Poland national rugby union team

Poland
Nicknames	Biało-czerwoni (The White and Reds)
Emblem	Eagle
Union	Polish Rugby Union
Head coach	Kamil Bobryk
Captain	Grzegorz Buczek
Most caps	Stanislaw Więciorek (65)
Top scorer	Janusz Urbanowicz (205)
Home stadium	Narodowy Stadion Rugby ; Stadion ŁKS ; Stadion Widzewa
First colours	Second colours
World Rugby ranking
Current	34 (as of 20 March 2023)
Highest	25 (2012, 2013)
Lowest	42 (2010)
First international
	Poland 9–8 East Germany ; (Łódź, Poland 24 August 1958)
Biggest win
	Poland 74–0 Norway ; (Riga, Latvia 24 September 1994)
Biggest defeat
	Portugal 65–3 Poland ; (Gdansk, Poland 11 February 2023)
Website	www.pzrugby.pl

Men's World Rugby Rankings
v
t
e
Top 30 as of 4 November 2024^[1]
Rank	Change^[i]	Team	Points
1		Ireland	092.12
2		South Africa	091.77
3		New Zealand	089.67
4		France	086.96
5		England	084.43
6		Argentina	084.30
7		Scotland	083.39
8		Italy	079.98
9	1	Australia	079.32
10	1	Fiji	079.07
11		Wales	076.04
12		Georgia	074.10
13		Samoa	072.68
14		Japan	072.31
15		Portugal	070.61
16		Tonga	068.12
17		Uruguay	067.39
18		Spain	066.29
19		United States	065.70
20		Romania	062.62
21		Chile	061.60
22		Canada	060.81
23		Hong Kong	060.40
24		Russia	058.06
25		Namibia	057.87
26	1	Netherlands	057.29
27	3	Belgium	056.51
28	2	Switzerland	056.04
29	1	Zimbabwe	056.03
30	1	Brazil	055.62

^ Change from the previous week

Poland's historical rankings

See or edit source data.

Source: World Rugby^[1]
Graph updated to 4 November 2024

The Poland national rugby union team (Polish: Reprezentacja Polski w rugby) represents Poland in men's international rugby union competitions. Nicknamed The White and Reds (Biało-czerwoni), is considered one of the stronger tier 3 teams in European rugby and currently compete in the second division of the Rugby Europe International Championships in the Rugby Europe Trophy, a competition which is just below the Rugby Europe Championship where the top 6 countries in Europe (apart from the teams in the 6 nations) compete. They are yet to participate in any Rugby World Cup and often play in white with red shorts as well as in red with white shorts.

History

Poland made their international debut against East Germany in 1958 in Łódź, which they won by just one point, 9–8. Later that year they played West Germany in Krasnoyarsk, who defeated them 11–3. The following year they played two matches at Dinamo Stadion in Bucharest, defeating Czechoslovakia and then losing to Romania. Poland continued to contest internationals with these nations over the coming years.

They defeated East Germany in Grimma the 1971, this was followed by strong form from the Polish, winning matches against the Netherlands, Morocco, Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union. In 1975 Poland played Italy in Treviso, and lost 13–28. In 1977 Poland played a France XV again, and lost 9–26; also that year they played Italy, and lost by only six points, with the final score being 6–12. They played a France XV again in 1978, losing 24–35. They also defeated Spain that year.

Poland played Italy in 1979, losing 3–13, and then played a France XV the following year, though they did not perform as well as previous meetings, losing 42–0. A subsequent match against a France XV in 1981 saw the France XV defeat Poland 49–6. A match between the two sides in 1984 produced a good result for the Polish, losing 19–3. A match against the Italian Barbarians the following year produced the same scoreline.

In 1987 Poland played two Italian teams, the Italian Barbarians and Italy under-21, although they lost to the Barbarians, they won against the under-21 team. Poland did not play at the 1987 World Cup. In 1990 they played the full Italy team in Naples, losing 34–3. Poland did not play in the 1991 World Cup in England. From 1992 to 1993 Poland won six matches in a row. Russia won five to 41 in a following match.

