Campese's all-star Barbarians ready to take Tens by storm
Wallaby great David Campese has always lived by the maxim that rugby was meant to be entertaining, and things will be no different for him at the GFI HKFC Tens today now that he is coach of the Asia Pacific Barbarians.
Campese has promised 'enjoyable' rugby from a team making their international debut in Hong Kong. And with a star-studded line-up taking to the field at the Hong Kong Football Club, including legends such as George Gregan and Christian Cullen, the Asia Pacific Barbarians are set to raid the trophy cabinet.
'We want to play a style of rugby that people enjoy watching -and the boys enjoy playing,' says Campese. 'At the end of the day, no matter what level you play at, rugby is a game first and foremost to enjoy.'
Three years ago, when the Bledisloe Cup between Australia and New Zealand was played in Hong Kong for the first time, rugby enthusiast Jon Phelps had a conversation with Sean Fitzpatrick, John Kirwan and Campese about the idea of creating a team which would carry the true message of rugby across the region.
From that conversation the Asia Pacific Barbarians was formed, with ex-All Blacks skipper Sean Fitzpatrick being the first president and Campese coaching the team in Hong Kong.
'We felt that rugby as a sport is growing in popularity in Asia, particularly with the development of the Asian Five Nations and the Rugby World Cup in Japan in 2019. The other major factor was the inclusion of sevens in the Olympics,' said Phelps, whose company, Carinat, is the force behind the Barbarians. 'But we must not forget the uniqueness of 15s. 'To develop rugby [15s] as a sport in Asia in the next five to 10 years, we need to embrace fans by providing them with experiences that will invoke a special connection that lasts over a long period of time, and hopefully the Asia Pacific Barbarians will provide that,' Phelps said.
The presence of Fitzpatrick and Campese on the sidelines will be a huge boost as the Barbarians take their first fledgling steps in the next two days.