World Rugby Pacific Challenge
SportRugby union football
Instituted2006
Number of teams4
Country Fiji
 Japan
 Samoa
 Tonga
HoldersFiji Warriors (2023)
Most titlesFiji Warriors (10 titles)
Related competitionPacific Nations Cup

The World Rugby Pacific Challenge, formerly the IRB Pacific Rugby Cup, is an annual rugby union football tournament held in Oceania since 2006. It is contested by national 'A' teams (formed from the best locally based players, with most not already on their nations' senior rugby team) from the Asia-Pacific region. The tournament is run by World Rugby (previously IRB) through Oceania Rugby.

The Fiji Warriors (in white) taking on 2006 champions Savaii Samoa (navy blue) in 2007

The original IRB Pacific Rugby Cup featured two teams from each of the three Pacific Island countries of Fiji, Samoa and Tonga. The competition followed the completion of Fiji's Colonial Cup, Samoa's National Provincial Championship and Tonga's Provincial Championship and provided player development pathway leading into the IRB Pacific Nations Cup.

Since 2011, the tournament has been contested by national 'A' sides, although some matches also featured teams from Super Rugby academies in Australia and New Zealand. Teams from Japan, Argentina and Canada have also joined the tournament to compete with the three Pacific Island countries.

Teams

The competing national 'A' teams as of the 2018 season were:

Overall

Summary of all Pacific Challenge winners and runners-up, for tournaments up to and including 2020:

By team[edit]

Team Tournament
wins 		Runner-up
placings 		Seasons
contested
Fiji Fiji Warriors 10 3 16
Argentina Pampas XV 2 0 2
Samoa Upolu Samoa 1 2 5
Tonga Tautahi Gold 1 0 5
Samoa Savaii Samoa 1 0 5
 Samoa A 0 5 11
Japan Junior Japan 1 3 9
Tonga Tau'uta Reds 0 1 6
Fiji Fiji Barbarians 0 1 5
Australia Qld Reds A 0 1 1
Total 16 16 16

By country[edit]

Country Tournament
wins 		Runner-up
placings 		Seasons
contested
Fiji Fiji 10 4 16
Samoa Samoa 2 7 16
Argentina Argentina 2 0 2
Japan Japan 1 3 9
Tonga Tonga 1 1 16
Australia Australia 0 1 1
Total 16 16 16

History

Pacific Island tournament: 2006 to 2010

Logo 2006–2014

The Pacific Rugby Cup initially featured six representative teams, two from each Pacific Island country:

Fijian teams:  
Samoan teams:  
Tongan teams:  

The format was a single round-robin tournament with the top-placed team hosting a final against the second-placed to decide the title. The Fiji Warriors won the competition twice, the Samoan teams won the Cup once each, and Tautahi Gold also claimed the title once for Tonga.[1]

Pacific Australasian series: 2011 to 2014

From 2011, the three Pacific Island countries were represented by their national 'A' teams. They were joined by Japan's national 'A' team, Junior Japan, as the fourth core team in 2013. The itinerary included tour matches against Super Rugby academy opposition from Australia and New Zealand and included the following sides:[A][B]

Pacific Cup teams:  
Australian teams:  
New Zealand teams:  

The tournament was split into three stages with the core Pacific Cup teams playing Super Rugby academies in the first two stages in Australia and New Zealand, respectively.[2] In the third stage, the Pacific Cup teams played each other in a single round robin, home or away, to decide the title.[C] No finals were played and the team finishing on top of the combined table after all stages was the tournament winner.[3] The Fiji Warriors won all three tournaments from 2011 to 2013.[4][5][6]

The format was expanded again in 2014 with Argentina's Pampas XV and four Australian academy teams joining the competition as core teams competing with the Pacific A sides.[7] The New Zealand development teams did not participate in 2014 and the tournament was held entirely in Australia. Two pools were formed as follows:

Pool A:  
Pool B:  

A single round robin was played in each pool with the top ranked sides from each playing in the final. The Pampas XV defeated Reds A in the final held in Sydney to win the title. Fiji Warriors defeated Samoa A in the play-off for third place.[8]

Pacific Challenge: 2015 onward

The Pacific Rugby Cup was restyled as the "Pacific Challenge" in 2015 and held in Fiji. It returned to a being a tournament solely for national 'A' teams, with Canada A replacing the Australian academy teams.

