South Korea national rugby union team

It is unknown when rugby was first played in Korea. During the mid-19th century, European sailors are recorded as playing some of the earliest games in north east Asia, in ports such as Shanghai and Yokohama in neighbouring China and Japan, but it is unclear whether this occurred in Korea itself. However, it seems certain it had some presence by the mid-20th century. Korea was to become occupied by Japan, the main rugby playing nation of Asia, and it could well have been introduced then. In the amateur days, South Korea maintained a fierce rivalry with Japan.[1]

After World War II, and later, during the period of the Korean War, the large influx of troops from Commonwealth countries cemented its presence.[1] One legacy of this is that South Korean rugby has traditionally been strongest in the army.[1]

However, South Korean rugby has a second string to its bow. The massive growth of the economy since the 1960s, meant that a number of Korean corporations were to set up company teams along the lines of those in Japan, and this has broken up the former dominance of the military.[1]

South Korea made a failed attempt to have rugby union at the Olympic Games readmitted, when they hosted the games in Seoul.[2] Roh Tae-woo, who was South Korean president at the time, had been a player.[3] South Korea have emerged as an important rugby nation in Asia, since they won the Asian Championship in 1990.[1]

• Lee Ken-yok.[1]
• Kim Yeon-ki.[1]
• Sung Hae-kyoung.[1]
• Roh Tae-woo, 13th president of South Korea (1988–1993).[3]
• Kim Keon Young

Expatriate rugby was first played in Korea in 1972. An expat team called the Seoul Wanderers were formed to give opposition to both the local university teams and stationed army teams. This team was made up of players from the UK, New Zealand, and Australia. The team was disbanded in 1976. However, the void caused by a lack of rugby was soon to be filled. In late 1977 Billy Cornett and Brad Handley got together and decided to form a new expat club - the Seoul Survivors. The club is still around today.[5]

Other Expatriate clubs include the Busan Bandits Rugby Football Club (based in Busan), the Ulsan Goblins Rugby Club (based in Ulsan) and the Stars & Stripes Korea Rugby Club (based in Pyeongtaek).

South Korea 31-man squad for the 2015 Asian Rugby Championship.

• Head Coach: Chung Hyung-seok

Forwards Player Position Club Kim Jeep Hooker KAFAC Na Kwan-young Hooker KAFAC Kim Min-kyu Hooker KAFAC Shin Dong-won Prop Kintetsu Liners Son Young-ki Prop POSCO Kim Kwang-sik Prop Honda Heat Koo Ji-Won Prop Sunwolves Park Sung-ku Prop Kubota Spears Kim Ho-bum Lock Kubota Spears Han Kun-kyu Lock KEPCO Youn Kwon-woo Lock Musashino Atlastars Jang Seok-hwan Lock KAFAC Park Soon-chai Lock NTT DoCoMo Red Hurricanes Kim Hyun-soo Flanker KEPCO Yun Il-han Flanker Dankook University Hwan In-jo Flanker KEPCO Kim Jeong-min (c) Flanker KEPCO Son Min-su Flanker Kyung Hee University Lee Young-seung Number eight Hino Red Dolphins

Backs Player Position Club Shin Ki-chul Scrum-half POSCO Lee Myung-jun Scrum-half KAFAC Park Wan-young Scrum-half KEPCO Lee Eu-dum Fly-half POSCO Lee Eu-tteum Fly-half POSCO Oh Youn-hyung Fly-half KEPCO Jegal Bin Centre NTT Communications Shining Arcs Kim Nam-uk Centre KEPCO Kim Sung-soo (vc) Centre KEPCO Kim Gwong-min Wing KEPCO Park Han-gyul Wing Korea Rugby Union Chang Yong-heung Wing Yonsei University Jang Seong-min Fullback KAFAC Nam Young-soo Fullback KAFAC

• Korea at rugbydata.com
• Current Squad