2023 Rugby Europe Championship

Last updated
2023 Rugby Europe Championship
Date4 February – 19 March 2023
Countries
Tournament statistics
Champions Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia (15th title)
Antim Cup Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia (16th title)
Matches played20
Attendance60,619 (3,031 per match)
Tries scored149 (7.45 per match)
Top point scorer(s) Flag of the Netherlands.svg David Weersma (52 points)
Top try scorer(s) Flag of Georgia.svg Aka Tabutsadze (8 tries)
Player of the tournament Flag of Portugal.svg Nuno Sousa Guedes
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The 2023 Rugby Europe Championship was the seventh Rugby Europe Championship, the annual rugby union for the top European national teams outside the Six Nations Championship, and the 53rd edition of the competition (including all its previous incarnations as the FIRA Tournament, Rugby Union European Cup, FIRA Nations Cup, FIRA Trophy and European Nations Cup).

Contents

Eight teams took part in the 2023 Championship, up from six in previous tournaments, due to a reorganisation of the various flights of European international competition. The Championship was contested by Belgium, Georgia, Germany, Poland, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania and Spain.

Russia, who competed in the 2022 Championship were relegated as a result of suspension due to their country's 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. The remaining five teams (Georgia, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, and Spain) were joined by the top three teams from the 2021–22 Rugby Europe Trophy, which Belgium won.

Georgia entered the tournament as defending champions. They topped the table in the 2022 tournament, claiming their 14th title. The serpentine system was applied to allocate each team to their respective groups. [1] Each team played a total of five games (three round robin group matches to determine the team's path and two play-off matches). [1] Seeding (for a group) and relegation are calculated over a two-year cycle, as is the promotion from the Trophy competition. [1]

Participants

NationStadiumHead coachCaptain
Home stadiumCapacityLocation
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium Stade Nelson Mandela2,100 Brussels Flag of England.svg Mike Ford Jens Torfs
Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia Avchala Stadium3,500 Tbilisi Flag of Georgia.svg Levan Maisashvili Merab Sharikadze
Flag of Germany.svg  Germany Fritz-Grunebaum-Sportpark 5,000 Heidelberg Flag of Germany.svg Mark Kuhlmann Jörn Schröder
Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands NRCA Stadium 7,000 Amsterdam Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg Lyn Jones Hugo Langelaan
Flag of Poland.svg  Poland Narodowy Stadion Rugby 2,425 Gdynia Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg Christian HittPiotr Zeszutek
Flag of Portugal.svg  Portugal Estádio Nacional
Estádio do Restelo 		37,593
19,856		 Oeiras
Lisbon 		Flag of France.svg Patrice Lagisquet Tomás Appleton
Flag of Romania.svg  Romania Stadionul Arcul de Triumf 8,207 Bucharest Flag of Romania.svg Eugen Apjok Mihai Macovei
Flag of Spain.svg  Spain Estadio El Malecón
Estadio Nacional Complutense
Estadio Nuevo Vivero 		6,007
12,400
14,898		 Torrelavega
Madrid
Badajoz 		Flag of Spain.svg Santiago Santos Jon Zabala

Tables and Fixtures

Pool A

Advances to the Grand Finals Semi-Finals
Advances to the Ranking Finals Semi-Finals
Pos.TeamGamesPointsTriesTBPLBPTable
points
PlayedWonDrawnLostForAgainstDiffForAgainstDiff
1Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia 330015623+133243+213015
2Flag of Spain.svg  Spain 32016375-12810-2109
3Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands 31026197-36612-6004
4Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 300355140-85619-13011
Source - [2]
Points were awarded to the teams as follows:
Win – 4 points | Draw – 2 points | At least 3 more tries than opponent – 1 point | Loss within 7 points – 1 point

