We came up with the idea of a rugby round table because we want to talk about the national rugby team. We want rugby to be talked about and written about as much as possible, because the sport is only as popular as the people who follow it and talk about it. The concept itself is such that we will ask all participants the same question, to which they will give an answer. The idea is to use the article to try to evoke the atmosphere that it would be like to meet somewhere for a drink where we would talk about current rugby topics.
We are planning to create round tables for various topics, where you would communicate with people who have interesting thoughts and understandings. Specifically, the round table for the Serbian national team will consist of Nikola Orlandić, Milan Orlović and Stevan Ilijašević, that is, our little one.
Nikola Orlandić is a former coach of the Serbian national team who has enviable experience in Serbian rugby. Among others, he coached BRK Crvena Zvezda as well as RK Rad in Serbia. During his tenure as national team coach, Serbia played perhaps the best half ever in its history against Cyprus. Milan Orlović is a former player, coach and selector of the Serbian national 7s team. He was also the head coach of the national teams of younger categories. He is currently an active player in the United States of America where he plays for Montclair Rugby from New Jersey. For us, one of the biggest successes was playing the Finals at the qualification tournament for going to the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, when in 2015 we played the final against Ireland in Zagreb. In the end, I don’t have too much to say about myself. Browse the site and you will see my thoughts.
1. Serbia completed the season in Conference 2 South without defeat. What is your biggest impression from last season?
Nikola Orlandić: Certainly a fantastic season behind us, a big move in the ranking and a great result. The greatest impression was left by the continuity in the game without too many drops and oscillations and the control of the games, which depended in many ways on the experienced players of the game. A healthy core was preserved, the so-called backbone or vertical, the leaders of individual groups and that senior leadership brought the upper hand in the most important moments while giving the youth a chance to play at a high level. Some things simply fit together and brought a nice result after, it must be said, many years of creation, above all a positive and competitive culture within the national team itself. It’s nice to see guys that I myself coached 6 years ago, leading by example and with great sacrifice and dedication and giving their best and still progressing and working on their game and approach to matches, as well as in their personal careers.
I was most pleasantly surprised, of course, by the excellent performance in the away matches, which in the end proved to be the most important and where the team played and prepared excellently and achieved what was desired. Wins and possible placement in a better and more elite club next season. I think we definitely deserved that place because the game in the last couple of games was really at a solid level, although there is still room for improvement, which is a great thing. Also a good impression was left by all the young players who played and contributed to the success and through their work you can see the work in the domestic championship and clubs and the intersection of talent and the future of domestic rugby.
Milan Orlović: I’ll start with the unpopular one, but my main impression is that we lacked a suitable opponent. The fast and meaningful game in attack, which currently characterizes the Serbian national team, could be a challenge for much more serious teams. Unfortunately, our opponents are not at such a competitive level. Even the national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina is paying the price of great incompetence due to the bad club situation. Montenegro and Turkey have talent and potential, but they are still a step, two behind us, especially when we have available players from abroad. However, in order not to leave the main impression on competitiveness, it should be pointed out that the team played very self-sacrificing and fast rugby. Excellent balance and coordination between melee and line. It is also positive that we had the opportunity to see some younger forces taking the initiative and giving a new quality to the game of the national team.
Stevan Ilijašević: Since Mišel Milović took over the team, we have recorded six wins and one defeat, and that was very close, in Milović’s first match, away from Bulgaria 14-11. So the six game unbeaten streak is even, dare I say it, maybe the longest streak in history. We can take this information with a grain of salt, but it is an undeniable fact that we are slowly becoming a winning team with enough self-confidence.
The biggest impression for me is the way the team is put together, how it seems on the field that everyone knows what they are doing and what their task is. When you set things up like that, it’s much easier to present the players with a more complex game plan or demand a high tempo and fast ball. When you establish such a system of play, few national teams can match you.
