Cyprus national rugby union team

The Cyprus national rugby union team is nicknamed ‘’The Mighty Mouflons’’ after a kind of horned sheep which is also the republic's national animal. They have won 28 of their 30 games and hold the world record for the most consecutive international rugby union wins with 24, which was ended on 15 November 2014 as they lost to Latvia. They were controversially disqualified from the knock-out phase of the 2015 Rugby World Cup Qualifiers, as they did not meet the necessary membership criteria according to the International Rugby Board.[1]

Cyprus
UnionCyprus Rugby Federation
Nickname(s)The Mighty Mouflons
Emblem(s)Mouflon
Ground(s)Stelios Kyriakides Stadium, Paphos
PresidentConstantinos Constantinides
Coach(es)Andrew Binikos
Captain(s)Billy Cosma
Most capsGeorgios Agathokleous
Top scorerMarcus Holden (470)
Most triesGeorgios Agathokleous (30)
Team kit
Change kit
First international
 Cyprus 39 – 3 Greece 
(24 March 2007)
Largest win
 Bulgaria 3 – 94 Cyprus 
(28 May 2012)
Largest defeat
 Latvia 31 – 3 Cyprus 
(7 November 2015)
 Malta 31 – 3 Cyprus 
(29 October 2016)

History

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The first international game of the Cyprus national rugby union team took place on 24 March 2007 against Greece in Paphos. The Cypriot XV won the game by 39-3 in front of 2,500 fans.[3]

In October and November 2007, Cyprus beat Azerbaijan, Monaco and Slovakia to win the 2006–08 European Nations Cup Division 3D, in their first year on the international scene. However, they lost the play-off game for promotion to Division 3C for the 2008–10 European Nations Cup on 6 September 2008 against Israel by a score of 23-14. This was Cyprus' only loss in international rugby for 6 years.

The following season, Cyprus had another attempt to be promoted as they played Bosnia and Herzegovina, Azerbaijan and Monaco in a round-robin home-and-away basis. They won every game scoring a total of 187 points and conceding only 17. They gained automatic promotion to Division 3B, although, for the following season, the divisions had changed numbers, so instead of moving to Division 3B, they were in fact in Division 2D.

The 2010–12 European Nations Cup saw Cyprus play in Division 2D (the lowest level of the second division) against Bulgaria, Finland, Greece and Luxembourg. They won all their games for the second consecutive year increasing their win success to 15 and making it two consecutive seasons and nearly four years unbeaten. They scored 4 or more tries in each of their games during the 2010–2012 season, including an emphatic 94–3 win over Bulgaria, and were promoted to Division 2C for 2012–2014.

Their 2012–14 European Nations Cup Division 2B campaign kicked off in style with a 54–20 win over Austria. They followed that win with consecutive home and away wins against Slovenia, Bulgaria and Hungary and also a home win over Austria. On 16 March 2013 ahead of their match against Bulgaria, Cyprus were aware of a potential world record of 18 games unbeaten which would overtake the official record of 17 games originally held by both New Zealand (between 1965 and 1969 and again between 2013 and 2014), South Africa (between 1997 and 1998) and Lithuania (between 2006 and 2010). They won the match comfortably 79–10. A month later, Cyprus were informed that they would not be eligible to qualify for the 2015 Rugby World Cup and were disqualified by the International Rugby Board due to 'not meeting the necessary membership criteria'.

Cyprus played in Division 2B for the 2014–16 European Nations Cup, where they were grouped with Lithuania, Latvia, Andorra and Hungary.

Motto

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The Cyprus Rugby Federation has adopted as its motto the famous Spartan phrase:

Ἢ τὰν ἢ ἐπὶ τᾶς, translating as "either with this or upon this", an idiom that effectively means victory or death. The origin of the motto is ancient Sparta and "this" refers to the shield. Spartans killed in battle were carried home on the shield, while those returning alive and victorious from battle would still have it. A soldier fleeing the battle would have to drop the shield.

Home

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2013/14

Away

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2013/14

Records

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  • World record for most consecutive international rugby union wins (24), which was ended by a 39-20 loss to Latvia on 15 November 2014.[2][3]
  • World Record for most consecutive international rugby union wins by greater than a converted try (14).[4]
  • World Record for most consecutive international rugby union wins by scoring 4 or more tries (11).
  • Won 11 away games in a row.
  • Won their last 17 home games.
  • Won 10 consecutive games by 30+ points, which was ended by a 16-15 victory over Hungary.
  • World Record for largest win in début match (39–3 v Greece in March 2007).
  • Scored 1239 points and only conceded 296.
  • 26 of their 28 wins were won by more than a converted try.
  • Scored a try in every game they have played (30).

