By Nathan Morley
THE CYPRUS national rugby union team is so under funded by the state sports authority that players and team officials have had to buy their own air tickets to play international matches.
The cash-strapped squad, known locally as the Moufflons, is a truly global Cypriot hybrid and largely made up of native Cypriots, Australian Cypriots, South African Cypriots and Anglo-Cypriots, most of whom have gained considerable experience playing abroad.
Players have repeatedly appealed to the Cyprus Sports Organisation (KOA) for adequate funding, but have largely been ignored and have even had their emails and calls for assistance left unanswered.
And despite clocking up impressive international wins against Greece, Azerbaijan, Monaco and Slovakia, and topping their European league, the situation is so dire that players have also been forced to personally fork out for accommodation and even the hospitality for visiting teams.
Just as shocking is the fact that the team.
has had to resort to using playing pitches on the British Bases for international fixtures because KOA refused to provide one.
“The British Sovereign bases could not believe it when we asked for their help. They actually wanted written clarifications so that no diplomatic incidents would be caused. They said to us ‘please can you confirm through your government that they are not giving their national team a pitch for an international game’,” the team’s media spokesman Alexander McCowan, told the Sunday Mail.
“We phoned KOA and they said, ‘yes tell them we are not giving you a pitch’.”
On other occasions executives have to club together to hire private pitches for games, costing as much as €5,000. They have also ended up paying for hosting VIP visitors and sportsmen from the international rugby scene.
A source within KOA, who did not wish to be identified, claimed that the organisation does not have a standard rugby pitch, which is bigger in size than standard football fields so were unable to help the team.
“The rugby pitches are longer. They have different lines and markings and it is not so easy to arrange, because everyday these pitches are used for football matches, we don’t have a dedicated rugby pitch,” he said.
The source also said that to get state sport grants, teams must meet certain criteria.
“In the first category we give grants to Olympic sports. The second category is sports that are recognised by the IOC and the third is all the other sports. We give money to all the sports that participate in the Olympic Games and so on.
“The criterion says you have to compete in a world championship, not in a friendly game or tournament and so on. They must compete with many teams and they must be in the calendar of the international federations,” he added.
McCowan dismissed KOA’s remarks as ‘absurd’.
“This is utter drivel; KOA knows that we adapt their stadia to meet our requirements. How else could we have played our last international against Monaco in the Makarion stadium, for which KOA charged us two thousand euros? We are a full member of the European Rugby Federation, like England, Wales, France and Italy; and compete in organised European leagues,” he said.
Under-funded and without full-time coaches, the team, which has enjoyed remarkable success on the international stage, could be in serious jeopardy of collapse unless an urgent injection of cash from KOA or private sponsors is not forthcoming soon.
For years the feeling has persisted that KOA has not fully recognised the popularity and success of the team, and the cold-shoulder from sporting authorities has also had a negative effect on the players.
“Of course it has an effect, but it is never reflected in their performances. We came up against the top European sevens sides in the summer, and the national coach of Wales, the champion team said we are the best team they had played in the competition,” McCowan added.
Only after seeking an interview with President Christofias, were they granted an audience with KOA to outline their level of complaint, although nothing came of it.
McCowan described the time the team accidently met President Christofias on flight to Georgia. Christofias was on official business and the team on its way to compete in the European Sevens in Georgia.
“He saw the team and came over and asked who we were. When we said we were the national rugby team, he said, he did not know we had one!” said McCowan. “Even so, he did get the press corps to photograph him with the players.”
Last year Cyprus international junior trip to Italy had to be abandoned because money to finance the matches could not be found, an incident that raised questions about the future development of the game amongst young sportsmen in Cyprus.
In response to questions from the Sunday Mail, the president of KOA has said he would be prepared to arrange a meeting with the Rugby Federation.
Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2008
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