Clarifying Names of Rugby Union Teams
20 Mar 2016
All Blacks – The New Zealand Test Team – very good, very scary.
Barbarians – The title of a team made up of specially invited players that often plays against Test sides on tour in the northern hemisphere. The Barbarians team, also called the BaaBaas, usually includes the best players from numerous countries.
Black Ferns – The New Zealand Women’s Rugby Union Team.
Blues – The Super 15 team from Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand. Their full name is the Auckland Blues.
Brave Blossoms – Or the Cherry Blossoms is the term used for the Japanese rugby union team.
Brumbies – The Australian Capital Territories team from Canberra, Australia, known as the ACT Brumbies. They are a part of the Super 15 competition.
Bulls – The Super 15 team based in Pretoria, South Africa. Their full name is the Northern Bulls.
Canucks/Maple Leafs – The term for the Canadian rugby union team.
Cats – The Super 15 team based in Johannesburg, South Africa. They are known as the Golden Cats.
Cheetahs – The Super 15 team from South Africa. They are known as the Free State Cheetahs. They are based in Bloemfontein, South Africa.
Chiefs – The Super 15 team that hails from the Waikato region on the North Island of New Zealand, their full name is the Waikato Chiefs.
Crusaders – The Super 15 team from the Canterbury region, South Island of New Zealand. They are based in Christchurch and are known as the Canterbury Crusaders.
Eagles – The Eagles is the term used for the USA rugby union team.
Highlanders – The Super 15 team from the Otago region of the South Island of New Zealand. They are based in Dunedin and are known as the Otago Highlanders.
Hurricanes – The Super 15 team based in Wellington, New Zealand. The full title of the team is the Wellington Hurricanes.
Jaguares – The nickname for the professional rugby union Super 15 team based in Buenos Aries, Argentina.
Les Bleus – The nickname for the French rugby team.
Lions – The ‘British and Irish Lions’ rugby union side comprises a pick of the best players from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Rugby union circles refer to these four international Rugby Unions collectively as the “Home Nations” and therefore sometimes refer to the Lions team as a “Home Nations” team.
Los Pumas is also the traditional nickname of the Argentina national rugby union team.
Pumas – are a South African rugby union team that participates in the annual Currie Cup
tournament.
Reds – The Super 15 team whose full name is the Queensland Reds.
Sea Eagles – The nickname for the Tonga rugby union team.
Sharks – The Super 15 team based in Durban, South Africa. The team used to be known as the Natal Sharks or Coastal Sharks.
Springboks – The South African Rugby Union Test Team.
Stormers – The Super 15 team based in Cape Town, South Africa. Their full name is the Western Stormers.
The Oaks – Romanian national rugby union team.
Wallabies – The Australian Rugby Union Test Team.
Wallaroos – The Australian Women’s Rugby Union Team.
Waratahs – The New South Wales Super 15 team. Their full name is the New South Wales Waratahs.
W.Force – Western Force (referred to as Emirates Western Force for sponsorship reasons) is a rugby union team based in Perth, Western Australia playing in the international Super 15 competition.