Home grounds

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Until March 2010, Cyprus did not have a National Stadium, due to the poor recognition of the government they did not supply a stadium. Cyprus' first international was played in Paphos at Kiniras Sports ground. Then a further game at the same ground in the ENC 3D tournament against Slovakia. They then moved to the British Army base playing their games at Happy Valley in Episkopi. Now the national stadium has been recognised as Pafiako Stadium which is situated in the centre of Paphos. It holds a capacity of 10,000.

Ground Record Recent Win Team Recent Draw Recent Loss
Pafiako Stadium, Paphos 77,8% 2018   Slovenia N/A 6 May 2017
Happy Valley, Episkopi 100% 2009   Slovakia N/A N/A
Kiniras Sports Ground, Paphos 100% 2007   Slovakia N/A N/A

International record

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Since their first match in 2007, Cyprus have lost only 15 matches out of Fifty. They recorded their first win over Malta on 23 November by 18 to 16 to celebrate their 50th International, which now gives them a 70% winning ratio.

Cyprus are not a full member of the International Rugby Board, so none of their international matches count towards the IRB World Rankings.

Date Home Score Away Venue Competition
24 March 2007 Cyprus   39 – 3   Greece Paphos Friendly
(First International)
29 October 2007 Cyprus   29 – 0   Azerbaijan Paphos 2006-08 ENC 3D
31 October 2007 Cyprus   19 – 10   Monaco Nicosia 2006-08 ENC 3D
3 November 2007 Cyprus   38 – 8   Slovakia Paphos 2006-08 ENC 3D
6 September 2008 Israel   23 – 14   Cyprus Netanya 2006-08 ENC 3C/3D play-off
29 November 2008 Azerbaijan   3 – 37   Cyprus Baku 2008-10 ENC 3D
6 December 2008 Cyprus   24 – 3   Monaco Episkopi 2008-10 ENC 3D
14 March 2009 Cyprus   33 – 7   Slovakia Episkopi 2008-10 ENC 3D
21 March 2009 Bosnia and Herzegovina   6 – 8   Cyprus Zenica 2008-10 ENC 3D
14 November 2009 Monaco   5 – 44   Cyprus Monaco 2008-10 ENC 3D
6 March 2010 Cyprus   59 – 0   Azerbaijan Paphos 2008-10 ENC 3D
27 March 2010 Cyprus   15 – 0   Bosnia and Herzegovina Paphos 2008-10 ENC 3D
20 November 2010 Greece   13 – 33   Cyprus Athens 2010-12 ENC 2D
12 March 2011 Cyprus   55 – 8   Bulgaria Paphos 2010-12 ENC 2D
26 March 2011 Cyprus   70 – 10   Finland Paphos 2010-12 ENC 2D
7 May 2011 Luxembourg   0 – 50   Cyprus Luxembourg 2010-12 ENC 2D
8 October 2011 Cyprus   48 – 7   Luxembourg Paphos 2010-12 ENC 2D
28 April 2012 Bulgaria   3 – 94   Cyprus Pernik 2010-12 ENC 2D
26 May 2012 Cyprus   72 – 5   Greece Paphos 2010-12 ENC 2D
9 June 2012 Finland   5 – 52   Cyprus Helsinki 2010-12 ENC 2D
17 November 2012 Austria   20 – 54   Cyprus Vienna 2012-14 ENC 2C
8 December 2012 Cyprus   49 – 8   Slovenia Paphos 2012-14 ENC 2C
16 March 2013 Cyprus   79 – 10   Bulgaria Paphos 2012-14 ENC 2C
20 April 2013 Hungary   15 – 16   Cyprus Esztergom 2012-14 ENC 2C
9 November 2013 Slovenia   3 – 34   Cyprus Ljubljana 2012-14 ENC 2C
30 November 2013 Cyprus   22 – 8   Austria Paphos 2012-14 ENC 2C
26 April 2014 Bulgaria   15 – 46   Cyprus Sofia 2012-14 ENC 2C
17 May 2014 Cyprus   46 – 13   Hungary Paphos 2012-14 ENC 2C
1 November 2014 Cyprus   30 – 10   Andorra Paphos 2014-16 ENC 2B
15 November 2014 Latvia   39 – 20   Cyprus Riga 2014-16 ENC 2B
28 March 2015 Hungary   15 – 17   Cyprus Szazhalombatta 2014-16 ENC 2B
2 May 2015 Cyprus   20 – 26   Lithuania Paphos 2014-16 ENC 2B
7 November 2015 Cyprus   3 – 31   Latvia Paphos 2014-16 ENC 2B
28 November 2015 Andorra   22 – 13   Cyprus Andorra la Vella 2014-16 ENC 2B
9 April 2016 Cyprus   15 – 3   Hungary Paphos 2014-16 ENC 2B
23 April 2016 Lithuania   47 – 15   Cyprus Vilnius 2014-16 ENC 2B
23 October 2016 Malta   31 – 3   Cyprus Paola 2016-17 Conference 1 South
12 November 2016 Cyprus   28 – 38   Israel Paphos 2016-17 Conference 1 South
11 February 2017 Andorra   15 – 14   Cyprus Andorra la Vella 2016-17 Conference 1 South
6 May 2017 Cyprus   27 – 29   Croatia Paphos 2016-17 Conference 1 South
11 November 2017 Cyprus   42 – 5   Austria Paphos 2017-18 Conference 2 South
14 November 2017 Slovakia   6 – 38   Cyprus Piestany 2017-18 Conference 2 South
24 March 2018 Cyprus   17 – 5   Slovenia Paphos 2017-18 Conference 2 South
28 April 2018 Serbia   35 – 17   Cyprus Belgrade 2017-18 Conference 2 South
20 October 2018 Croatia   46 – 24   Cyprus Split 2018-19 Conference 1 South
10 November 2018 Cyprus   22 – 34   Israel Paphos 2018-19 Conference 1 South
23 March 2019 Cyprus   10 – 37   Malta Paphos 2018-19 Conference 1 South
6 April 2019 Bosnia and Herzegovina   22 – 23   Cyprus Zenica 2018-19 Conference 1 South
19 October 2019 Cyprus   20 – 25   Croatia Paphos 2018-19 Conference 1 South
23 November 2019 Malta   16 – 18   Cyprus Paola 2018-19 Conference 1 South
13 November 2021 Cyprus   8 – 29   Croatia Paphos 2021-22 Conference 1 South
26 March 2022   Cyprus 28 – 0   Slovenia Paphos 2022-23 Conference 1 South
16 April 2022 Malta   27 – 10 Cyprus   Paola 2022-23 Conference 1 South
1 October 2022   Slovenia 7 – 56   Cyprus Ljubljana 2022-23 Conference 1 South
12 November 2022 Cyprus   21 – 22 Israel   Paphos 2022-23 Conference 1 South

