The International Rugby Board has announced the match schedule for the 2008 IRB Nations Cup.

The international representative Tournament, which features a blend of A team sides from High Performance Unions and Full Test teams from Performance Unions, will again be played in Bucharest, Romania from June 11-20.

Reigning champions Emerging South Africa will be looking to defend the title they won last year, while Georgia, Romania, Italy A and 2006 participants Russia also return for the round robin Tournament. With Argentina A set to compete in the Churchill Cup in June, the final place is taken by Uruguay.

Following the resounding success of the 2007 Tournament in Bucharest, which was the first senior international Rugby competition to be held in the country for almost 70 years, the IRB Nations Cup will once again be hosted at the impressive Arcul de Triumf stadium where triple headers will be staged on each match day.

"The IRB is committed to increasing global playing standards and competitiveness through the implementation of a range of high performance Tournament initiatives," said International Rugby Board Head of Rugby Services Mark Egan.

Competition pathway

"As a part of the IRB's Strategic Investment programme, the IRB Nations Cup was designed to give the likes of Romania, Russia and Uruguay an opportunity to test themselves against a higher level of opposition than they would normally meet in their Regional competition environments."

"It also provides an important competition pathway for Unions such as South Africa and Italy who see this competition as vital in developing the next generation of Test players. Last year's Tournament served to foster the development of the Game in Romania, attracting strong attendances and broadcast coverage, while also serving as a key player and coach development role," added Egan.

For Performance Union Uruguay, the IRB Nations Cup provides the gateway to an unprecedented level of international competition in 2008, assisting in the development of players and coaches alike.

RWC 2011 development

"Uruguay is a good example of a Performance Union which will benefit enormously from competing in this Tournament. Combined with the CONSUR A competition in May, Uruguay will play in five Test matches in 2008 which is unprecedented for them and provides a crucial preparation pathway ahead of Rugby World Cup 2011 qualifying," said Egan.

The IRB Nations Cup Tournament format gives each of the six participants three matches. Teams are awarded four points for a win, two for a draw, one bonus point for scoring four or more tries and one bonus point for a defeat by seven points or less.

Emerging South Africa will begin their title defence on June 11 against Georgia, while Italy A play Russia and hosts Romania face debutants Uruguay. Two more rounds will follow before the 2008 IRB Nations Cup Champions are crowned.

IRB Nations Cup competition schedule

Match Day 1 - Wednesday, June 11
Italy A v Russia (16:00)
Emerging South Africa v Georgia (18:00)
Uruguay v Romania (20:00)


Match Day 2 - Sunday, June 15
Georgia v Uruguay (16:00)
Italy A v Emerging South Africa (18:00)
Russia v Romania (20:00)


Match Day 3 - Friday, June 20
Russia v Uruguay (16:00)
Italy A v Georgia (18:00)
Emerging South Africa v Romania (20:00)