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Rhinos win 2011 Royal Angkor 10s Championship Cup In 2011 the Rhinos RFC returned to Cambodia to compete once again for the Royal ANZ Bank Angkor 10s Championship Cup. As in 2009 the Rhinos sent a strong playing squad to what is now one of Asia’s top 10s tournaments. Teams from Australia, the Middle East and Asia were in Phnom Penh for the 2011 tournament but Rhinos skipper Ron Rutland was confident the Rhinos would do well. ‘We were last here in 2009 when we won the cup without conceding a single point,’ commented Rutland. ‘This year, although the competition is much stronger than in 2009, we have prepared well and I feel we have a playing squad to challenge for top honours. But it was never going to be easy. Drawn in the same pool as the 2011 Manila 10s cup champions, C/S Larrikins, the Rhinos knew they would need to be on top form if they were to advance to the main cup competition. ‘The fact that our first match in this year’s tournament was against the C/S Larrikins really got the boys fired up,’ said Les Bird, team manager and Rhinos chairman. But it wasn’t long into the first game before the Rhinos showed why they are now South East Asian’s premier rugby touring club. By half time the Rhinos had run in three tries, without reply from the Larrikins. In the second half the Rhinos turned on the style and added five more tries to win the match 50-0. In the second pool games the opposition was TOT RFC, and once again the Rhinos piled on the points to notch up a second victory by the same margin as their first pool match, 50-0. Now through to the main knock-out phase of the cup competition the Rhinos knew it was not going to be easy. In the semi-final the Rhinos faced the defending Angkor cup champions the Saigon Geckos, who were never going to be a pushover. Soon after the match began the Rhinos scored the first try, but the Saigon team immediately replied with a try of their own. Some strong forward work, combined with a series of cleaver runs from the Rhinos backs, eventually saw the Rhinos take control, running out 34-5 winners. The Rhinos advanced into the cup final. Just as in 2009, the Rhinos 2011 cup final opponents were a very powerful Bangkok Southerners team. The 2009 cup final was a hard-fought encounter that ended in a very close 7-0 win to the Rhinos. The 2011 cup final also began at a ferocious pace which saw some great running rugby from both teams. After 10 minutes the final remained scoreless, but just before the halftime whistle a 12-phase move by the Rhinos resulted in the first try of match. In the second half the powerful, but mobile, Rhinos forwards took control of the match and provided their backs with the opportunity to run in a further three tries. The cup final ended in a 26-0 victory to the Rhinos. Rhinos RFC - Angkor Royal ANZ Bank 10s Cup Champions once again. Rhinos’ captain Ron Rutland commented, ‘That was a hard cup final. The Southerners are a quality team and the final score was not a true reflection of how close that game was. But I am very proud to have led the Rhinos to their second Angkor 10s championship cup victory.’ Club chairmen, Les Bird, added, ‘This tournament gets stronger every year, it was good to return and win the cup again. In our four matches today we scored 25 tries, and notched up a total of 160, which I believe is a tournament record. Well done to the all players and the support squad.’
Match Scores
C/S Larrikins 0-50 Rhinos RFC Rhinos 50-0 TOTS RFC Cup Semi Final Rhinos 34-5 Saigon Geckos Cup Final Rhinos 26 - 0 Bangkok Southerners Championship Playing Squad: Ron Rutland (captain) Jimmy Parfitt, James Kibble, Jethro Mickleburgh, Paul Douglas, Peter Tattersall, Rhys Prendergast, Richard Gallagher, Nigel Hobler, Will Hunt, Patrick McFarland, Michael Glancy, Clint Borle, Anthony Phillips, Matt Munn, Richard Rouse.
Team Manager: Les Bird |
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