Maybe not the main impression, but one of the biggest impressions is the long bench, where at any moment you could bring a player into the game who would maintain the same or similar level of rugby. A large number of playing options can be a very big advantage at the current level we are at.
Young people are also coming, and they are coming much faster than we think. Now we had the opportunity to see Ivan Voštić (2003) and Danijel Stojanović (2004) coming from the bench. And we are still waiting for quality young players, who will mature in the coming period and who are more than capable of playing at a very high level.
2. What do the Eagles lack the most in order to play at an even higher level?
Nikola Orlandić: First of all, which way is domestic rugby going, the domestic league and work with young and talented players and the balanced work of the federation and communication with the boys, and now there are already quite a few of them, who are quite successfully playing semi-professionally or professionally in European and world leagues. Through the training process, it would certainly be necessary to work on perfect technical and individual skills, but also on improving the philosophy of the game itself, understanding situations and the best and least effective solutions. Certainly, a greater number of games during the competition year would be a great thing, so that there would be no drop in motivation, focus and competitive temperament.
Physical strength and endurance are today the basic conditions for any progress in any sport and especially in our sport, where there are no players in any position under 90kg at full strength, which can be seen in the groups immediately above us, especially in groups where I would like to see Serbia in about five to ten years. A strong individual approach and training, commitment of the players and a strong and constant support of the Rugby Union with a clear plan of 10 years ahead where we want to go.
We have a fantastic generation and it should be preserved and rejuvenated in the right way, because for a long time we have not had the opportunity to play with more serious teams, to host some bigger Rugby nations and to grow, and this current success should not be dropped just like that, but try to let’s turn it into a constant from which local Rugby, clubs and some new young rugby players and great people will grow.
Milan Orlović: The team is a very solid combination of youth and experience. There is no shortage of talent, but there is still room for improvement. I would single out harmony as a key factor. It can be noticed that some players lack a bit of routine. I think that this selection of players needs more games together. It is ungrateful to expect that with about 10 training sessions and 4 matches a year, it will be possible to play more team and organized rugby. He also sometimes lacks a bit of that so-called rugby fitness, but it didn’t bother him too much in terms of results. But ours must not relax, but we must work on it so that banal mistakes do not occur. They are especially pronounced in some defensive tasks when, due to unpreparedness, the level of aggressiveness is reduced and opponents are given an undeserved advantage.
Stevan Ilijašević: What is missing the most is more time during the year where the team spends together as well as more games. If they looked at things from an ideal point of view, where finances are not a problem, it would be best if the team played one test match before each cycle, and if they went on a tour abroad once a year.
Training matches are used for playing and for testing various options. If you only play competitive matches, you don’t leave too many options for the selector, except to rely on already known strengths and personnel solutions. In this way, you may be depriving a young player of proving himself and showing what he can do and how ready he is.
Touring is a great thing in every conceivable aspect for rugby. First, the players will spend a lot of time together. He will do a lot of training and have a few friendlies in his legs. A big investment that will definitely pay off in several ways. All serious national teams who play at a strong level and want to continue in that rhythm, organize non-stop tours and training camps. When your young player comes out of the junior categories, he is still a raw prospect who needs to be shaped and developed until he is 23-24 years old. There is no better thing than when a young player can develop by working with the best coaches and when they are given room to improve. I think that this is our chance to direct new generations to a completely new level.
3. Which part of the team would you particularly strengthen?
Nikola Orlandic: As I have always been a big fan of defense, defensive tasks and clarity in the game, I would certainly pay attention to that part of the team. From the last attacker to the last defender, all channels and positions from 7 to 15. That part of the team covers three quarters of the field in width and great depth, and if the defense is clear and precise, all other tasks and forms of the game can be developed and practiced after that.
