PM's XV to play Japan

[fulvio sammut]

Johnny the Hooker. He's a bit like that in his political life as well really...

[NewsBot]

PM's XV to play Japan

An Australian Prime Minister's XV will play Japan's national rugby union side in a match in Tokyo in November, the Australian Rugby Union (ARU) said.

[fulvio sammut]

I've been censored and I didn't even use a rude word! Never mind I can live with it. But if pollies can't stand the occasional kick they should keep off the sports ground.

[The Lone Hydrangea]

Johnnie at 9 or 10?

[Burgs]

Prime Minister's XV to play Japan in Tokyo

September 14, 2006 - 12:51pm
Story by: ARU

The Prime Minister of Australia, the Hon John Howard MP, and the Australian Rugby Union have joined forces to mount an exciting overseas initiative.

A Prime Minister's XV will play a match against the Japan national team in Tokyo on Saturday 4 November, with former Wallaby coach Bob Dwyer and Brumbies coach Laurie Fisher named as coach and assistant respectively.

The match against Japan has been scheduled as part of the 2006 Australia-Japan Year of Exchange, and will also help mark the Japan Rugby Football Union's 80th anniversary celebrations.

The team is aimed at offering aspiring young players the opportunity to experience international Rugby.

The team will be named on 30 September and will train in Canberra before travelling to Tokyo.

Mr Howard said it was a great honour for an Australian team representing him to participate in the Japan Rugby Football Union's 80th anniversary celebrations.

"The match will be a further reminder of the strong and mutually beneficial ties that exist between our two countries", Mr Howard said.

ARU CEO and Managing Director Gary Flowers said the match would help build a Rugby bridge between Australia and Asia.

"A Prime Minister's XV will provide a number of up and coming young Australian players with a unique representative opportunity" Mr Flowers said.

"Prime Minister Howard is a great supporter of the Wallabies and no doubt his XV will be a starting point in international rugby for a number of future Wallabies.

"Not only will the team give these players the chance to showcase their talents, but it also extends a hand of friendship to Japan and builds a new Rugby bridge into Asia.

"Japan may have narrowly missed out on hosting rights for the Rugby World Cup in 2011, but the region still represents an enormous opportunity for Rugby.

"Australian Rugby will continue to work closely with the Japanese Rugby Football Union, as well as our neighbours in the Pacific, to help develop their game.

"There is no reason why we should not have a collective ambition for Japan to become a top eight country in world Rugby and feature regularly in the knock out phase of the Rugby World Cup."

In a release issued today in Japan by the Japan Rugby Football Union announcing the match, Mr Yoshiro Mori, President of the JRFU and a former Prime Minister of Japan, expressed pleasure at the match.

"It will launch the RWC2007 Asian Qualifier and commemorate the JRFU's 80th Anniversary as well as celebrate the Japan-Australia Year of Exchange", he said.

The Australia-Japan Year of Exchange is aimed at promoting friendship, deeper mutual understanding and cooperation between Australia and Japan, especially at the grass roots level.

KEY DATES

30 September Prime Minister's XV announced

30 or 31 October Prime Minister's presentation of jerseys to the team, Canberra

31 October Team travels to Japan

4 November Japan v Prime Minister's XV, Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground, Tokyo

[Sagerian]

7 has already begun advertising for this game... Showing all the delicacy and diplomacy as only channel 7 can...

Check it out here (1.5MB)

[Burgs]

Nah, you weren't censored fulv, you just answered a different thread
Moved it for you for continuity, all be it out of sequence

Regardless of PM talk, I think this is a great initiative and will be a fantastic opportunity for some of our brightest prospects to show their credentials.
Look to the likes of Bam Bam Pocock, Josh Holmes, Berrick Barnes, Pat McCutcheon and Lachlan Turner to make an appearance.
I hope someone will be telecasting so I might get to see a copy down the track!

[Mtbeaver]

Baha - that video is hilarious... it really shows how much australia rocks

[fulvio sammut]

Maybe I'm showing my age, but was that Campo running with the ball in that video?

[Sagerian]

(It was Mortlock)

Ok so obviously the above video was a fake.. The real one is here.

Check it out here (1.5MB)

[Jess]

they should sooo use that as their next ad campaign. i mean, kiwis with handbags was good but this is a winner for sure! hehe.

love your work sage.

i mean... love your work channel 7...

[Sagerian]

I ruved it rong time!

[Jess]

reminds me of japanese lessons in year 9... we gave the teacher a round of applause once after she made some joke or something... i dunno...
anyways after a while she tried to get us to be quiet and calm down... unfortunately it went a little something like this...
'ok everyone that is enough... you can stop crapping now'

and i will leave the reaction up to everyones imagination....

[Sagerian]

Year 9 you say?... Yeah I can imagine the (half hour long) reaction.

[Jess]

half hour? try the full hour!

she was sending people out of the room for 'crapping too much' and we should 'go crap in mr greens office if we thought it was so fun' etc.

oh god i have never laughed so much as i did that lesson...