Rugby union in Thailand is a significant sport. They are currently ranked 60th, with 16,121 registered players.
retrieved 5 July 2009
The governing body is the
Thai Rugby Union, which was founded in 1937, and affiliated to the IRFB in 1989.
[Bath, Richard (ed.) ''The Complete Book of Rugby'' (Seven Oaks Ltd, 1997 ) p75][Thai Rugby Union]
retrieved 5 July 2009
History
Thai rugby goes back to the early twentieth century.[
Unlike most other Asian countries, Thailand does not have a history of ]European colonialism
The phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time. Ancient and medieval colonialism was practiced by various civilizations such as the Phoenicians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Han Chinese, and Ar ...
, and was one of the few to maintain its neutrality. Thus Thai rugby is not a legacy of colonialism.
Some of the Thai middle class took up the sport in the 1920s, along with ex-patriates from French and English speaking countries.[
The Second World War interrupted the development of the sport, but its adoption by the Thai military and police ensured its survival.][
Thai rugby still has a strong ex-pat connection; one of the most famous players for Thailand is best known for being ]Will Carling
William David Charles Carling (born 12 December 1965) is an English former rugby union player. He was England's youngest captain, aged 22, and won 72 caps from 1988 to 1996, captaining England 59 times. Under his captaincy, England won Five N ...
's brother.[ The ]Southerners Sports Club (Bangkok)
The Southerners Sports Club is an informal, non-commercial Bangkok-based club of expats and Thais. The Southerners field teams in Bangkok's local rugby, netball, touch rugby (men's, women's and mixed) and cricket competitions, and also tour to nei ...
, and the Old Bangkok Bangers Rugby Club are Thailand's main ex-pat rugby clubs, fielding sides in the local Thailand Rugby Union competition, and in local and international 7s and 10s tournaments.
There has been a resurgence of Rugby up North in Chiang Mai with the Chiang Mai All Stars, Chiang Mai Cobras, Chiang Mai University and Lanna Rugby Club all playing regular games and hosting tournaments. The Chiang Mai Rugby 11s played annually in November is fast becoming one of the regions popular tournament destinations.
There are now at least fifty clubs in Thailand.[
]
National team
Thailand has a national sevens team. The Scottish rugby commentator, Bill McLaren mentioned the Thais in a report on the 1989 Hong Kong Sevens
The Hong Kong Sevens ( zh, t=香港國際七人欖球賽, link=no) is a rugby sevens tournament held annually in Hong Kong on a weekend in late March or early April. Considered the premier tournament on the World Rugby Sevens Series competiti ...
, and noted that they supplied at least one referee for the tournament, Vengsakern Paerehitya of the Royal Thai Air Force
The Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) (; ) is the air force of the Kingdom of Thailand. Since its establishment in 1913 as one of the earliest air forces of Asia, the Royal Thai Air Force has engaged in numerous major and minor conflicts. During the ...
, who gained valuable experience by working with the other internationally renowned referees at the game.[McLaren, p 74]
International hosting
Thailand has hosted two international rugby tournaments -
* at the 1998 Asian Games
* at the 2007 Southeast Asian Games
See also
* Thailand national rugby union team
References
* Bath, Richard (ed.) ''The Complete Book of Rugby'' (Seven Oaks Ltd, 1997 )
* McLaren, Bill ''A Visit to Hong Kong'' in Starmer-Smith, Nigel & Robertson, Ian (eds) ''The Whitbread Rugby World '90'' (Lennard Books, 1989)
External links
IRB Thailand Page
Official union page
Rugby in Asia, Thailand page
Asian Rugby Football Union
The Southerners Sports Club
Old Bangkok Bangers Rugby Club
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rugby Union In Thailand