I have always believed that attack is a matter of training and repetition of some coordinated variations and actions, but that defense is actually the character of the team, our personal stamp and what makes us recognizable and unique. As we defend, so will we attack, and I think that even in modern rugby, defense and the sacrifice of each player in their defensive roles prevail. Support, understanding of opportunities, the role of the modern jackal in stealing the ball from cancer, but also the very desire to win the field from the defense, go forward and win those small battles on the field and discourage the opponent.
The play and communication of the last three defense players, 11, 14, 15, and the organization and support in the counterattack, which is still quite undeveloped in our game and where there is always an opportunity to create a good opportunity from a half chance and given possession of the ball, is especially important. Although, of course, we must not forget that there are no unimportant positions in Rugby and each player is a specialist in his tasks. Without a strong and mobile scrum that will put the opponent under constant pressure, there is no good defense either. Although I personally think that we have a lot of room to improve in the line play from the first phase after the scrum, after the throw-in and certainly the counter-attack where we could and should have caused much more damage and won our chances while the game is in the so-called broken phase, without a clear forms and lines of defense.
And of course the famous and very important vertical which is the basis and strength of every team, which for me as a coach was always the starting point for all plans and the way my team should play. Individual operative groups and leadership. Positions 2,8,9,10 and 15. Equal power off the bench and the impact each player will bring upon entering the game.
Milan Orlović: Before talking about positions, I would like to point out that some consistency is needed. We have a frequent situation of so-called “hole plugging” where some players do not play in their natural positions and change their place in the team. This especially applies to the so-called backbone of the team (2,8,9,10,15). Players in these positions must be real leaders and above all capable of making decisions under pressure. Everything starts from them and the others have to follow it. If we were to talk about some positions, I think that in our way of playing, a center and a stopper who primarily play as “breakers” would be useful. It is also necessary to rejuvenate the first line, which is certainly the most demanding part of the team.
Stevan Ilijašević: The current level we were at was an ideal opportunity to try out some players and gain much-needed experience. For any framing, if you want to do it the right way, it must be of a long-term nature. You must have a goal to strive for. If you have a goal, if you have a good plan on how you will realize the set goal and if you have good communication, then you are on the right track.
Theoretically speaking, if our goal is placement in a higher group and let’s say the goal is to stay in that group for the next five seasons. First of all, we have to have a competitive scrum. Let’s take for example the scrum of Bosnia and Herzegovina last year, which simply cleaned us up. This year, the situation in the first half was totally different, but in the second part of the match we had difficulties. First of all, it is necessary to have a strong first line. Without the first line there is no flow of the ball, without the ball you have nothing to look for on the field.
Vladimir Đukić and Predrag Vraneš are in excellent shape and were at a very high level in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Boris Martić would certainly have been part of the team if he had not been injured, but he is already in his late years. An excellent option is Igor Marinković from Hanover, who in my opinion is a very quality player. The player who is quite available to us and who is of very good quality is Stevan Stanojević from Australia, who can equally well cover the positions of the post and the second line. We should also keep in mind the young players whose time is definitely coming, and I think of Dušan Jovanović and Boris Milojković, who could use their chance in the coming seasons.
However, what we lack the most is a quality playmaker option in the opener who is an excellent kicker. In Zenica, we had the opportunity to see Marko Gvozdenović, who plays in the third and second lines, dominating the opener. A scrum man came and played fantastically in a position that is not his primary position. There are currently no quality options abroad to cover this position. Most of the opening position was covered by Nikola Stankovic, who we think is one of the most lethal second centers we’ve ever had. Also, Aleksandar Andrić, who was the best scorer in the domestic league for several seasons, is a quality solution. However, what I would like to mention is that there are very high-quality solutions in the class of 2006, but I would not mention them publicly so that their egos don’t grow.
4. How important is a strong domestic competition to have a good national team?
Nikola Orlandić: Progress certainly depends on the quality of the domestic league, which is the beginning of all development and success. In the end, all the players who today defend the colors of various clubs abroad mostly came from domestic clubs. They gained their first successes, knowledge and quality in maybe some better years in home matches and working with local coaches.