The Pampas XV won again in 2015 but were replaced by Junior Japan for the following season. The Fiji Warriors won the next four tournaments at home before their dominance was broken by Junior Japan defeating them at Suva to take the 2020 Pacific Challenge title.[9]

After a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the tournament returned to Apia Park, Samoa in 2023.[10]

Notes
A Japan A, Force A, Rebel Rising, and the Brisbane and Sydney Academies joined in 2013.
B The Blues and Highlanders development teams featured in 2012 and 2013.
C The Pacific stage was cancelled in 2013 to allow Fiji, Samoa and Tonga to maximise preparations for the end-of-year tours.[11]

Winners

Year # of
Teams 		Final  Venue
Winner Score Runner-up
2006 6 Samoa Savaii Samoa 10–5 Fiji Fiji Warriors Marist Grounds, Apia
2007 6 Samoa Upolu Samoa 35–15 Tonga Tau'uta Reds Teufaiva Stadium, Nukuʻalofa
2008 6 Tonga Tautahi Gold 11–3 Samoa Upolu Samoa Apia Park, Apia
2009 6 Fiji Fiji Warriors 19–7 Samoa Upolu Samoa Apia Park, Apia
2010 6 Fiji Fiji Warriors 26–17 Fiji Fiji Barbarians National Stadium, Suva
2011 3 Fiji Fiji Warriors round
robin 		 Samoa A various
2012 3 Fiji Fiji Warriors round
robin 		 Samoa A various
2013 4 Fiji Fiji Warriors round
robin 		 Samoa A various
2014 9 Argentina Pampas XV 36–21 Australia Queensland A TG Millner Field, Sydney
2015 6 Argentina Pampas XV 17–9 Fiji Fiji Warriors National Stadium, Suva
2016 4 Fiji Fiji Warriors 36–0  Samoa A National Stadium, Suva
2017 4 Fiji Fiji Warriors round
robin 		 Junior Japan National Stadium, Suva
2018 4 Fiji Fiji Warriors round
robin 		 Junior Japan National Stadium, Suva
2019 4 Fiji Fiji Warriors round
robin 		 Junior Japan National Stadium, Suva
2020 4  Junior Japan round
robin 		Fiji Fiji Warriors National Stadium, Suva
Not contested 2021–2022
2023 4 Fiji Fiji Warriors round
robin 		 Samoa A Apia Park, Apia

Tournaments

Teams listed are those that qualified for the Pacific Rugby Cup final matches (for seasons without a final, the core teams are shown). Results of the final matches are written so that the score of the team in each row is mentioned first.

Legend
Pacific Rugby Cup winner. Pos = Log Position, P = Games Played, W = Games Won, D = Games Drawn, L = Games Lost, PF = Points For, PA = Points Against, Diff = Points Difference, TB = Try Bonus Points, LB = Losing Bonus Points, BP = Bonus Points, Pts = Log Points, Refs = References
† Grand Final winner.

Pacific Challenge: 2015 to 2020

Contested by the national 'A' teams of Fiji, Japan, Samoa, and Tonga. Canada A along with Argentina's Pampas XV also competed in 2015.[12]

Pacific Rugby Challenge winner and runner-up
Year Duration Pos Team Pool matches Play-offs Refs
Pld W D L F A Diff TB LB Pts Final
2020 6 March
to
14 March 		1 Junior Japan 3 3 0 0 143 25 +118 2 0 14 – [13]
2 Fiji Warriors 3 2 0 1 88 26 +62 2 0 10 –
2019 8 March
to
16 March 		1 Fiji Warriors 3 3 0 0 170 54 +116 3 0 15 – [14]
2 Junior Japan 3 2 0 1 94 97 −3 3 0 11 –
2018 9 March
to
17 March 		1 Fiji Warriors 3 3 0 0 118 31 +87 3 0 15 – [15]
2 Junior Japan 3 2 0 1 77 77 0 2 0 10 –
2017 10 March
to
18 March 		1 Fiji Warriors 3 3 0 0 125 71 +54 2 0 15 – [16]
2 Junior Japan 3 2 0 1 92 103 −11 2 0 10 –
2016 8 March
to
21 March 		1 Fiji Warriors† 3 3 0 0 134 34 +100 3 0 15 36–0 [17]
2 Samoa A 3 2 0 1 98 56 +42 2 0 10 0–36
2015 10 March
to
23 March 		1A Pampas XV† 3 3 0 0 89 42 +47 2 0 14 17–9 [18]
1B Fiji Warriors 3 2 0 1 145 42 +103 2 1 11 9–17

