The new competition system and new groups are an excellent topic for round rugby and for exchanging opinions about new opponents, about our game, chances and possibilities. The new opponents of the Eagles are the national teams of Moldova, Bulgaria and Turkey. According to the competition calendar, the first match awaits us in October, when we should travel to Moldova. Then on 13th of april we will host Turkey and on 20th of april, we will play away game at Bulgaria. You can learn more about the competition system in the article where we explained everything related to the new competition cycle.
The members of the rugby round table exchanged opinions on several topics that we consider interesting and which concern the competition and the Serbian national team. We may have gone a bit overboard with the length of the text, but never enough reading rugby literature. As for us, we always enjoy being able to analyze or exchange opinions or chat about domestic rugby at all levels. We hope you enjoy it.
What do you think of the new competition system of the European Rugby Federation?
Nikola Orlandic: The new system is a good move, especially for us at this moment, and it will certainly bring us new challenges but also options to progress and compete with serious teams. We will see if it will be implemented, but I would say a nice move in the right direction and certainly a great chance for us.
Milan Orlović: It can be said that RE started to think in a more positive way. After decades of senseless decisions, something that could look like an attractive and serious competition started. This rang is quite interesting. There is, of course, a lot more that could and should be done, but this is definitely a step forward. It remains for us to see what the final will look like, and in my opinion it should be of the tournament type in one of the 4 countries that will win their groups in this rank. And that weekend should also be mandatory for test matches for national teams that did not qualify. The number of quality matches should be increased, and groups of 6 participants could be a solution in the future. All these are financial expenses, but without investments there is no development. We will see in which direction the wise heads of RE are thinking.
Stevan Ilijašević: Looking at the whole system in general, I have to say that I don’t like it. And that’s because it’s being saved at the expense of rugby. Rugby is a sport of different level of playing, and special attention must be paid to that. With this system, the teams from Conference 1 and 2 were merged and 4 new groups were created according to the geographical principle. And now you get teams that were among the leaders in Conference 1 and have to play weaker teams from Conference 2. The difference in level is huge. Nobody needs high scoring games. And the result of that is that Montenegro gave up the competition in this system. We also lost one game in our group, which is a negative phenomenon of this competition. I have to say that I absolutely understand why Montenegro gave up, because this is really too much for them, both financially and as a player.
Ignoring the fact that we didn’t have a game that we should have, I have to say that I like the group where we are now. Moldova and Bulgaria are definitely teams that we need to reach and compete with. A very interesting challenge for us, and it will be very interesting to see how we respond to that challenge.
How strong is our group?
Nikola Orlandić: The group is good, balanced and we can expect a good result if we prepare well and show up with a strong team, especially with the Turkish and Bulgarian teams. Although I think that after Turkey’s victory at the tournament in Belgrade this summer, there are no more easy games at our level. Everything depends on us and what we will be like when that day comes. Not a single opponent should be underestimated from our side.
Milan Orlović: This ranking and the group we are in definitely offers much more than what we somehow found ourselves in in the past period. Opponents can be said to be tailor-made. Two national teams that are above 60 places in the ranking list and the always unpleasant and full of potential Turkish national team. It remains a pity that there is no such fifth team, in many respects BiH should have been there. In this way, the understandable withdrawal of Montenegro created a small problem in the schedule. As for the opponents, it is realistic to say that Moldova is someone who is considered a clear favorite, Bulgaria is a team with which we can compete, while Turkey is a slight outsider, although on a very accelerated development path. Serious rugby is something we can hope for.
Stevan Ilijašević: The group is very interesting for us because it is time to make a good result at a higher level. Mišel Milović is starting his third term as coach of the Serbian national team, which is a continuity we haven’t had in a long time, as strange as it sounds. The players are already used to Milović’s work and know exactly what is expected of them. From that point of view, we are ready and eager for bigger challenges. We have outgrown the previous group and I think it’s time to cross paths with stronger teams.
Did you follow the matches of Moldova, how ready is Serbia to respond to the challenge of a higher level?
Nikola Orlandić: Moldova is a strong team, the Romanian school of rugby, they have tradition and character of the team, leaders and way of playing, and you need to prepare well and analyze what way and model of game to apply. Definitely strengthen and perfect the defense and the system, play well in defense and seek advantage on the field from that pressure. Against serious teams, every mistake costs dearly and it is difficult to get the game back into rhythm if we don’t use our chances.