Quality exists and has always existed, it is necessary to establish the continuity of the competition, good work with young people and, most importantly, protect players from injuries and during transitions from youth to seniors, where unfortunately most good players were lost. An example of good and continuous work are the teams of Rad and lately Dinamo from Pancevo, which have great generations in almost all categories. Unfortunately, the clubs that have a long tradition and great successes, Partizan and Belgrade Rugby Club, have been failing to continuously bring out young generations for years, and because of this, they suffer and have problems in the senior selections, where the time for generational changes has arrived.
Despite the great players who have been defending the colors of those clubs for more than a decade, even two. The development of Rugby in Petrovac is also a nice thing, which is the most pleasant surprise in recent years, and I hope that they will be patient and with good work manage to put the club on a healthy footing and gain depth and numbers in a small environment. On the other hand, we have Vojvodina, which as the only club in Novi Sad has not yet managed to form junior categories, although as a name and as a tradition in that big city, it should have incomparably more members, better conditions and greater influence in domestic rugby. And of course bearing in mind the smaller clubs Ruma and Loznica, which until now have gravitated in that direction with their also modest capacities in addition to the great desire and will of certain individuals and lovers.
In any case, even as a player, and later as a coach, I always saw great potential in Serbian Rugby and all the clubs I played in and coached. Where, despite the small number of players, there was always talent and a few excellent guys who managed to bounce back and be noticed and even reach the national team level.
Belgrade Rugby Club, Rad, Partizan, Dinamo, Vojvodina, Torpedo, Loznica, Ruma, Vršac, Dorćol, Žarkovo, Kruševac… one would say a man of rugby nations, but unfortunately the situation on the field says the complete opposite. Unfortunately, there are reasons for the state of rugby as it is today in many aspects of our lives and they are mostly not related to sports matters, unfortunately we all know that sport in general in Serbia is in decline and has been in a catastrophically bad state for decades, and even our most trophy sports have been reduced to hooliganism and media and tycoon spitting and aimless wandering and snatching around pocket money.
Since our sport has always been different, without material benefits, cameras and spotlights and opportunities for eternal flattery, I think that a new and better time for Rugby in Serbia can come. If all of us are better, ready for cooperation and help and of course hard and serious work. Work that, apart from good company, some cold beer, beautiful moments and eternal memories, does not bring fame and money, but brings something priceless, which is to call ourselves Rugby players and members of the great world rugby family. You need to be an optimist and a worker, not give up and do your best, and the results will come, I’m sure, in the next generations who today look at us as idols and positive role models.
Milan Orlović: For the individual development of a player, it is necessary to have a healthy and competitive competition at the club level. Without such a foundation, players cannot mature and fulfill their full potential, so the quality of the games will be proportional to that. On the other hand, rugby as a demanding physical sport simply requires the player to have a high level of fitness. Consistency in matches and high-quality domestic competition forces every player to be the best version of themselves, and there is no alternative to that. To our great regret, the smoking championship has a negative constant, and what is surprising is that it is completely opposite to the situation we have in competitions of younger categories. We definitely need some kind of turnaround in that regard. Without that, we can’t even hope for a big representative perspective.
Stevan Ilijašević: The domestic competition is the backbone of the national team. We are not football or basketball that we can allow all the players to be from abroad. In order for players who play for clubs in Serbia to be competitive at the international level, they must have domestic competition with strong matches.
The situation here is not exactly at a great level. Partizan was eliminated from the competition. A few days ago, Rad beat its closest competitor Dinamo with 72-12. Currently, we have three teams in the highest quality competition, where there are still postponed matches that have yet to be played. No one has had 23 players in the protocol until now.
The situation is somewhat better in the B group where rugby 10 is played. RK Dorćol 1998, RK Kruševac, BRK Crvena Zvezda, RK Rad 2 and RK Vojvodina perform there. Several players from the B group appeared for the Serbian national team. But what the national team needs are players who play rugby 15 consistently and at a high level.