Pacific Australasian series: 2011 to 2014

Contested by the national 'A' teams of Fiji, Samoa, and Tonga. Japan A joined as a core team in 2013. The core teams played against Super Rugby academy opposition from Australia and New Zealand before meeting each other in a single round robin to decide the title.[2] No finals were played and team finishing on top of the table after all matches were completed was the tournament winner.[3]

In 2014, Argentina's Pampas XV and four Australian Academy sides were added as core teams. Two pools were formed and a single round robin played in each. The top ranked sides in each pool played off in the final for the title and the second ranked teams played off for third place.

2011–2014 Pacific Rugby Cup finalists.[α]
Year Duration Pos Team Pool matches Play-offs Refs
Pld W D L F A Diff TB LB Pts Final
2014 21 February
to
23 March 		1B Pampas XV† 4 4 0 0 148 83 65 3 0 19 36–21 [7][8]
1A Reds A 3 2 0 1 126 55 71 2 1 11 21–36
2A Fiji Warriors 3 2 0 1 154 59 95 2 1 11  54–21 [β]
2B Tonga A 4 2 0 2 96 115 -19 1 0 9  21–54 [β]
2013 1 March
to
7 April 		1 Fiji Warriors 6 2 2 2 118 155 -37 2 0 14   – [α] [6]
2 Samoa A 6 2 0 4 134 198 -64 1 1 10 –
3 Junior Japan 6 0 0 6 140 361 -221 3 0 3 –
4 Tonga A 6 0 0 6 73 306 -233 0 0 0 –
2012 24 February
to
19 October 		1 Fiji Warriors 8 7 0 1 205 165 40 3 0 31   – [α] [5]
2 Samoa A 8 3 0 5 191 238 -47 0 1 13 –
3 Tonga A 8 1 1 6 72 253 -181 0 0 6 –
2011 19 February
to
26 March 		1 Fiji Warriors 8 4 0 4 144 201 -57 0 1 17   – [α] [4]
2 Samoa A 8 3 0 5 135 171 -36 1 2 15 –
3 Tonga A 8 2 1 5 133 233 -100 0 1 11 –
Upolu Samoa after winning the 2007 Pacific Rugby Cup.

Notes:

  1. ^ a b c d No finals were played from 2011 to 2013. The team finishing on top of the table after all matches were completed was the tournament winner.
  2. ^ a b Play-off for third place.

Pacific Island tournament: 2006 to 2010

For the first five seasons, the tournament was contested by six teams; two each from Fiji, Samoa, and Tonga. The format consisted of a single round-robin, home or away, and the teams finishing in the first two positions on the table played in a final, hosted by the top ranked team, to decide the Pacific Rugby Cup title.