Week 1

5 February 2023
13:00 GET (UTC+4)
(1 TBP) Georgia  Flag of Georgia.svg75–12Flag of Germany.svg  Germany
Try: Lashkhi 4' c
Tabutsadze (3) 9' c, 23' c, 32' c
Mikautadze 36' c
Jalaghonia 40' c
Tsutskiridze (3) 53' c, 71' m, 80' c
Alania 58' c
Matkava 67' c
Con: Matkava (10/11) 5', 10', 24', 33', 37', 40+1', 54', 59', 68', 80'		 Report Try: Lammers 48' m
Stella 63' c
Con: Stella (1/2) 64'
Achvala Stadium, Tbilisi
Attendance: 2,960
Referee: Cristian Şerban (Romania)
5 February 2023
12:45 CET (UTC+1)
Spain  Flag of Spain.svg28–20Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands
Try: Ferrer 4' c
Ramiro 40' c
Foulds 44' m
Con: Vinuesa (2/3) 23', 41'
Pen: Vinuesa (3/3) 13', 32', 61'		 Report Try: Van Dijk 50' c
Raymond 76' c
Con: Weersma (2/2) 51', 77'
Pen: Fortuin (1/1) 13'
Weersma (1/1) 27'
Estadio Nacional Complutense, Madrid
Attendance: 4,500
Referee: Paulo Duarte (Portugal)

Week 2

11 February 2023
13:15 CET (UTC+1)
Netherlands  Flag of the Netherlands.svg8–40Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia (1 TBP)
Try: Bloemen 62' m
Pen: Weersma (1/1) 14'		 Report Try: Niniashvili 10' c
Chachanidze 19' m
Chkoidze (2) 44' c, 52' c
Gachechiladze (2) 67' c, 75' c
Con: Abzhandadze (3/4) 11', 44', 53'
Matkava (2/2) 68', 76
NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam
Attendance: 2,500
Referee: Ludovic Cayre (France)
12 February 2023
14:30 CET (UTC+1)
Germany  Flag of Germany.svg14–32Flag of Spain.svg  Spain (1 TBP)
Try: Paine 24' m
Con: Stella (0/1)
Pen: Stella (3/3) 20', 40', 65'		 Report Try: Bell 8' c, 12' c
del Hoyo 22' m
Polkowska 67' m
Iriberri 80' m
Con: Guemes (2/5) 8', 12'
Pen: Guemes (1/1) 59'
Fritz-Grunebaum-Sportpark, Heidelberg
Attendance: 2,500
Referee: Clara Munarini (Italy)

Week 3

18 February 2023
13:15 CET (UTC+1)
(1 LBP) Germany  Flag of Germany.svg29–33Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands
Try: Lammers 18' m
Paine 34' c
Wolf 52' m
Con: Stella (1/3) 35'
Pen: Stella (4/4) 24', 60', 68', 70'		 Report Try: Weersma 11' c
van Dijk 27' c
Penalty try 48'
Con: Weersma (2/2) 12', 28'
Pen: Weersma (4/4) 3', 7', 32', 40'
Fortuin (0/1)
Stadion Pichterich, Neckarsulm
Attendance: 1,350
Referee: Alexandru Ionescu (Romania)
18 February 2023
19:00 CET (UTC+1)
Spain  Flag of Spain.svg3–41Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia (1 TBP)
Pen: Vinuesa (1/1) 7' Report Try: Tabutsadze (2) 4' m, 8' m
Gigashvili 25' m
Abzhandadze 38' c
Sharikadze 48' c
Todua 65' m
Niniashvili 68' c
Con: Abzhandadze (2/5) 39', 49'
Matkava (1/2) 69'
Estadio El Malecón, Torrelavega
Attendance: 4,500
Referee: Eoghan Cross (Ireland)

Pool B

Advances to the Grand Finals Semi-Finals
Advances to the Ranking Finals Semi-Finals
Pos.TeamGamesPointsTriesTBPLBPTable
points
PlayedWonDrawnLostForAgainstDiffForAgainstDiff
1Flag of Portugal.svg  Portugal 330015740+117244+203015
2Flag of Romania.svg  Romania 320114370+73219+122010
3Flag of Poland.svg  Poland 310251147-96524-19004
4Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 300337131-94518-13011
Source - [2]
Points were awarded to the teams as follows:
Win – 4 points | Draw – 2 points | At least 3 more tries than opponent – 1 point | Loss within 7 points – 1 point