Overall

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Below is a table of the representative rugby matches played by the Cyprus national XV at test level up until 5 October 2024:

Against Played Won Lost Drawn Points
for
Points
against
Points
diff
% Won
  Andorra 3 1 2 0 57 47 +10 33.33%
  Austria 3 3 0 0 118 33 +85 100%
  Azerbaijan 3 3 0 0 125 3 +122 100%
  Bosnia and Herzegovina 3 3 0 0 46 28 +18 100%
  Bulgaria 5 5 0 0 309 53 +256 100%
  Croatia 4 0 4 0 79 129 –50 0%
  Finland 2 2 0 0 122 15 +107 100%
  Greece 3 3 0 0 144 21 +123 100%
  Hungary 4 4 0 0 94 46 +48 100%
  Israel 6 0 6 0 118 153 –35 0%
  Latvia 2 0 2 0 23 70 –47 0%
  Lithuania 2 0 2 0 35 73 –38 0%
  Luxembourg 2 2 0 0 98 7 +91 100%
  Malta 9 1 8 0 127 257 –140 11.11%
  Monaco 3 3 0 0 87 18 +69 100%
  Serbia 1 0 1 0 17 35 –18 0%
  Slovakia 3 3 0 0 109 21 +88 100%
  Slovenia 7 7 0 0 268 30 +238 100%
Total 64 39 25 0 1792 922 +870 60.94%

Coaches

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Name Years Tests Won Drew Lost Win percentage
Niall Doherty 2007–2008 4 4 0 0 100%
Paul Shanks 2008–2014 24 23 0 1 96%
Phil Llewellyn 2014–2015 4 2 0 2 50%
Paul Shanks 2015–2015 1 0 0 1 0%
Alexander Zavallis 2015–2015 1 0 0 1 0%
Andrew Binikos 2016–2018 11 4 0 7 36%
Andrew Barnett 2018– 9 3 0 6 33%

Current squad

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The following players formed the squad for the 2021–22 Rugby Europe Conference 1 South match against Croatia.[5]

  • Known Caps updated after match with Croatia.

