of these, Vince Fepuleia, went on to play for Western Samoa
against Wales
at Cardiff Arms Park
in 1988.
During the mid 1980s the Barbarians fielded a first XV with players from 11 different countries. In 2003, the Barbarians had no fewer than 22 nations represented within its ranks - a far cry from its origins as a team of British ex-patriates - including players from countries without a strong Rugby tradition. Local players are also welcome, and one former player, Freddy Thielemans, served as Mayor of Brussels in 1994.
The men's coach is Arnaud Coulonnier supported by Forward's coach Peter Paul Van Der Zouwe. The men's 1st XV and Club Captain is shared between Simone Bosseli and Nicolas Becuwe.
The current men's squad includes players from Ireland, Northern Ireland, England, Wales, Scotland, Italy, New Zealand, Russia, Canada, Belgium, Peru, Austria, Argentina, Portugal, Holland, France, The United States, Australia, Zimbabwe,South Africa, Kenya, Morocco, Denmark and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
For the first time in the history of the club, the ladies team went home with the Belgian championship after a victory against Dendermonde. After playing 20 extra minutes of regulation time, the game was decided by penalty kicks, with the barbarians coming out on top. In addition to the championship win, the ladies also walked away with the Belgian cup and the Flemish cup, a triple crown. In addition to these successes seven of the ladies were selected to play for the Belgian national squad.
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 in Belgium. The club consists of two men's teams and one women's team.
Brussels Barbarians are one of two expatriate rugby clubs in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. The club was formed in 1968. The men play competitively in matches every Sunday afternoon between September and May in the Belgian National 3rd Division. The 2nd men's team play their rugby in the Flander's Regional 2nd Division. The ladies play every Saturday in the Belgian National Second Division. Matches are played throughout Belgium.
Teams play at their home ground, named the Elephant Pitch, in Tervuren, a suburb of Brussels. The home off the pitch is "The Pub", located in the Schuman area of Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
. The Babas are a multi-national, multicultural club, with members from over 30 nationalities turning out in the last 2 seasons.
The Babas are a partner club of Saracens
Saracens F.C.
Saracens are a professional rugby union team based in St. Albans, England – although they play their home games at Vicarage Road, in Watford. They are currently members of the Aviva Premiership, the top level of domestic rugby union in England...
.
History
In September 1968 a group of expatriate British rugby players decided to form a club in order to continue playing the sport in the manner in which they were accustomed back home, especially the social aspects.Over the next few years things developed rapidly. In 1970, the second XV was born, by 1972 the Belgian National side had been beaten and the Belgian Cup won.
In 1973, the third XV was launched and with a steadily improving fixture list they were playing with credit such sides as Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
, Blackheath
Blackheath R.C.
Blackheath Football Club is a rugby football club based in Blackheath in south-east London, now playing at the Rectory Field . It was founded in 1858 and is the oldest open rugby club in the world...
, Newbridge
Newbridge
-Ireland:*Newbridge, County Kildare — sometimes known by its Irish name, Droichead Nua*Newbridge, County Galway*Newbridge, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland-United Kingdom:*Newbridge, Bath, electoral ward...
and Public School Wanderers.
In 1974 the Barbarians won the Belgian Cup for the second time, and in May 1978 they went on a successful seven-match tour of the USA
Rugby union in the United States
Rugby union in the United States is a growing national sport. It is played at the youth, high school, club, semi-professional, and international levels. The United States is a Tier 2 rugby nation, as defined by the International Rugby Board, which means that it is not currently competitive at the...
, winning all their games.
Since 1978 the club has remained one of the most active and successful expatriate clubs in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. During this latter period the standard of Belgian Rugby and the number of clubs has increased significantly.
In 1982 they won the Belgian Cup for the third time and finished off with a successful tour to Canada.
In 1980 the Babas entered the Belgian League division five. During the following years they worked their way through the divisions gaining promotion in successive seasons and took the championship of the Premier Division at their first attempt in 1985.
At the end of that season the club celebrated with their third major tour, this time to Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, USA. Whilst since then they have failed to repeat their championship win, they have had successful tours to Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
, Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
and Majorca.
