Poland won 2025 Men’s Rugby Europe Trophy title decider after edging out Sweden in a brilliant encounter.
They will not be promoted back to the Championship division as a result as promotion/relegation is calculated over 24/25 and 25/26 season cycle, but nevertheless this is still a fine success for Poland.
Going into the match in Trelleborg at the weekend, Poland were top of the six-team standings, but both they and second placed Sweden had 18 points after four wins apiece.
Now they are on 22 and 19 points respectively having completed their five matches after Poland dug in for a 29-25 win on the road in a cracking contest.
Poland stand-off Wojciech Piotrowicz missed a penalty to open the scoring after 60 seconds and, in fact, it was the Swedes who got the first points on the board.
After six minutes centre Axel Kalling-Smith went over for a try with stand-off Jack Tatu Robertsson converting for 7-0.
Just before the end of the first quarter, Poland levelled things up when winger Lukasz Kornec scored and Piotrowicz converted.
A Tatu Robertsson penalty then made it 10-7 to Sweden before, In the 28th minute, Poland’s second try came when full-back Kacper Wrobel scored an unconverted effort.
Just before the referee blew the half-time whistle a Tatu Robertsson penalty made it 13-12 to Sweden and it really was tight which was not surprising for such an important game.
The first points in the second half were going to be important and, 13 minutes in, they came via a converted try from hooker Dominik Mohyla for Poland and suddenly it was 19-13.
A penalty from Piotrowicz made it 22-13 just before the hour mark, but then, just after the hour mark, Seden got their first points of the second period.
Tighthead prop Ale Loman was the man to go over, but it was crucially not converted and Poland led 22-18.
Nerve were kicking in and Piotrowicz missed a penalty with 12 minutes to go before Sweden were dealt a blow when Adrian Wadden, the second-row, was sin-binned and they were to play the majority of the rest of the game with 14 men.
With six minutes to go No.8 Thomas Toevalu’s converted try made it 29-18 to Poland and they seemed home and dry, but shorthanded Sweden were not done and Kalling-Smith’s second try of the day converted by Tatu Robertsson made it a four-point game with three minutes to go.
Late on Sweden were back to 15 men, but Poland held on to come out on top 29-25 in a match where both sets of players threw everything at it.
There were two matches in the men’s Rugby Europe Conference on Saturday.
Türkiye hosted Serbia in Pool C in the Ataturk Olimpiyat Stadium in Başakşehirat and the visitors won 28-12.
And then, in Pool B, Hungary and Ukraine met at the Budapest Rugby Centre in Budapest and Ukraine were on top form to come out on top emphatically 86-10.
By Gary Heatly
Photos by Daniel Storch