Week 1

4 February 2023
14:00 EET (UTC+2)
(1 TBP) Romania  Flag of Romania.svg67–27Flag of Poland.svg  Poland
Try: Simionescu 1' m
Chirică (2) 5' c, 17' c
Butnariu 14' m
Gajion 27' c
Gontineac (2) 32' c, 53' c
Vaovasa 42' c
Macovei 45' m
Irimescu 63' m
Penalty try 71' m
Con: Septar (1/2) 54'
Popoaia (5/7) 6', 18', 28', 33', 44'
Melinte (0/2)		 Report Try: Hudson-Kowalewicz 20' c
Fidler 52' c
Pozniak 78' c
Con: Banaszek (2/2) 21', 53'
Piotrowicz (1/1) 79'
Pen: Banaszek (2/2) 39', 61'
Arcul de Triumph, Bucharest
Attendance: 2,136
Referee: Saba Abulashvili (Georgia)
4 February 2023
19:00 WET (UTC+0)
(1 TBP) Portugal  Flag of Portugal.svg54–17Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium
Try: V. Pinto 5' c
Marta 10' c
Martins 15' c
Lima 20' m
Belo 45' c
Sousa Guedes 48' c
Lucas 60' c
Campergue 62' c
Con: Sousa Guedes (7/8) 6', 11', 21', 46', 49', 61', 63'		 Report Try: Cornez 37' c
Pazgrat 69' c
Con: Remue (2/2) 38', 70'
Pen: Remue (1/1) 31'
Estádio Nacional, Oeiras
Attendance: 3,723
Referee: Hollie Davidson (Scotland)

Week 2

11 February 2023
11:45 CET (UTC+1)
Poland  Flag of Poland.svg3–65Flag of Portugal.svg  Portugal (1 TBP)
Pen: Piotrowicz (1/1) 10' Report Try: Marques 2' c
Marta (4) 13' m, 41' m, 46' c, 80' c
Pinto (3) 19' c, 67' m, 71' m
Portela 29' m
Tadjer 39' m
Lima 48' c
Con: Marques (4/4) 2', 19', 47', 48'
Portela (1/1) 80'
Narodowy Stadion Rugby, Gdynia
Attendance: 2,000
Referee: Andrew Cole (Ireland)
11 February 2023
18:30 CET (UTC+1)
Belgium  Flag of Belgium (civil).svg5–56Flag of Romania.svg  Romania (1 TBP)
Try: Godsmark 37' m Report Try: Penalty try 7'
Gontineac (3) 13' c, 43' c, 47' c
Savin 33' c
Cojocaru 55' c
Chirică 61' c
Tomane 80' c
Con: Melinte (7/7) 15', 34', 44', 47', 56', 63', 80'
Stade Nelson Mandela, Brussels
Attendance: 2,100
Referee: Mike English (Wales)

Week 3

18 February 2023
21:15 CET (UTC+1)
Poland  Flag of Poland.svg21–15Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium (1 LBP)
Try: Szwagrzak 9' m
Zeszutek 49' c
Con: Piotrowicz (1/2) 50'
Pen: Piotrowicz (3/3) 4', 58', 79'		 Report Try: Cornez 74' m
Andre 80' c
Con: Remue (1/2) 80'
Pen: Williams (1/1) 12'
Narodowy Stadion, Gdynia
Attendance: 2,000
Referee: Inigo Atorrasagasti (Spain)
19 February 2023
15:00 WET (UTC+0)
(1 TBP) Portugal  Flag of Portugal.svg38–20Flag of Romania.svg  Romania
Try: Bettencourt (2) 5' c, 12' c
Madeira 51' c
Lucas 59' c
Diniz 79' c
Con: Sousa Guedes (5/5) 6', 13', 52', 59', 80'
Pen: Sousa Guedes (1/1) 15'		 Report Try: Gontineac 1' c
Chirică 64' c
Con: Popoaia (1/1) 2'
Melinte (1/1) 64'
Pen: Popoaia (2/2) 9', 45'
Estádio do Restelo, Lisbon
Attendance: 4,250
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (Georgia)