The club has also organised International charity rugby matches in 1986,1987, 1990 and 1991. These brought to Belgium many of the most famous rugby players of the 1970s and early 1980s from the Five Nations to play against a Belgian Select side, which at the same time raised over 2.5 million Francs
Belgian franc
The franc was the currency of Belgium until 2002 when the euro was introduced into circulation. It was subdivided into centimes , 100 centiem or Centime .-History:...
for various deserving charities. The last occasion in 1991 was for the support of the Belgian wife and children of Brussels British's captain Leslie Joyce following his death in a car crash a few months earlier.
Whilst the majority of players come from Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, there are nearly always members from Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, USA plus other neighbouring European countries. At one point, all three sons of the ambassador of Western Samoa played for the club. The eldest of these, Vince Fepuleia, went on to play for Western Samoa
Samoa national rugby union team
The Manu Samoa is the men's representative side of the Samoa Rugby Union in both the 15's and the 7's for international competitions. The Samoa Rugby Union is owned by the affiliated rugby unions of Samoa. In Samoa, Manu Samoa is in honour of a famous Samoan warrior. From 1924 to 1997 Samoa was...
against Wales
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
at Cardiff Arms Park
Cardiff Arms Park
Cardiff Arms Park , also known as The Arms Park, is primarily known as a rugby union stadium, but it also has a bowling green, and is situated in the centre of Cardiff, Wales. The Arms Park was host to the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in 1958, and hosted four games in the 1991 Rugby World...
in 1988.
During the mid 1980s the Barbarians fielded a first XV with players from 11 different countries. In 2003, the Barbarians had no fewer than 22 nations represented within its ranks - a far cry from its origins as a team of British ex-patriates - including players from countries without a strong Rugby tradition. Local players are also welcome, and one former player, Freddy Thielemans, served as Mayor of Brussels in 1994.
Men's team
The men's 1st and 2nd team always play at home on the same weekend and away on the same weekend to maximize socializing and club spirit.The men's coach is Arnaud Coulonnier supported by Forward's coach Peter Paul Van Der Zouwe. The men's 1st XV and Club Captain is shared between Simone Bosseli and Nicolas Becuwe.
The current men's squad includes players from Ireland, Northern Ireland, England, Wales, Scotland, Italy, New Zealand, Russia, Canada, Belgium, Peru, Austria, Argentina, Portugal, Holland, France, The United States, Australia, Zimbabwe,South Africa, Kenya, Morocco, Denmark and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
Honours
- Belgian League Champions: 1985
- Belgian Cup Champions: 1972,74,82, finalist in 2005
- Dutch/Belgian ING Plate, finalist in 2005
Squad 2006/07
| Nationality | Player | Position |
|---|---|---|
| Paul Laffin Paul Laffin Paul Laffin is a former political research advisor in the European Parliament to a Conservative MEP and is now working in English local government. Laffin studied at Trinity College in Dublin, representing the University rugby team, before reading for his Masters in Environmental and Social policy... |
Prop | |
 Turks and Caicos Islands |
Sean O'Neill | Prop |
 Australia |
Jeff Irvine | Prop |
 Belgium |
Peter Verbist | Prop |
 United States |
Dave Becnel | Prop |
 Nepal |
Kunteel Barua | Prop |
 Canada |
Glenn Mallette | Prop |
 Hong Kong |
Ed Cutting | Prop |
 Kingdom of England |
Ed Thomas | Prop |
| Neale Richmond | Hooker | |
 Austria |
Mani Dehimi | Hooker |
 Denmark |
Henry Stafford | Hooker |
| Canada |
Johnathan Demaray | Hooker |
 New Zealand |
Matt Diedrich | Hooker |
| Ricky Johnston | Hooker | |
 Italy |
Daniele Nardi | Lock |
| New Zealand |