2006–2010 Pacific Rugby Cup finalists.
Year Duration Pos Team Pool matches Play-offs Refs
Pld W D L PF PA Diff BP Pts Final
2010 5 May
to
29 May 		1 Fiji Warriors† 5 4 0 1 155 73 82 3 19 26–17 [19]
2 Fiji Barbarians 5 4 0 1 145 116 29 3 19 17–26
2009 24 April
to
29 May 		1 Upolu Samoa 5 4 0 1 114 84 30 1 17 7–19 [20]
2 Fiji Warriors† 5 3 0 2 168 89 79 5 17 19–7
2008 18 April
to
24 May 		1 Upolu Samoa 5 4 0 1 90 49 41 1 17 3–11 [21]
2 Tautahi Gold† 5 3 0 2 97 75 22 1 13 11–3
2007 31 March
to
5 May 		1 Tau'uta Reds 5 4 0 1 108 102 6 1 17 15–35 [1]
2 Upolu Samoa† 5 3 0 2 112 114 −2 3 15 35–15
2006 15 April
to
20 May 		1 Savaii Samoa† 5 4 0 1 120 81 39 2 18 10–5 [1]
2 Fiji Warriors 5 3 1 1 112 72 40 2 17 5–10
2006–2010 Overall pool match results.
Team Played Won Drawn Lost For Against Diff BP Points
Fiji Warriors 25 13 1 11 598 428 170 14 68
Savaii Samoa 25 14 0 11 521 451 70 11 67
Upolu Samoa 25 13 1 11 491 482 9 9 63
Tau'uta Reds 25 12 1 12 455 438 17 8 58
Fiji Barbarians 25 11 1 13 464 592 −128 12 58
Tautahi Gold 25 10 0 15 425 568 −143 7 47

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "Pacific Rugby Cup". Federation of Oceania Rugby Unions. Archived from the original on 22 June 2008.
  2. ^ a b "IRB Pacific Rugby Cup 2012 – Competition Draw" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 February 2012. Retrieved 15 February 2012.
  3. ^ a b "International Rugby Board – IRB Pacific Rugby Cup 2012 set for kick off". Irb.com. Retrieved 15 February 2012.
  4. ^ a b "2011 Pacific Rugby Cup Fixtures and Results". Federation of Oceania Rugby Unions. 2011. Archived from the original on 2 March 2014.
  5. ^ a b "2012 Pacific Rugby Cup Fixtures and Results". Federation of Oceania Rugby Unions. 2012. Archived from the original on 16 March 2015.
  6. ^ a b "2013 Pacific Rugby Cup Fixtures and Results". Federation of Oceania Rugby Unions. 2013. Archived from the original on 28 February 2015.
  7. ^ a b Kiap (23 March 2014). "Pacific Rugby Cup Final: Reds A v Pampas XV". Green and Gold Rugby. Retrieved 6 February 2014.
  8. ^ a b "2014 Pacific Rugby Cup Fixtures and Results". Federation of Oceania Rugby Unions. 2014.
  9. ^ "Junior Japan end Fiji Warriors' dominance at Pacific Challenge". World Rugby. 14 March 2020. Archived from the original on 17 March 2020.
  10. ^ "Samoa to host World Rugby Pacific Challenge 2023". Samoa Global News. 31 March 2023.
  11. ^ IRB cancels Pacific leg. Fiji Times, 29 August 2013.
  12. ^ "Fiji to host rugby's revamped 'Pacific Challenge'". Mai Life. 27 January 2015. Archived from the original on 6 February 2015. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
  13. ^ "World Rugby Pacific Challenge - Standing". It's Rugby. 15 March 2020. Archived from the original on 7 June 2021.
  14. ^ "Pacific Challenge 2019". The Rugby Archive. 16 March 2019. Archived from the original on 21 March 2019.
  15. ^ "Pacific Challenge 2018". The Rugby Archive. 17 March 2018. Archived from the original on 15 April 2018.
  16. ^ "Pacific Challenge 2017". The Rugby Archive. 18 March 2017. Archived from the original on 17 June 2017.
  17. ^ "Fiji Warriors crowned Pacific Challenge champions". World Rugby. 21 March 2016. Archived from the original on 27 March 2016. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
  18. ^ "Pacific Challenge 2015, match 12". World Rugby. 23 March 2015.
  19. ^ "2010 Pacific Rugby Cup Fixtures and Results". Federation of Oceania Rugby Unions. 2010. Archived from the original on 2 March 2014.
  20. ^ "2009 Pacific Rugby Cup Fixtures and Results". Federation of Oceania Rugby Unions. 2009. Archived from the original on 2 March 2014.
  21. ^ "2008 Pacific Rugby Cup Fixtures and Results". Federation of Oceania Rugby Unions. 2008. Archived from the original on 2 March 2014.

External links

World Rugby Pacific Challenge
Rugby union in Oceania
International rugby union competitions
Categories