Ali Baba to invest $100m to grow Rugby in China.

[USARugger]

Aren't they still refusing to bring in outside coaching? It's going to be a lot longer than 16 years before China makes any kind of splash if that's the case, sorry.

 

[Spieber]

Ok for some guys in the army to run around but core skills and muscles need to be developed earlier. Chinese parents will not allow their golden child to waste time playing sport. They have been trying to be good at football for many years and are on track again to miss out qualifying for WC.

 

[Quick Hands]

Aren't they still refusing to bring in outside coaching? It's going to be a lot longer than 16 years before China makes any kind of splash if that's the case, sorry.

Talking of splashes, they didn't mind bringing in outside swimming coaches.

 

[Quick Hands]

Ok for some guys in the army to run around but core skills and muscles need to be developed earlier. Chinese parents will not allow their golden child to waste time playing sport. They have been trying to be good at football for many years and are on track again to miss out qualifying for WC.

I wouldn't mind the core strength and muscle tone of these guys. They'll let their kids play sport if the government wants them too.

 

[Scrubber2050]

A business friend of mine has recently returned from China and because of his interest in rugby he was take to a army base where Chinese soldiers are trained.

He says the Chinese army has chosen rugby as their game over soccer as they believe it hardens up there troops. He said he believes within 16 years China will win the RWC he said they had 100 fields in one place.

China will be a huge rugby power and very quickly if their army has anything to do with it.

The US election is only days away.

Donald will make America great again.

Donald will have a plan in place to fuck the Chinese Army becoming a huge rugby power.

 

[USARugger]

Yeah, no.

 

[Dismal Pillock]

Donald will make America great again.

Donald will have a plan in place to fuck the Chinese Army becoming a huge rugby power.

Now we're talkin

 

[Scrubber2050]

Now we're talkin

Donald looks like he'd make a good THP

very negotiation skills

 

[Lindommer]

This might be an apocryphal tale, but.....

A Kiwi was talking to a senior Chinese official some years ago about the PLA's plans to take up rugby. The Chinese poohbah asked the Kiwi if New Zealand could supply rugby coaches so's the soldiers could learn the game. The Kiwi asked how many, the Chinese fella replied "4,000".

I remember this tale from the first telling. Read here: http://www.espn.com.au/rugby/story/_/id/15343760/chinese-army-passes-rugby

 

[wamberal]

Yeah,I heard that one, although the figure I heard was 1,000.



It does sound a bit unlikely, but who knows?

 

[Lindommer]

I personally look forward to the day we have our first Wallaby of Asian heritage.....

We mustn't forget Winston Ide, born of a Japanese father. Both Ide and Ramalli played two out of the three tests in the 1938 Bledisloe series, I can't work out which one of them played a test before the other.

After a bit more searching I've found out Ide and Ramalli both played in the Second and Third Tests. At this stage Ide can lay claim to be our first Asian Wallaby, only due to being filed in alphabetical order.

Sadly, Winston perished in WWII fighting the Japanese. Even more sadly he deserted New South Wales to finish his rugby career in Queensland. I vaguely recall a radio report on Winston's feats some years ago.

Read here: http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/union-news/heros-enemy-connections-20110423-1ds3s.html
and here: http://www.aru.com.au/wallabies/TheTeam/HistoricalWallabiesPlayerProfile.aspx?pid=727

 

[wamberal]

It is not impossible that there has already been a Wallaby with Asian heritage, given that we have had a long history of Chinese immigration.



As an example, Doug Anthony, the former Country Party Leader has Chinese ancestory. You would never know that by looking at him. Given the degree of discrimination that has existed against Asian immigration in this country it is certain that there are more of us with Asian blood than is recognised.



When you dig right down, we all all Africans, anyway!

 

[Jaghond]

I may get the dates slightly out of kilter - however I seem to recall watching a match played at the Shanghai Hairy Crabs home ground ( in Shanghai, naturally !) in the late 90's / very early 2000's between Gordon & Randwick - as part of an initiative called the Ansett Cup....( so that gives you a guide - Ansett were still in the air !!)

I think that Easts may have played Uni the year before ?

If memory serves (and it is definitely not to be trusted) - I believe that one M. Cheika may have even been playing for the Wicks...

They are still trying to work out who belted one D Knox in a ruck......players from both sides feigned innocence at the time - but I do recall him being very chatty as his face was being stitched up !

The link to this thread though, was that one of the earlier matches in the day was the Red Army rugby team playing someone else - and if I recall, they were big and fast, if somewhat lacking in the finer-skills department.

Would be interesting to find out if they have been playing somewhere in the intervening years since them - they certainly won't be short of players !

 

[Teh Other Dave]

I seem to recall that rugby has been a preferred sport of the PLA since the late 1990s.

 

[Spieber]

I wouldn't mind the core strength and muscle tone of these guys. They'll let their kids play sport if the government wants them too.

Indeed, but the government also supported the push into football to no avail. Hearts and minds.

 

[HighPlainsDrifter]

Forget Kidman Station ....China bid for the Force , sponsored by Crown ? Sweet irony .... and bring Hoppa in as a "skills Coach" although Chinese trade officials seemed to have worked those skills on our hapless political elite already .

 

[Jets]

The captain of the China rugby team played for Sunnybank in the late 90's early 2000's. Wouldn't be a bad option to develop more of their players for them to come out here.

 

[wamberal]

The captain of the China rugby team played for Sunnybank in the late 90's early 2000's. Wouldn't be a bad option to develop more of their players for them to come out here.

They'd learn a lot more across the Dtch.

 

[Jets]

But the standard here might be more attractive to them.

 

[wamberal]

You mean the rugby is a bit easier.