Stu Horne | Lock |
| Belgium |
Jimmy Parker Jimmy Parker Jimmy Parker is a former Belgian International rugby player who currently plays his trade for the Brussels Barbarians.He was captain of the Brussels Barbarians for the 1994-95 season.He is interviewed here... |
Lock |
| Simon McDermott | Lock | |
| Belgium |
Peter Bautmanns | Lock |
| United States |
Steve Meier | Lock |
 Early Modern France |
Benoit Dejean | Lock |
 Argentina |
Martin Gegenschatz | Lock |
 Peru |
Guillermo de las Casas | Lock |
 South Africa |
John MacLachlan | Lock |
| South Africa |
Jaco MacLachlan | Flanker |
| Belgium |
Oli Hockley | Flanker |
 Wales |
Ben Sisk | Flanker |
| Kingdom of England |
Anthony Bennett | Flanker |
 Portugal |
Nuno Campo | Flanker |
| Kingdom of England |
John Allen | Flanker |
| Kingdom of England |
Rowley Merricks | Flanker |
| United States |
Scott Mitchell | Flanker |
 Kingdom of Scotland |
Malcolm MacDowell | Number 8 |
| New Zealand |
Mat Hocken Mat Hocken Mat Hocken is a former New Zealand under 21 Rugby International player currently playing for the Brussels Barbarians. He won 2 Blues for Cambridge University before moving to Brussels to work in Public Affairs.... |
Number 8 |
| Kingdom of England |
James Atkins | Scrum Half |
| New Zealand |
Nick Beeby | Scrum Half |
 Morocco |
Johnathan LaFontaine | Scrum Half |
| Argentina |
Carlos Mandelosi | Scrum Half |
| South Africa |
Dewald Du Plooy | Outhalf |
| Kingdom of England |
Graeme Forbes | Outhalf |
| Belgium |
Peter Vanovertveld | Outhalf |
 Malaysia |
Andrew Battersby | Outhalf |
| Wales |
Joseff Williams | Centre |
| Kingdom of England |
Tommy Thackaray | Centre |
| Kingdom of Scotland |
John McGuffin | Centre |
| Early Modern France |
Frank Michel | Centre |
| Argentina |
Jorge Bulleraich | Centre |
| Kingdom of England |
Rich Pearce | Centre |
 Netherlands |
Tim Eestermans | Centre |
| Belgium |
Joel Liebl | Centre |
| Ronan Gallagher | Wing | |
 Kenya |
Abel Okal | Wing |
 Zimbabwe |
Charlie Nyangaga | Wing |
| Italy |
Simone Bosseli | Wing |
| Kingdom of England |
Nick Farnsworth | Wing |
| Wales |
Simon Webb | Wing |
| Early Modern France |
Bertrand Lechvallier | Wing |
| Kingdom of England |
Dave Keating | Wing |
 Sweden |
Olle Svensson | Wing |
| Early Modern France |
Michel Derville | Wing |
| South Africa |
Alister Smuts | Fullback |
| Kingdom of England |
Jim Allen | Fullback |
| Vincent McGovern | Fullback | |
| Kingdom of England |
Martin Donaghy | Fullback |
| Early Modern France |
Antoine Larpin | Fullback |
| Kingdom of England |
Stuart Brady | Coach |
| Wales |
Kevin Weaver | Manager |
| Kingdom of England |
Anthony Gates | Assistant Manager |
Schedule 2006/07
| Date | Home | Away | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17/09/2006 | BBRFC | Soignes | 12-12 | L |
| 1/10/2006 | Coq Musan | BBRFC | 19-22 | W |
| 8/10/2006 | BBRFC | Vise | 32-20 | W |
| 15/10/2006 | ROC | BBRFC | 21-12 | L |
| 29/10/2006 | Dendermonde | BBRFC | Postponed | |
| 26/11/2006 | BBRFC | ASUB | 20-27 | L |
| 3/12/2006 | Boitsfort | BBRFC | 37-6 | L |
| 17/12/2006 | Soignes | BBRFC | 11-25 | W |
| 7/01/2006 | Dendermonde | BBRFC | 40-5 | L |
| 28/01/2006 | BBRFC | Coq Musan | 0-9 | L |
| 11/02/2006 | Vise | BBRFC | 35-11 | L |
| 18/02/2006 | BBRFC | ROC | 27-25 | W |
| 4/03/2006 | BBRFC | Dendermonde | 32-20 | L |
| 11/03/2006 | ASUB | BBRFC | 40-17 | L |
| 29/04/2006 | BBRFC | Boitsfort | 5-0 | L |
Women's team
The Lady Barbarians had a successful 2005-2006 season winning the Belgian Championship.For the first time in the history of the club, the ladies team went home with the Belgian championship after a victory against Dendermonde. After playing 20 extra minutes of regulation time, the game was decided by penalty kicks, with the barbarians coming out on top. In addition to the championship win, the ladies also walked away with the Belgian cup and the Flemish cup, a triple crown. In addition to these successes seven of the ladies were selected to play for the Belgian national squad.