RC Grivița București

RC Grivița București is a Romanian rugby union club currently playing in the Liga Națională de Rugby. They have won the Liga Națională de Rugby 12 times and the European Rugby Champions Cup in 1964.[1]

RC Grivița
Full nameRC Grivița - UNEFS București
Founded1932; 92 years ago (1932)
LocationBucharest, Romania
Ground(s)Stadionul Arcul de Triumf (Capacity: 8,207)
PresidentClaudiu Alexandru
Coach(es)Alexandru Marin
Captain(s)Damian Ispas
League(s)Liga Națională de Rugby

History

edit

Grivița Rugby Club is a Romanian rugby team with a storied history spanning over 80 years. It holds a prominent place among the most distinguished rugby teams in Romanian history. Throughout its existence, the club has been associated with some of the most illustrious figures in Romanian rugby, including renowned players such as Gheorghe Pârcălăbescu, Constantin Titi Cocor, Dumitru "Bombi" Zamfir, Viorel Morariu, Mihai Wusek, Mihai Tibuleac, Valeriu Irimescu, Costel Stănescu, Radu Demian, Constantin Dinu, Cornel Scarlat, and many other luminaries who have significantly contributed to the sport's growth in Romania. Notably, these players often formed the nucleus of the Romanian national rugby team during its periods of prominence.

Founded in 1932 under the initial name of CFR, the club embarked on a series of nomenclatural changes. By 1950, it evolved into Locomotiva–CFR, a name that underwent further streamlining to Locomotiva in 1955. A subsequent renaming in 1957 led to the appellation Locomotiva–Grivița Roșie. This nomenclatural journey persisted from 1958 to 1960 when the team competed under the designation CFR–Grivița Roșie. Ultimately, from 1962 onward, the club embraced the more succinct title of Grivița Roșie. Following the transformative events of the 1989 Revolution, the appellation was further refined, resulting in the adoption of Grivița as the club's name.

The club's administrative operations and home matches have been centered at Stadionul Parcul Copilului in Bucharest since 1953. This stadium also serves as the club's primary venue for its fixtures.

The transition to professionalism in the realm of rugby had a discernible impact on the club's trajectory, leading to a phase characterized by performance setbacks. This culminated in the club's relegation to lower-tier leagues, where it spent a duration of ten years. Despite these challenges, Grivița remains entrenched as the third most decorated Romanian rugby outfit, trailing behind the more heralded Steaua and Dinamo București.

In a significant development in 2022, coinciding with an expansion of the elite tier, Grivița achieved a notable resurgence as it secured its reentry into the prestigious Liga Națională (National League). For the top-tier matches the club uses Stadionul Arcul de Triumf. [2]

Honours

edit

Current squad

edit

In the 2022 edition of the Liga Națională de Rugby, the current squad is as follows:[3]

Note: Flags indicate national union under World Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.

Player Position Union
Radian Dima Prop   Romania
Cătălin Oancea Prop   Romania
Petre Mihaiuc Prop   Romania
Vasile Șeicaru Prop   Romania
Marian Forminte Prop   Romania
Andrei Iacob Hooker   Romania
Alexandru Oancea Hooker   Romania
Sorin Iancu Lock   Romania
Claudiu Podoleanu Lock   Romania
George Antonescu Lock   Romania
Andrei Dănilă Flanker   Romania
Vasilică Mercone Flanker   Romania
Răzvan Pașnicu Flanker   Romania
Damian Ispas (c) Back row   Romania
Player Position Union
Ștefan Pătrașcu Fly-half   Romania
Lombard Vincent Fly-half   France
Andrei Șerban Scrum-half   Romania
Robert Constantin Scrum-half   Romania
Mihai Cernean Scrum-half   Romania
Cătălin Neacșu Centre   Romania
Richard Plopeanu Centre   Romania
Silviu Mircea Wing   Romania
Marius Ioana Wing   Romania
Ionuț Latu Wing   Romania
Bogdan Iacovache Fullback   Romania
Alexandru Mircea Fullback   Romania
Florin Iancu Fullback   Romania

References

edit
edit