Gazeta Lodz - Rugby World Cup dreams for the girls of Romania

One corner is peeling back and flaps uncertainly in the breeze but it doesn't change the message.

"Doesn't matter who you have in the front of you," it reads in Romanian. "It matters who you have next to you."

Togetherness, unity is the name of the game here as rugby attempts to rediscover the strength it held in Romania in the 1980s.

Back then, Romania was the sixth best side in Europe, ahead of Italy, and clocked up notable wins over Wales, Scotland and France, the country that nurtured the sport there in the early 20th century.

The 1989 revolution changed everything.

Florian Murariu, who had played in the inaugural World Cup two years earlier, became an emblem for the lost game when he was shot dead at a roadblock and the state money that propped up the game disappeared.

It has been a long and painful road back -- a 134-0 defeat by England in 2001 was ugly for all who watched -- but for youngsters like Cristina Stan, rugby represents a clear and positive future.

"I first started playing with the boys rugby team before CSM decided to found a girls' team," the 16-year-old centre told AFP.

"I would like to have a career in rugby, to reach a certain performance level, to play for the Romanian national team."

Cristina is on a mission. She trains three times a week at the stadium, which involves a two-hour round-trip from her village Ciorogarla, and every day at home, based on a personal plan developed by her coach.

"Next year I see myself in the national team," adds the ambitious teenager.

The women have yet to play at a full World Cup -- they are focussed on Sevens -- but the Stejarii (The Oaks) will be in France for this year's men's global showpiece which starts on September 8.

Up against Six Nations Grand Slam winners Ireland and defending champions South Africa, not to mention a hungry Scotland, Romania are unlikely to get close to the knockout phase.

They will, however, eye up their final match against Tonga in Lille as a chance to climb another rung on the ladder back towards the higher branches of the game.

++ Ahead of the Rugby World Cup in France, Agence France-Presse asked 20 aspiring photographers from each country qualified for the competition to show one aspect of the rugby union culture in their homeland, with the help of Canon cameras who are sponsoring the tournament. From Namibia to Fiji via Georgia and Scotland this photo essay gives us a glimpse of the core values of rugby on five continents.

E.Dudek--GL