The Brumbies (formerly known as the ACT Brumbies, for sponsorship reasons referred to as CA Brumbies) are a Super 14 rugby union team based in Canberra, Australia and named for the wild horses which inhabit Canberra's hinterland. The team represents the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and southern New South Wales (NSW) regions.

The Brumbies were formed in 1996 to provide a third Australian franchise for the newly-formed Super 12 (now Super 14) competition. It was predicted that the Brumbies, made up of so called 'rejects' — players not wanted by the other two teams — would perform poorly. Since then, they have enjoyed more success than all the other Australian teams combined, reaching five finals and winning two.

The Brumbies play in navy blue, white and gold kits. The team plays at Canberra Stadium (formerly known as Bruce Stadium) in Canberra and is currently coached by Andy Friend, who replaced Laurie Fisher after the 2008 season. The 2009 season will also see a new captain, with Stephen Hoiles replacing Stirling Mortlock in that role.

History

Rugby union football has a long history in the ACT. The British Isles opened their 1899 tour of Australia with a match in Goulburn. However, it was not until 1938 that the ACT Rugby Union was finally established. Four clubs made up the first local competition; University, Easts, RMC and Norths. Also that year, a representative ACT side faced off against the All Blacks, losing 5 to 56.

The first international victory for an ACT representative side was in 1973, when they defeated Tonga 17 points to six. In 1978 an ACT side defeated Wales, who were Five Nations champions at the time. ACT had trailed at half time, 6 to 16, but came back and won with a penalty kick in the final moments of the match.

ACT defeated NSW 44 to 28 at Sydney's Concord Oval in 1994, which led the way for the ACT to become a franchise, and be included in the new professional international Super 12 competition, alongside the Reds and Waratahs. ACT became Australia's third provincial team in the new competition, known officially as the ACT Brumbies.

In the inaugural Super 12 season, under coach Rod Macqueen, the Brumbies actually finished fifth on the table after the regular season, narrowly missing out on a finals position. The following season was even more successful as the Brumbies entered the 1997 Super 12 Final, but lost to the Auckland Blues.

Eddie Jones took over as head coach in 1998, but the Brumbies fell to tenth place on the 1998 season ladder. However, the following season saw a big improvement, as they finished fifth for the second time in their Super rugby history, just missing out on the finals. In 2000, the Brumbies made it to the 2000 Super 12 Final for the second time, and were actually hosting it as well. They were however beaten by the Crusaders, by just the one point, losing 19 to 20.

In 2001 they backed up their good performance in 2000 to again enter the final, this time against the Sharks from Durban. The Brumbies won the match, and in doing so, became the first team outside of New Zealand to be crowned Super 12 champions (and the only such team in the Super 12 era; the Bulls of South Africa won the 2007 Super 14). That year the British Lions also came to Australia, and played a match against the Brumbies. The combined strength of four nations was pitted against the Brumbies Second XV with the tourists winning by just two points, 30 to 28.

David Nucifora took over as head coach at the Brumbies for the 2002 season. Under Nucifora the Brumbies entered their third Super 12 final in a row, again against the Crusaders who had defeated them in the 2000 final. The Crusaders won the match, 31 to 13. The following season, going for four straight final appearances, the Brumbies fell just short, being knocked out in the semi-finals by the Blues. They did however go onto to beat Fiji and Tonga later that year.

In 2004 the Brumbies finished at the top of the Super 12 table, six points clear of the next best team. The Brumbies hosted the 2004 Super 12 Final as well, and were to face the Crusaders once again. Though this time, the Brumbies won, 47 to 38 in front of a record crowd at Canberra Stadium. During the off-season the ACT Rugby Union was renamed the ACT and Southern NSW Rugby Union, and the name of the team was changed to Brumbies Rugby.

Laurie Fisher took over as coach for the 2005 season. After an undefeated run in the early stages of the season, injuries began to mount up and the Brumbies eventually finished fifth, missing out on the finals. The following year the competition was expanded to the Super 14, introducing one new team from Australia and South Africa.

In 2006 the Brumbies finished sixth, missing out on the finals by 1 point, having never dropped out of the top four all season prior to the last round. Later that year the Brumbies played in the inaugural Australian Provincial Championship (APC). In their opening game they defeated the NSW Waratahs 14-13 at Viking Park. This win snapped a 3 game losing streak against their traditional rivals. They then went on to defeat the Western Force 25-10, again at Viking Park. Despite narrowly losing, 20-19, to the Queensland Reds on the road in Brisbane, the Brumbies won the right to face the Reds in the final back in Viking Park. They won this more comfortably, 42-17, securing the inaugural APC.

The Brumbies have announced that Andy Friend will succeed incumbent coach Laurie Fisher at the conclusion of the 2008 Super 14 season.

Colours and name

The Brumbies traditional colours are navy blue, white and gold. Their primary jersey is navy with gold trim, with navy shorts and socks. The alternate jersey is primarily white with navy sides and gold trim, generally worn for away matches. The Brumbies also have a traditional jersey which is used for games against fellow Australian Super 12 foundation teams NSW and Queensland, which reflects the original home jersey worn between 1996 and 2005. This features a navy 'saddle' across the shoulders and white below chest level, with gold trim. The primary jersey sposor is software company CA with DHL the sleeve sponsor and clothing sponsorship by KooGa.

