Clash of the most populous rugby nations

What if I told you there is an international rugby tournament on right now in which 40 per cent of the world’s population is represented?

Three of the four most populous countries on the planet are currently playing in the ‘Asia Division 3 East/South’ title in Jakarta – namely China, India and Indonesia. That’s a collective population of three billion right there. The world total is 7.7 billion.

But what does it mean in rugby terms? India has 18,500 players and China has 35,000. The lowest per capita among nations ranked inside the world’s top 100.

India and China are ranked 81st and 87th respectively. Indonesia, ranked 102nd, has a paltry 892 registered players.

In the opening game at the weekend, China thumped Indonesia’s Rhinos 63-10. Then on Wednesday they clinched the title with a 74-17 demolition of India. The third and final match of the series, between tournament hosts Indonesia and India this coming weekend, will be for pride only.

Almost a decade ago China suffered one of the most dramatic turnarounds in international rugby fortunes when destroyed 94-0 by India in Delhi.

Six years earlier they had thumped the same opponent 50-15 in Hong Kong! What happened? Apparently China were fielding separate army and civilian national teams at the time. The trend did not continue.

China has, in fact, beaten most teams in Asian competition over the years, including current Top 3 competitor Malaysia, as well as Sri Lanka, Singapore, Thailand and 2011 World Cup qualifying repechage finalist Kazakhstan. They also drew with Hong Kong on one occasion.

The sport’s return to the Olympics has been a boost for rugby in the nation. China seems to be focusing on women’s 7s, and has been collecting silverware in regional competition.

Meanwhile, a men’s XVs university league has been set up, concentrated mainly in the south-east. Obviously this needs to be kept in perspective, and there is no doubt rugby remains virtually invisible in the country.

It was a shame the huge sponsorship offer from Alibaba had to be cancelled. The deal, reportedly worth $100m over ten years, involved “ten thousand schools and universities” and “thirty thousand coaches,” and sought to increase player numbers to “one million” over the next decade.

But it fell through last year when the government made sweeping changes to administration, and World Rugby CEO Brett Gosper himself complained of a lack of progress. Still, the potential is there in China, and so is the money, and if they can get their women’s 7s team into the Olympics (conceivable) we might see the sport begin to take off there.

India is another story. Yes, rugby was introduced about the same time as it was to New Zealand and just a decade or so after South Africa. But it was confined to the white ruling class (as was the case in Southern and East Africa), and disappeared in the middle of last century when India gained independence.

The modern board of Indian rugby was set up in the late 1960s and only gained affiliation to World Rugby around the turn of this century. India also has a victory over current Top 3 competitor Malaysia to its credit.

Luke Wallace, centre, of Harlequins Football Club of England plays rugby with underprivileged Indian children at a coaching camp in Kolkata, India. (AP Photo/Bikas Das)

Other than that, it’s 94-0 annihilation of China in 2010 remains its outstanding achievement on the international stage.

Interestingly the domestic scene was dominated for some time by the Armenian College of Calcutta. As recently as 2011, talented Armenian-Indian fullback Emil Vartazarian represented the Asian Barbarians against Japan.

Rugby is an integral part of the two centuries old school, which fielded the first non-British team on the sub-continent 145 years ago.

India, of course, gave the game of rugby its first ever international trophy. Teams were selected along English and Celtic lines, and the game proved so successful they decided to arrange a return-match a week later.

Thus the Calcutta Football Club was formed – football referring to rugby in this instance (though the club did later convert to soccer).

Membership was exclusively white and featured games involving military, public schools and merchants and brokers teams, among others. The sport was taken up by various clubs, including the Bombay and Madras gymkhanas.

A sign outside the former’s clubrooms shamefully reads “Dogs and Indians Not Allowed.”

Playing numbers were never high, with most members preferring to spectate rather than play. The hot climate undoubtedly had a little to do with that.

In fact, the Calcutta rugby team folded as early as 1877 for lack of numbers. They had about 60 quid left in the bank and decided to draw it out in silver rupees, melt it down and have a cup made out of it by Indian artisans.

This they donated to the RFU, who put it at stake in the annual England vs Scotland match. And that’s the history of the Calcutta Cup.

The Calcutta Cup (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)