Poland played Italy A, but lost 19–107. Poland also played Romania in 1998, losing 74–13. Poland were grouped in Pool D of round two of the 2007 Rugby World Cup European qualify tournament. Poland performed very well in the pool, winning all four of their games, and finishing at the top of the pool. This saw them through to Pool A of Round three, but they were knocked out here, finishing fourth in the pool.

In the 2021/2022 season, the Polish team secured 2nd place in the Trophy(2nd Division), trailing behind Belgium. This achievement earned Poland a spot in the Championship (1st Division, for the 2023 and 2024 editions.

During the first edition, unfortunately, Poland suffered its largest defeat in history, losing 65-3 against Portugal. In a subsequent game, Poland secured its first historic victory in the Championship by defeating Belgium in Gdansk, Poland. Despite this milestone, Poland finished 8th, placing last in this edition of the Championship.

Between the two editions, a commemorative friendly match was organized in honor of the Armistice and the Polish National Independence Day, featuring the Polish rugby team and the British Armed Forces team. Held at the National Stadium in Gdansk, the match concluded with a narrow victory for Poland, 17-14, marking a moment of pride and shared remembrance between the two nations.

In the 2024 edition, they lost all their games and finished 8th once again, which resulted in their relegation to the Trophy (2nd division). This marked the last match for the iconic player of the team, Grzegorz Buczek (as a captain), which took place at the Jean Bouin Stadium of the Stade Français club in Paris, in a ranking match against Belgium.

Record

World Cup

World Cup record								World Cup Qualification record
Year	Round	P	W	D	L	F	A	P	W	D	L	F	A
1987	Not Invited							Not Invited
1991	did not qualify							3	1	0	2	61	79
1995								2	1	0	1	28	47
1999								4	1	0	3	58	152
2003								6	5	0	1	177	109
2007								8	5	0	3	188	180
2011								7	3	0	4	94	118
2015								10	5	0	5	208	183
2019								5	3	0	2	73	73
2023								Automatically eliminated
Total	0/9	0	0	0	0	0	0	45	24	0	21	941	862

European Competitions Since 2000

Season	Division	G	W	D	L	PF	PA	+/−	Pts	Pos
2000	European Nations Cup Third Division	4	3	0	1	112	69	+43	10	2nd
2000-01	European Nations Cup Second Division	5	4	0	1	105	53	+52	13	1st
2002-04	European Nations Cup Second Division Pool A	8	2	1	5	130	164	-34	13	4th
2006-08	European Nations Cup Second Division 2B	8	7	0	1	266	67	+199	22	1st
2008-10	European Nations Cup Second Division 2A	7	3	0	4	94	118	-24	13	4th
2010-12	European Nations Cup First Division 1B	10	6	1	3	238	189	+49	31	2nd
2012-14	European Nations Cup First Division 1B	10	5	0	5	208	183	+25	22	4th
2014-16	European Nations Cup First Division 1B	10	4	0	6	191	262	-71	18	5th
2016-17	Rugby Europe Trophy	5	3	0	2	73	73	0	12	4th
2017-18	Rugby Europe Trophy	5	1	0	4	106	147	-41	7	5th
2018-19	Rugby Europe Trophy	5	2	0	3	104	164	-60	10	4th
2019-20	Rugby Europe Trophy	5	1	0	4	44	112	-68	5	6th
2021-22*	Rugby Europe Trophy	3	3	0	0	85	65	+20	12	1st

Overall

Updated on 2 March 2024, after match with Netherlands.