Milan Orlović: As someone who has been following Moldovan rugby for many years, I can say that they are on a level of their own. In many ways, the strongest team of this rank. Ten years ago they were Top 30 in the world. Their rugby has a long tradition and despite the relatively modest conditions and unattractive domestic competition they continue to produce top caliber players. This is especially true in melee, where they can very likely put together a team of professionals. They have players in the highest ranks of European club rugby, and when we add to that professionals from the Romanian and Russian leagues, this is a team with which even teams from higher ranks would struggle. Again, there is a mitigating circumstance, which is that they don’t always have their best players available, due to their professional status. So in some lucky case they would play with players from their championship, in such circumstances we would have a chance to compete. Admittedly, rugby is a sport where courage and determination play a big role, so if all the dice come together for us, we can be much more competitive. About twenty years ago, we were at a similar level.
Stevan Ilijašević: Definitely the strongest rival in the group, who was in the Trofej group some 10-15 years ago and achieved some very good results. Unfortunately, they failed to maintain continuity, and at one point they even managed to get relegated to Conference 2 North. However, they managed to consolidate and regain some of their old glory. When the national team is led by people of integrity and knowledge, the result must always come.
Moldova has plenty of players who play at a high level across Europe. A large number of them have professional and semi-professional status. That can be both good and bad news for us. Good in the sense that it is not very easy to bring a professional player to play for the national team, and bad if they manage to get together. What will be the biggest problem for us is definitely the scrum, because they managed to push even the Czech Republic, who qualified for the Trophy group this season, quite a bit. If we manage to form a strong team, which is especially strong in the first and second line, we can hope for something. It will largely depend on the players from abroad, because we cannot expect domestic players who compete in the Championship with three teams and where only three games were played in the spring part of the competition to match players who play 20+ games at a high level during the year.
Can Serbia finally beat Bulgaria? How do you comment on the rise of the Bulgarian national team over the past few seasons?
Nikola Orlandic: I think it can, of course, but it is very important that we first do everything to be ready, in the strongest squad and well motivated. The success of Bulgaria is not a surprise to me, even when I was coaching the RC’T Gooi team from Naarden in the Netherlands, 4 players from the Bulgarian national team played for the Delft team where I lived. I think that Petar Aleksov was even the captain of the national team at that time. I had a lot of individual training with them, the boys worked hard and managed to have 5 training sessions in the gym during the week. A lot of sacrifices and great love for sports. On the back of that national team, step by step, they reached where they are now, and that was in 2014. That means 10 years in creating and creating the atmosphere and character of the team. A large number of players from abroad, mostly from France, and the good work of the federation as well as the desire of players from the domestic defense. A sure way to success.
Milan Orlović: I think it’s about the nuances between those two national teams. Neighbors have a slight advantage in experience. Their main assets are Ivanov, Nikolov, Tsvetkov, Borisov… they have been playing together for about 15 years and have experience playing in France. First of all, Ivanov, whom I know from younger selections, the driving force of this national team and one of the best players from the Balkans ever. However, credit must be given to the coach and the entire Bulgarian rugby federation for the results achieved. The shift is more than obvious, they have a respectable team that lowers success both in rugby XV and in the Olympic discipline. It remains to be seen how much this will affect the development of rugby in Bulgaria.
Stevan Ilijašević: Bulgarians owe us a lot. The last time we met was in 2021. in Sofia when we narrowly lost 14-11. It was the opening game of the Milović era. Then a team that was not the strongest went to Bulgaria, but they fought like lions and did their best. It is this match that should be an example of great fighting spirit and the way we should play. We were extremely dedicated and focused, so it could have easily happened that the match ended in our favor.
We now have serious continuity, I think we have made a lot of progress both on the field and mentally, because we finally managed to get a winning mentality. Whenever I question it, I only look at the results of the matches against Bosnia and Herzegovina in the last three cycles. From the away defeat, where we were close to victory, until the last game when we were quite convincing. We are mature, the national team is growing, it is necessary to maintain work at a high level.
What is missing for Turkey to catch up with the other teams in the group?
Nikola Orlandic: Personally, I think that they lack absolutely nothing, except for the experience that they will gain soon and that they will show an excellent game in the next competition. They are physically strong, mobile, have a good coach and have nothing to lose and will only progress. They are a big country, with with an increasing number of clubs and players, Rugby is more and more popular and I think that they should be taken seriously before every game, after all, they did not accidentally win the Sedmice tournament in Belgrade this summer, which before the tournament I would say was certainly unimaginable to many.