5. If the European Rugby Federation decides this summer that Serbia advances to the group above, what do you think is the reach of our national team?
Nikola Orlandić: I think that we certainly deserved that place with our games in the past few years, and I expect that to happen and that next year we will play in a higher rank, where, in my opinion, we at least have a place.
I would like to remind the younger and older people that in the nineties and at the beginning of the new millennium we played with teams from Switzerland and Ukraine, that we played competitively and with considerable success against Croatia, Hungary, Denmark, Andorra, Bulgaria and other teams that today are in the groups above or even in the Trophy group below the Champions group of the big ones. And also at the end of the eighties, our junior national team played a very close match with their peers from Italy, which today plays in the 6 Nations Cup.
So a higher rank is certainly a greater obligation, to stay and strengthen in that society at all costs, play strong matches, travel and learn from the best and develop your own approach and culture of the national team and the Rugby nation, which I’m sure in the current gray of sport and culture has a great chance for success precisely because people are fed up with old and false things and values.
With the success of the national team, other doors open, media visibility, the popularity of the sport itself, role models for the young and talented, the number and conditions of training, and of course the quality at the end of the process. We should certainly have good relations and bring in players from abroad and domestic origin, especially those who studied rugby in world rugby countries because their contribution is immeasurable, and in parallel work on numbers and quality in the domestic defense and clubs until everything is balanced and falls into place. and that can actually happen very quickly.
I believe that even now, in the strongest squad with serious preparations and mentality and several good players in leadership positions, maybe from abroad, the Serbian national team can play and cope with the teams from the Trophy group in which the champion is one Switzerland, which we are not so won a long time ago. I think that the reach of the national team is as much as we want to dream and we go together in good work and the atmosphere of a good, fighting and characterful team that will put every opponent to the maximum test of their capabilities.
It is certainly time to go higher, to work harder and better, and to perhaps encourage ourselves to think that we are still better than the others and thus start to behave and live those values. The boys played excellent two years and deserved a higher rank, I believe they will get a chance to prove themselves against stronger teams and then it’s all up to us and our strength and commitment. I have always tried to be positive and optimistic, so I believe that better times will come, but we have to earn them. I am looking forward to returning to Serbia in the fall and perhaps enjoying watching a good match of the national team in a better and better company.
Greetings to all Rugby players and friends, see you soon.
Milan Orlović: Like many times before, the umbrella organization of rugby on the continent shows its incompetence to manage the competition. I wouldn’t even want to talk about development. But that’s not the topic, but it’s certainly not easy to play in a competition where you don’t know what you’re playing for. However, if Serbia, which it certainly deserves, is placed in a higher rank, I think we have the quality to compete with all the national teams that will be there.
Not so long ago, Serbia played with most of those rugby nations. How they are currently in front of us is a topic for another time. However, according to me, one thing will be crucial. And that is the level of physical preparation, which, along with the number of games in the legs of each player in the team, will be a decisive factor in each game. The talent is there, the knowledge in the coaching staff led by Michel is also there, but the players will have to put in a lot of work to prepare for it. Of course, all this must be accompanied by our Association, which would have to enable the selector to choose the best available players and, if at all possible, organize some preparatory games. Not a small task for everyone, but if we want to progress, more work must be done.
Stevan Ilijašević: We have a place in the higher ranks, and it is our place to fight for positions at the top. But as I said before, we need a clear goal, so that everyone knows what our goal is. When you ask a kid at a children’s tournament what the goal is, let everyone know. A clear long-term plan must be put in place to guide where we should go. If we work spontaneously, we will never do anything. There is not much philosophy here.
Teams like Cyprus, Malta, Israel, Bulgaria are currently up to our standards and I think we can deal with them equally. My subjective opinion is that we are better than them and that we can freely dream of even a higher level, but only then. If we work hard and if we are focused on the goal, we can go far.