Note: Flags indicate national union for the club/province as defined by World Rugby.

Player Position Date of birth (age) Caps Club/province
Stevie Awah Prop (1984-04-22) 22 April 1984 (age 40)   Ampthill RUFC
Michael Vasili Hooker (1992-12-12) 12 December 1992 (age 31)
Edward Faulder Prop (2000-03-29) 29 March 2000 (age 24)   Carlisle RFC
Stephen Yarrow (c) Lock (1991-01-13) 13 January 1991 (age 33)   Stirling County
Chris Dicomidis Lock (1985-09-14) 14 September 1985 (age 39) 3   Pontypridd RFC
Chris Ioannou Flanker (1989-11-22) 22 November 1989 (age 35) Hertford RFC
Marko Mladenovic Flanker (1990-12-24) 24 December 1990 (age 33) 12   Murrayfield Wanderers FC
Giovanni Dall'Amico Number 8 (1997-02-07) 7 February 1997 (age 27)
William Yiannakou Scrum-half (1993-11-28) 28 November 1993 (age 31)
Marcus Holden Fly-half (1989-08-22) 22 August 1989 (age 35) 30   Stirling County
Joakim Antoniou Wing (1986-06-04) 4 June 1986 (age 38)   Henley Hawks
George Agathocleous Centre (1982-01-23) 23 January 1982 (age 42) 22   Paphos Tigers
Christian Georgiou Centre (1996-12-01) 1 December 1996 (age 28)   Old Brodleians
Vaki Antoniou Wing (2000-05-12) 12 May 2000 (age 24)   Charlton Park RFC
Dominic Georgiou Fullback (1988-06-24) 24 June 1988 (age 36)   Old Brodleians
Dimitri Grigoriou Hooker (1995-11-28) 28 November 1995 (age 29)
Farhad Fayaz Prop (2003-09-03) 3 September 2003 (age 21)   University of Bath
Stylianos Panagiotou Prop (1996-11-28) 28 November 1996 (age 28)   Doncaster Phoenix
James Hebbard Back row (1996-11-19) 19 November 1996 (age 28)
Robert Yiannakou Back row (1996-10-03) 3 October 1996 (age 28)
George Shaouna Wing (1999-07-05) 5 July 1999 (age 25)
Philippos Pouroullis Wing (1987-09-07) 7 September 1987 (age 37)
Leslie Mabaleka Scrum-half (1999-06-29) 29 June 1999 (age 25)

Staff

  • Head Coach - Andrew Barnett
  • Coach - Alexander Zavallis Roebuck
  • Team Manager - Peter Morrish
  • Physio - Theo Lenos

Recent call ups

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  • Vaki Antoniou - Maidstone FC
  • Yiannis Loizia
  • Marios Zakakiotis
  • Stevie Awah
  • Will Booth
  • Robert Yiannakou - East London RFC
  • Giovanni Francesco Dall'Amico - Limassol Crusaders
  • Luke Peters - Portsmouth RFC
  • Pantelis Stylianou - Sale FC
  • Olly Yarrow - Stirling County RFC
  • Ben Yarrow - Stirling County RFC
  • Alex Pantechis- Stockport RUFC
  • Alex Thompson

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Cyprus denied Rugby World Cup chance". ESPN Scrum. 15 April 2013. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  2. ^ "Cyprus clock up record breaking win". ESPN scrum. 16 March 2013. Archived from the original on 9 April 2013. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  3. ^ "Planet Rugby | Rugby Union News, Live Rugby Scores, Results & Fixtures". www.planetrugby.com. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015.
  4. ^ "Most wins by greater than a converted try". ESPN Scrum. 16 March 2013. Retrieved 5 March 2019.
  5. ^ "Cyprus vs Croatia Game Sheet" (PDF). Rugby Europe. 14 November 2021. Retrieved 14 November 2021.
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