Milan Orlović: Turks, like all nations without a serious tradition, have this problem of foundations. Although they have quantity and playing potential, they do not have that depth and make certain strategic mistakes in the moments when games break. It is obvious that their players do not have that base that is acquired in some earlier stages of the game and they do not have that level of patience needed in the stages when moving from defense to attack and especially when the situation is reversed. They definitely lack a few more seasoned leaders who could control such things. But definitely the nation that has the most potential when we talk about our complete rank, not just our group. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see their week among the best in Europe very soon.
Stevan Ilijašević: I don’t believe that Turkey will have too much success in this group. I think this is too big a bite for them. In the previous cycle, they lost to Montenegro, which, in my opinion, justifiably decided to drop out of this group and continue the competition in Development. We always beat them with a bonus point, but we were never dominant, which needs to be emphasized. Turkey is a country that invests serious resources in sports and places special emphasis on Olympic disciplines. So I think rugby 15 is not as much of a focus as rugby 7 is. When you look at their game, it’s quite chaotic for rugby 15, like they’re playing rugby 7 with 15 players in the field. I still remember the match from 2019. when we played against them on the field of SC Makis in Belgrade, when they took penalties in their own 22 meters as if they were playing7s rugby. I was shocked with what I saw then. Their game hasn’t changed much from that time. Any team that is disciplined and has an organized defense and a structured attack will not have too many problems against them. Otherwise, the Turks have very fast, physically ready players, it’s just necessary to use their potential in rugby 15, they succeeded in the 7s.
What segments of the game does Serbia need to work on?
Nikola Orlandić: We need to work on all aspects of the game, because there is a lot of room for improvement, but I certainly already talked about it, for me personally it is defense and understanding of every moment. Clarity in the lines of defense, integration of the scrum, i.e. attackers in defensive tasks, constant pressure and taking over with clear targets and an attempt to create a counterattack from every opportunity. Of course lineout and Scrum as the beginning of every action are imperative. In particular, the focus at every restart of the game is that we have lost dominance too many times and even the game due to a lost ball at the opponent’s 10 meters or less… I even think that it was the case against Bulgaria in the last game with them away. Responsibility in making decisions is, above all, in today’s modern game, the subject of serious preparations and work of the whole team.
Milan Orlović: Our game is very diverse. We have a lot of weapons and we play very much as a team. The team is well led, but in the end it is the players who turn it all into a result. The fact is that our players lack a greater number of games that would certainly bring greater self-confidence in certain decision-making moments. There is also the old problem of physical preparation, where we are somehow always behind. However, if we talk about specific segments of the game, there is no doubt that the static scrum will be the biggest test, especially against Moldova. Also support in cleaning rucks because the opponent’s speed in stealing will be even more pronounced than it was before. These are some of my thoughts where special attention should be paid.
Stevan Ilijašević: In the end it will turn out that I am Michel’s bot. However, since Milović took over the national team, the game has drastically accelerated. All players participate in an open game and that is by far our biggest advantage, but also the biggest opportunity to improve. Now we are facing much stronger opponents and if we want to keep the game at a high level, we must definitely improve our support and discipline. When you play fast and at a high tempo in all areas of the pitch, there must be no lag in support. It will also happen that we lose the ball, and that’s where you need to be disciplined and set up as soon as possible and prepare for that scenario. If we protest that the referee played keeping the ball in the ruck and beat our hands in the air, instead of positioning ourselves and being ready to defend, we won’t have too many chances.
Special attention should be paid to the scrum and scrum play. Everyone already knows that and it’s not news. If we don’t have the flow of the ball in the statics, that is, in the ruck and minor, we will have nothing to hope for. Our big advantage is that we are very mobile and our game system is at a high level. To be able to deliver it, we need the ball and control of the game.
What do you think is our biggest advantage in the competition that awaits us?