Opponent	Played	Won	Lost	Drawn	% Won
Andorra	5	5	0	0	100%
Belgium	17	9	7	1	52.94%
Bulgaria	1	1	0	0	100%
Croatia	3	2	1	0	66.67%
Czechoslovakia	22	11	10	1	50%
Czech Republic	14	7	6	1	50%
Denmark	3	3	0	0	100%
East Germany	2	1	1	0	50%
France	1	0	1	0	0%
France A1	2	0	2	0	0%
France XV	6	0	6	0	0%
Georgia	2	2	0	0	100%
Germany	13	6	7	0	46.15%
Italy	9	1	7	1	11.11%
Italy A	1	0	1	0	0%
Latvia	4	4	0	0	100%
Lithuania	2	2	0	0	100%
Madagascar	1	0	1	0	0%
Malta	3	3	0	0	100%
Moldova	10	4	5	1	40%
Morocco	13	11	2	0	84.62%
Netherlands	22	12	9	1	54.55%
Norway	1	1	0	0	100%
Portugal	13	3	10	0	23.08%
Romania	18	0	18	0	0%
Romania A	1	0	1	0	0%
Russia	4	0	4	0	0%
Serbia and Montenegro	1	1	0	0	100%
Spain	16	6	10	0	37.5%
Sri Lanka	1	0	1	0	0%
Sweden	15	13	1	1	86.67%
Switzerland	7	4	3	0	57.14%
Tunisia	6	4	2	0	66.67%
Ukraine	14	3	11	0	21.43%
Soviet Union	21	1	20	0	4.76%
West Germany	7	4	3	0	57.14%
Yugoslavia	2	0	2	0	0%
Total	282	124	151	7	43.97%

Recent Matches

Matches

9 October 2021
12:50 EEST (UTC +3)

(1 LBP) Ukraine	24–27	Poland
	Report

Yunist Stadion, Lviv
Attendance: 2,000
Referee: John Catteau (Belgium)

13 November 2021
13:00 CET (UTC+01)

Poland	21–16	Germany (1 LBP)
	Report

Narodowy Stadion Rugby, Gdynia
Referee: Saba Abulashvili (Georgia)

20 November 2021
14:30 CET (UTC+01)

Poland	37–25	Switzerland
Try: Cooke 7' Haznar 33' Zeszutek 75' Con: Piotrowicz 34', 75' Pen: Piotrowicz 4', 17', 30', 57', 62', 71'	Report	Try: Rohrig 24' Vial 38' Roberson 80' Con: Porcher 24', 39' Pen: Porcher 53', 68'

Stadion Miejski, Warsaw
Referee: Eki Fanlo (Spain)

Current squad

The following players were selected for the 2021–22 Rugby Europe Trophy match against Switzerland on 20th November 2021.^[2]

Head Coach: Christian Hitt

Caps updated: 22nd November 2021, after match with Switzerland.

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

Player	Position	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Club/province
Kamil Bobryk	Hooker	(1984-02-09) 9 February 1984 (age 40)	48	CS Vienne
Grzegorz Buczek	Hooker	(1986-05-17) 17 May 1986 (age 38)	22	RC Lechia Gdańsk
Thomas Fidler	Prop	(1986-10-22) 22 October 1986 (age 38)	7	Ogniwo Sopot
Radosław Bysewski	Prop	(1993-12-03) 3 December 1993 (age 30)	25	Ogniwo Sopot
Quentin Cieslinski	Prop	(1997-06-28) 28 June 1997 (age 27)	2	ASV Lavaur
Sylwester Gąska	Prop	(2002-02-22) 22 February 2002 (age 22)	4	Ogniwo Sopot
Edward Krawiecki	Lock	(1995-01-01) 1 January 1995 (age 29)	7	Bromsgrove RFC
Mateusz Bartoszek	Lock	(1990-01-20) 20 January 1990 (age 34)	38	RC Bassin d'Arcachon
Krystian Olejek	Lock	(1995-11-28) 28 November 1995 (age 28)	3	Pogoń Siedlce
Michał Krużycki	Lock	(2000-11-28) 28 November 2000 (age 23)	33	RC Lechia Gdańsk
Jan Cal	Back row	(1995-11-08) 8 November 1995 (age 28)	6	Skra Warsaw
Dawid Rubaśniak	Back row	(2000-09-03) 3 September 2000 (age 24)	5	Ebbw Vale
Piotr Zeszutek (c)	Back row	(1991-01-31) 31 January 1991 (age 33)	27	Ogniwo Sopot
Dawid Plichta	Scrum-half	(1992-01-26) 26 January 1992 (age 32)	20	Orkan Sochaczew
Mateusz Plichta	Scrum-half	(1997-09-04) 4 September 1997 (age 27)	16	Ogniwo Sopot
Wojciech Piotrowicz	Fly-half	(1990-03-23) 23 March 1990 (age 34)	18	Ogniwo Sopot
Daniel Gdula	Centre	(2001-01-08) 8 January 2001 (age 23)	18	RC Posnania
Michal Haznar	Centre	(1994-01-17) 17 January 1994 (age 30)	2	Griquas
Siokivaha Taufui Halaifuana	Centre	(2000-11-28) 28 November 2000 (age 23)	3	Skra Warsaw
Ross Cooke	Wing	(2000-01-01) 1 January 2000 (age 24)	7	Tynedale RFC
Stasio Maltby	Wing	(1998-11-28) 28 November 1998 (age 25)	4	Brighton Blues
Krystian Pogorzelski	Fullback	(1996-10-03) 3 October 1996 (age 28)	10	Master Pharm Rugby Łódź
Patryk Reksulak	Fullback	(1998-02-25) 25 February 1998 (age 26)	15	Master Pharm Rugby Łódź