Ranking finals

 
Semi-finals Fifth-place Final
 
      
 
4 March – NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam
 
 
Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands 31
 
19 March – NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam
 
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 19
 
Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands 50
 
5 March – Narodowy Stadion, Gdynia
 
Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 28
 
Flag of Poland.svg  Poland 18
 
 
Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 23
 
 Seventh-place Final
 
 
19 March – NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam
 
 
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 18
 
 
Flag of Poland.svg  Poland 17

Semi-finals

4 March 2023
12:15 CET (UTC+1)
Netherlands  Flag of the Netherlands.svg31–19Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium
Try: Bennie-Coulson (3) 7' c, 43' c, 73' c
Raymond 39' c
Con: Weersma (4/4) 8', 40', 44', 74'
Pen: Weersma (1/1) 80'		 Report Try: Remue 35' c
Mortier 52' m
Baudry 59' c
Con: Remue (2/3) 36', 60'
NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam
Attendance: 1,250
Referee: Michael Todd (Scotland)
5 March 2023
20:00 CET (UTC+1)
Poland  Flag of Poland.svg18–23Flag of Germany.svg  Germany
Try: Halaifuana 14' c
Wójtowicz 76' m
Con: Piotrowicz (1/2) 16'
Pen: Piotrowicz (2/2) 43', 49'		 Report Try: Wolf 25' c
Rodwell 66' c
Con: Stella (2/2) 26', 67'
Pen: Stella (3/6) 3', 57', 62'
Narodowy Stadion, Gdynia
Attendance: 1,200
Referee: Gert Visser (Netherlands)

Seventh-place final

19 March 2023
12:30 CET (UTC+1)
Belgium  Flag of Belgium (civil).svg18–17Flag of Poland.svg  Poland
Try: Cornez 1' m
Remue 63' c
Con: Remue (1/2) 64'
Pen: Remue (2/2) 10', 28'		 Report Try: Zeszutek 5' c
Taufui Halaifuana 78' c
Con: Piotrowicz (2/2) 6', 79'
Pen: Piotrowicz (0/2)
Szczepański (1/1) 25'
NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam
Attendance: 2,000
Referee: Cristian Şerban (Romania)

Fifth-place final

19 March 2023
15:00 CET (UTC+1)
Netherlands  Flag of the Netherlands.svg50–28Flag of Germany.svg  Germany
Try: van der Avoird 1' c
du Plessis 5' c
Langelaan 14' c
Bennie-Coulson (2) 35' c, 48' m
Raymond 56' c
Darlington (2) 69' m, 79' m
Con: Weersma (5/7) 1', 6', 15', 36', 57'
Darlington (0/1)
Pen: Weersma (0/1)		 Report Try: Rinklin 41' c
L. Wolf 58' c
Penalty try 63'
Lammers 72' c
Con: Stella (3/3) 42', 59', 72'
NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam
Attendance: 2,750
Referee: Shota Tevzadze (Georgia)

Grand finals

 
 Semi-finals Cup Final
 
      
 