Nikola Orlandic: Our advantage can be that we are on a good run and on the right way to get a mentally strong team, mature players with good character and base. Everything else must be hard work, serious training and setting a clear goal. First of all — Where we want to be in ten years! There is nothing without a goal and a plan, it should be set now when the moment is good and all resources directed in that direction. Work in the domestic championship, strengthening of the domestic league and development of young players, strong cooperation with players from strong foreign leagues and certainly strong and serious work of the association to solve all the obstacles that will certainly be there. The first match is very important, and for it you have to prepare longer than usual, with a larger number of Irish players on the list, in excellent conditions and work on every little part of the game, the match and mental preparation. Because I believe that the others will not devote themselves any less to the same problem as we do.
Milan Orlović: It is difficult to say what our advantage is because we are entering into something completely new. Especially since we cannot be considered favourites. However, we have a series of good results that give us the right to have a high opinion of ourselves, and if the selector stays at the helm, we can only expect progress. We also have two decently good situations, which is that we have very talented young players in Serbia, as well as a significant number of expats who play at an enviable level and can provide an additional quality to the national team. We will see how those dice will be assembled, but the potential is quite large.
Stevan Ilijašević: Looking from the aspect of our team only, the biggest advantage is the definite continuity we have with the coach Mišel Milović. And we have to use it in the best possible way. Now we have only one match against Moldova. Perhaps it would be good to play a preparatory match. I don’t remember the last time we played a preparatory test match, and it wasn’t A against B in training. If we were able to follow up the continuity with more preparatory games, I think that would please the national team a lot.
Also, I must emphasize that educated and good players come from the younger categories. We cannot talk about a large number, but we can talk about the continuity of quality work with young people and their talent. You will have next weekend to see the talent of young people at the European Championship for U18 Juniors, where Orlići will perform in rugby 7s.
How much can a good result of the national team improve the state of domestic rugby?
Nikola Orlandic: Certainly it can in many ways. First of all, we need to work on visibility, media coverage, presence in the public sphere in a new and modern way. Today, there are no match reports anymore, there is not a single journalist who covers Rugby in Serbia, not a single portal, TV or radio.Not even when the national team plays…really embarrassing and disappointing. Make contacts in that direction. Which shouldn’t be difficult with the right story and approach. In addition to so many empty TV programs and channels, streams and podcasts in a constellation of nonsense, Rugby would have to rise and, as it is a unique sport, represent itself and our little Rugby world to a normal and advanced part of the people. I would like to remind you that we are in 1995. In 2010, we had live broadcasts of the Final Cup and Playoffs on the national frequency, articles in newspapers and several journalists who covered every rugby weekend and national team performances, and today we are where we are.
We have something to hope for and something to work on. We should do it well and set the course towards better days and successes.
Working with young people is encouraging and it would be nice if those kids today – would be more successful than us and in 10 years they would say that our plan was good and that we knew what we were doing.
A big greeting to all Rugby players and lovers and friends.
Milan Orlović: Unfortunately, in this sense, we cannot be too optimistic, even if the national team wins the group, which is really difficult to expect from this perspective. Good games will certainly create a certain positive energy, but that would be just the beginning because the situation is not exactly at an enviable level. It remains to be seen how this potential will be used, because the recent results were quite good, but we are still not moving in the desired direction. Although the level in the younger categories gives hope that something can be done. I must also add that all of its factors are responsible for the state of domestic rugby, not only those 20 or so selected players and their results, but maybe we’ll talk about that another time.
Stevan Ilijašević: Every victory of the national team brings a positive spirit in the rugby community. However, this is not enough to create a positive Cult of representation. Victories are not enough, but they are certainly desirable. The cult of representation is created and built over years and it cannot be defined by a simple definition. It is much easier to destroy it than to build it. It is necessary to talk about the national team and rugby, that everyone is looking forward to games and seasons, that the players can’t wait for the start of the cycle to learn new things, to compete and above all to socialize. The cult of the national team is not only built around the national team, but is built in the entire community of a sport, from the younger categories all the way to the veterans. To look forward to every tournament and every game, and not to consider it as a boring obligation that we have to finish as soon as possible, in order to do something else that is more fun.
Just take the example of the Serbian football team, where Pixi managed to achieve excellent results. Just a few days after qualifying for the World Cup, Serbia played a friendly match in front of almost empty stands at the Rajko Mitic stadium because the weather was a little worse. Then, during the World Cup, there was a total circus in the media regarding women footballers. There is no longer any cult of the national team. Rugby is not a popular sport in Serbia, and every volunteer, every coach, every rugby worker who has a vision, an idea and the will to implement it is of great importance. Even one person can make a huge difference. Don’t forget that!