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the squad within the last 12 months.

Player	Pos	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Club	Latest call-up
Michał Gadomski	Prop	(1995-11-28) 28 November 1995 (age 28)	2	Orkan Sochaczew	v. Germany, 13 November 2021
Marcin Siemaszko	Prop	(1997-11-28) 28 November 1997 (age 26)	2	Juvenia Kraków	v. Germany, 13 November 2021
Adam Piotrowski	Lock	(1997-04-22) 22 April 1997 (age 27)		Ogniwo Sopot	v. Ukraine, 9 October 2021
Jakub Małecki	Lock	(1995-10-29) 29 October 1995 (age 29)	1	Burry Port RFC	v. Germany, 13 November 2021
Jędrek Nowicki	Fly half	(1999-06-04) 4 June 1999 (age 25)		CA Pontarlier	v. Ukraine, 9 October 2021
Szymon Sirocki	Wing	(2000-04-04) 4 April 2000 (age 24)	16	RC Arka Gdynia	v. Germany, 13 November 2021
Artur Fursenko		(2001-01-08) 8 January 2001 (age 23)		Orkan Sochaczew	v. Ukraine, 9 October 2021

Current coaching staff

The current coaching staff of the Polish national team:^[3]

Name	Nationality	Role
Maja Lindner	POL	Manager
Kamil Bobryk	POL	Head coach
Tomasz Stępień	POL	Assistant coach
Dr Bartosz Chudzik	POL	Team doctor
Karol Turlo	POL	Physiotherapist

Former coaches

Marian Bondarowicz (1958–1969)
Eugeniusz Rogatka (1959–1960)
Marian Bondarowicz (1960–1961)
Jan Frankowski (1961)
Marian Bondarowicz (1962)
Józef Koter (1963)
Józef Grochowski (1964)
Franciszek Nowak (1965)
Józef Sokołowski (1965–1968)
Zbigniew Janus (1969–1970)
Józef Sokołowski (1970)
Józef Grochowski (1971–1975)
Józef Sokołowski (1975)
Ryszard Wiejski (1976–1989)
Andrzej Kopyt (1990)
Zdzisław Szczybelski (1990–1991)
Andrzej Kopyt (1991–1994)
Ryszard Wiejski & Maciej Powała-Niedźwiecki (1994–1995)
Maciej Powała-Niedźwiecki (1995–2000)
Jerzy Jumas (2000–2006)
Tomasz Putra (2006–2013)
Marek Płonka (2013–2016)
Blikkies Groenewald (2016–2017)
Stanislaw Więciorek (2017–2018)
Duaine Lindsay (2018–2020)
Christian Hitt (2021–2024)
Kamil Bobryk (2021–)

References

^ ^a ^b "Men's World Rankings". World Rugby. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
^ "Poland vs Switzerland Match Sheet" (PDF). Rugby Europe. 20 November 2021. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
^ "Nowy trener reprezentacji Polski Rugby XV". PZR. 22 May 2024. Retrieved 19 July 2024.