The team is named after the wild horses which inhabit Canberra's hinterland. The Brumbies mascot is Brumby Jack. The Brumbies were originally known as the ACT Brumbies when they were accepted into the Super 12 for its inaugural season in 1996. Shortly after the 2004 season, two regional governing bodies in New South Wales - Far South Coast Rugby Union and Southern Inland Rugby Union, joined the ACT Rugby Union, which then renamed itself the ACT and Southern NSW Rugby Union. The team adopted a new name and logo for the 2005 season, dropping the "ACT" to become known simply as "The Brumbies". The name change identified that the team represented an area much larger than the Australian Capital Territory - with "Brumbies Territory" incorporating a number of regions through southern New South Wales including the Riverina, Shoalhaven, and Southern Highlands as well as the Sunraysia region incorporating parts of Victoria.

Stadium

The Brumbies play all their home fixtures at Canberra Stadium, located adjacent to the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra. They share the ground with the Canberra Raiders rugby league team. Also, the Canberra Vikings, the Brumbies' affiliate in the short-lived Australian Rugby Championship, played one of their four regular-season home matches there. In 2003 matches from the 2003 Rugby World Cup were played at the stadium. Capacity is a nominal all-seated 25,011, however the largest crowd is actually 28,753, which was for the 2004 Super 12 Final. The Brumbies team did not use Canberra Stadium for their post-season APC games, instead taking their home fixtures to Canberra's Viking Park, which has a smaller capacity.

Rivalries

The Brumbies have traditionally had a fierce rivalry with the NSW Waratahs. The original Brumbies team was formed of rejects from the Waratahs - ironically however the Brumbies have had more success over the duration of the Super 12/14. Brumbies v. Waratahs games are notoriously difficult for the away team to win - indeed the away team has only won on two occasions, including the Brumbies 51-10 humiliation of NSW in the 2002 semi finals. Brumbies/Waratahs games routinely attract sell out attendances.

Another notable rival of the Brumbies is the Crusaders. The two sides have met in three grand finals (The Brumbies winning one and the Crusaders two). In common with the Waratah rivalry the away side rarely wins in encounters between the two sides. The Brumbies are the only team to have scored 50 points against the Crusaders and have recorded the highest ever score in a grand final (48 points) against this side. The Brumbies remain one of few sides to have a competitive win/loss record against the Crusaders.

Season standings

{| class="wikitable"

Current squad

The squad for the 2010 season:

Season
Pos
Pld
W
D
L
F
A
+/-
BP
Pts
Notes
1996
5th
11	7	0	4	306	273	+33	4	32
1997
2nd
11	8	0	3	406	291	+115	9	41	(lost final to Blues)
1998
10th
11	3	0	8	248	364	-166	6	18
1999
5th
11	5	0	6	278	195	+83	8	28
2000
2nd
11	9	0	2	393	196	+197	9	45	(lost final to Crusaders)
2001
1st
11	8	0	3	348	204	+144	8	40	(defeated Sharks in final)
2002
2nd
11	7	0	4	374	230	+144	10	38	(lost final to Crusaders)
2003
4th
11	6	0	5	358	313	+45	7	31	(lost semi-final to Blues)
2004
1st
11	8	0	3	408	269	+139	8	40	(defeated Crusaders in final)
2005
5th
11	5	1	5	260	266	-6	7	29
2006
6th
13	8	1	4	326	269	+57	4	38
2007
5th
13	9	0	4	234	173	+61	4	40
2008
9th
13	6	0	7	277	317	-40	6	30
2009
7th
13	8	0	5	311	305	+6	6	38
Props Ben Alexander Salesi Ma'afu Guy Shepherdson Jerry Yanuyanutawa Hookers Huia Edmonds Stephen Moore Locks Mark Chisholm Justin Harrison Ben Hand Peter Kimlin Sitaleki Timani
Loose forwards Mitchell Chapman Stephen Hoiles(c) Rocky Elsom George Smith Henry Vanderglas Half Backs Josh Valentine Patrick Phibbs Fly Halfs Christian Lealiifano Matt Toomua
Centres Matt Giteau Stirling Mortlock Tyrone Smith Wings Francis Fainifo Andrew Smith Alifeleti Mafi Afusipa Taumoepeau Full Backs Adam Ashley-Cooper Pat McGabe Current internationals Teams as of 2009 Super 14 season Ben Alexander Guy Shepardson Adam Ashley-Cooper Mark Chisholm Stephen Hoiles Peter Kimlin Stephen Moore Stirling Mortlock George Smith Mark Gerrard Matt Giteau has been resigned from the Western Force after the completion of the 2009 season. Rocky Elsom, signed with the Brumbies after a season with Leinster. Notable players Owen Finegan David Giffin George Gregan Julian Huxley Stephen Larkham Jeremy Paul Joe Roff George Smith 100 Club 136 - George Gregan 116 - Stephen Larkham 112 - Jeremy Paul 106 - George Smith 101 - Stirling Mortlock 100 - Matt Giteau 100 - Bill Young Note: Players in Bold are still playing Super 14 rugby. Coaches Since Super 12 Rod McQueen - 1996 - 1997 Eddie Jones - 1998 - 2001 David Nucifora - 2002 - 2004 Laurie Fisher - 2005 - 2008 Andy Friend - 2009 - Franchise records Highest point scorer in a career - Stirling Mortlock (994 points, 1998-present (round 13, 2009)) Highest point scorer in a season - Stirling Mortlock (194 points, 2000) Highest try scorer in a career - Joe Roff (57 tries, 1996 to 2004) Highest try scorer in a season - Joe Roff (15 tries, 1997) Largest defeat - 44-10 - Waratahs (1995/1996 - Super 12) Largest Victory - 64-0 - Cats (2001), 79-15 - Bulls (1999) See also ACT and Southern NSW Rugby Union References External links Official site