5 March – Achvala Stadium, Tbilisi
 
 
Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia 31
 
19 March – Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz
 
Flag of Romania.svg  Romania 7
 
Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia 38
 
4 March – Estádio do Restelo, Lisbon
 
Flag of Portugal.svg  Portugal 11
 
Flag of Portugal.svg  Portugal 27
 
 
Flag of Spain.svg  Spain 10
 
 Bronze Final
 
 
19 March – Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz
 
 
Flag of Romania.svg  Romania 31
 
 
Flag of Spain.svg  Spain 25

Semi-finals

4 March 2023
17:00 WET (UTC+0)
Portugal  Flag of Portugal.svg27–10Flag of Spain.svg  Spain
Try: Marta 28' c
Diniz 68' c
Marques 71' c
Con: Marques (3/3) 29', 69', 72'
Pen: Marques (2/3) 52', 55'		 Report Try: Peters 18' c
Con: Vinuesa (1/1) 19'
Pen: Vinuesa (1/2) 2'
Estádio do Restelo, Lisbon
Attendance: 5,000
Referee: Thomas Charabas (France)
5 March 2023
16:00 GET (UTC+4)
Georgia  Flag of Georgia.svg31–7Flag of Romania.svg  Romania
Try: Sharikadze 10' c
Todua 34' c
Penalty try 54'
Tabutsadze 80' c
Con: Abzhandadze (2/2) 11', 35'
Matkava (1/1) 80'
Pen: Abzhandadze (1/1) 2'		 Report Try: Capatina 59' c
Con: Melinte (1/1) 60'
Achvala Stadium, Tbilisi
Attendance: 2,600
Referee: Federico Vedovelli (Italy)

Bronze Final

19 March 2023
17:15 CET (UTC+1)
Romania  Flag of Romania.svg31–25Flag of Spain.svg  Spain
Try: Septar 40' m
Chirica 42' c
Pop 49' m
Rupanu 52' m
Con: Popoaia (1/4) 43'
Pen: Popoaia (1/1) 36'
Popa (2/2) 74', 80'		 Report Try: Dominguez Gatell 8' c
Ferrer (2) 54' c, 69' m
Con: Vinuesa Garcia (2/2) 9', 55'
Guemes (0/1)
Pen: Vinuesa Garcia (2/2) 20', 47'
Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz
Attendance: 5,300
Referee: Chris Busby (Ireland)

Cup Final

19 March 2023
20:00 CET (UTC+1)
Georgia  Flag of Georgia.svg38–11Flag of Portugal.svg  Portugal
Try: Tabutsadze 14', 25' c
Mamukashvili 43' c
Papidze 62' c
Tapladze 68' c
Chkoidze 76' c
Con: Abzhandadze (2/4) 15', 63'
Matkava (2/2) 69', 77'		 Report Try: Appleton 7' c
Pen: Bento 52', 55'
Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz
Attendance: 6,000
Referee: Ludovic Cayre (France)

Final standings

Pos.TeamPoints
1Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia 10
2Flag of Portugal.svg  Portugal 8
3Flag of Romania.svg  Romania 6
4Flag of Spain.svg  Spain 5
5Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands 4
6Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 3
7Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 2
8Flag of Poland.svg  Poland 1

Team of the Tournament

On 6 April 2023 Rugby Europe published its Team of the Tournament [3]
Nuno Sousa Guedes was voted the player of the tournament by the fans. [4]

International broadcasters

CountryBroadcaster [5] Summary
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium — Rugby Europe (registration required)
Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia Rugby TV
Imedi TV 		Georgia games shown live via Rugby TV and Imedi TV. Also Georgia games are streamed and free on Rugby TV Facebook page
Flag of Germany.svg  Germany — Rugby Europe (registration required)
Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands Ziggo Selected games live on Ziggo Sport
Flag of Poland.svg  Poland TVP Sport Poland's home games shown live
Flag of Portugal.svg  Portugal Sport TV Portugal games shown live
Flag of Romania.svg  Romania — Rugby Europe (registration required)
Flag of Spain.svg  Spain Teledeporte Spain games shown live via Teledeporte
Flag of France.svg  France RugbyZone Archived 2022-02-01 at the Wayback Machine All games available through streaming via RugbyZone Archived 2022-02-01 at the Wayback Machine
North America FloRugby All games available through streaming via FloSports
Rest of the World Rugby Europe All games available through streaming via Rugby Europe (registration required). Some games are streamed and free on Rugby Europe Youtube channel

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "New Format for Rugby Europe Championship". Rugby Europe. 2023. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  2. 1 2 "2023 Rugby Europe Championship Standings".
  3. ↑ "Team of the Men's Championship 2023".
  4. ↑ "Vote - Player of the Championship REC 23".
  5. ↑ "Rugby Europe Championship 2023 - Preview".
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