Andy Hazell
Encyclopedia
Andy Hazell is an English
rugby union
player who plays at flanker
for Gloucester Rugby
.
He took up the game aged 12 when he joined Old Richians, where he stayed for four years before joining another of his local teams, Gloucester Old Boys. His first representative game was for the South West U16s before joining the Premiership and making his debut at 19. He went on to establish himself as the main openside flanker
.
He pulled on an England shirt for the first time playing for England U21s and was a member of the SANZAR squad that played in the Argentina
competition back in 1999. In 2001 he played for the England XV that took on the Barbarians
and also went on the England tour to North America
, playing in both midweek games and scoring a try against British Columbia
. His England A
debut came in 2002 when he played Scotland A
at Headingley and impressed throughout the 2003 England A Six Nations tournament.
Hazell was chosen for England's highly successful senior tour of New Zealand and Australia
in June 2003 and played in the 23–9 victory over New Zealand Māori
in New Plymouth, before flying to Vancouver to become a member of England’s Churchill Cup
winning side in 2003
and returned again the following year. He was part of the wider 43 man England
squad for the 2003 World Cup
.
He is a Gloucester Rugby
player through and through and has flourished there. He was in the Powergen Cup winning side of 2003 and the Gloucester Rugby
side that finished top of the 2003 Zurich Premiership. He was a try scorer in the 2006 European Challenge Cup
Final Victory over London Irish
at The Stoop
.
Hazell won his first cap starting as openside flanker
in England
’s victory over Canada
at Twickenham
in November 2004 and another as a replacement in the match against South Africa
a week later. The Investec series represented his first serious breakthrough into the senior England
team.
Hazell played in four games of the 2005 Six Nations, scoring a try against Italy
.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
player who plays at flanker
Flanker (rugby union)
A flanker is a position in the sport of rugby union. Flankers play in the forwards, and are generally classified as either blindside, or openside flankers; numbers six and seven respectively. The name comes from their position in a scrum in which they flank each set of forwards...
for Gloucester Rugby
Gloucester RFC
Gloucester Rugby are a professional English rugby union club situated in the west country city of Gloucester. The club plays in the domestic Aviva Premiership...
.
He took up the game aged 12 when he joined Old Richians, where he stayed for four years before joining another of his local teams, Gloucester Old Boys. His first representative game was for the South West U16s before joining the Premiership and making his debut at 19. He went on to establish himself as the main openside flanker
Flanker (rugby union)
A flanker is a position in the sport of rugby union. Flankers play in the forwards, and are generally classified as either blindside, or openside flankers; numbers six and seven respectively. The name comes from their position in a scrum in which they flank each set of forwards...
.
He pulled on an England shirt for the first time playing for England U21s and was a member of the SANZAR squad that played in the Argentina
Argentina national rugby union team
The Argentina national rugby team, nicknamed Los Pumas, represents Argentina in international rugby union matches. The team, which plays in sky blue and white jerseys, is organised by the Argentine Rugby Union .Argentina played its first international rugby match in 1910 against a touring British...
competition back in 1999. In 2001 he played for the England XV that took on the Barbarians
Barbarian F.C.
The Barbarian Football Club, usually referred to as the Barbarians and nicknamed the "Baa-Baas", is an invitational rugby union team based in Britain...
and also went on the England tour to North America
2001 England rugby union tour of North America
-Matches:-Forwards:...
, playing in both midweek games and scoring a try against British Columbia
British Columbia Rugby Union
The British Columbia Rugby Union is the provincial administrative body for rugby union in British Columbia. The BCRU consists of nine sub-unions and 65 clubs. It was originally organized in New Westminster in 1889 where Alfred St...
. His England A
England Saxons
England Saxons is the current name of England's men's second national rugby union team. The team has previously been known by a number of names, such as England B, Emerging England and, most recently, England A...
debut came in 2002 when he played Scotland A
Scotland A national rugby union team
The Scotland A team are the second national rugby union team behind the Scottish national side.-History:Scotland's status as one of the leading rugby nations in the Northern Hemisphere, made the SRU to field a second team, first known as Scotland XV, and currently as Scotland A, which can play at...
at Headingley and impressed throughout the 2003 England A Six Nations tournament.
Hazell was chosen for England's highly successful senior tour of New Zealand and Australia
2003 England rugby union tour of Australasia
-Matches:...
in June 2003 and played in the 23–9 victory over New Zealand Māori
New Zealand Maori rugby union team
New Zealand Māori is a rugby union team that traditionally plays teams touring New Zealand. A prerequisite for playing in this team is that the player is to have Māori whakapapa or genealogy. In the past this rule was not strictly applied. In the past non-Māori players who looked Māori were often...
in New Plymouth, before flying to Vancouver to become a member of England’s Churchill Cup
Churchill Cup
The Churchill Cup was an annual rugby union tournament, held in June, contested by representative men's teams from Canada, England, the United States, and other invited teams from a wide array of countries....
winning side in 2003
2003 Churchill Cup
The 2003 Churchill Cup was held between 14 June and 28 June 2003 in Vancouver, Canada. It was the inaugural year of the Churchill Cup. Three rugby union teams took part in the men's competition: Canada, England A and the USA....
and returned again the following year. He was part of the wider 43 man England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
squad for the 2003 World Cup
2003 Rugby World Cup
The 2003 Rugby World Cup was the fifth Rugby World Cup and was won by England. Originally planned to be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand, all games were shifted to Australia following a contractual dispute over ground signage rights between the New Zealand Rugby Football Union and Rugby World...
.
He is a Gloucester Rugby
Gloucester RFC
Gloucester Rugby are a professional English rugby union club situated in the west country city of Gloucester. The club plays in the domestic Aviva Premiership...
player through and through and has flourished there. He was in the Powergen Cup winning side of 2003 and the Gloucester Rugby
Gloucester RFC
Gloucester Rugby are a professional English rugby union club situated in the west country city of Gloucester. The club plays in the domestic Aviva Premiership...
side that finished top of the 2003 Zurich Premiership. He was a try scorer in the 2006 European Challenge Cup
European Challenge Cup
The European Challenge Cup, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Amlin Challenge Cup, is one of two annual rugby union competitions organised by European Rugby Cup. The cup was known as the Parker Pen Shield from 2001 to 2003 and Parker Pen Challenge Cup from 2003 to 2005. The European...
Final Victory over London Irish
London Irish
London Irish RFC is an English rugby union club based in Sunbury, Surrey, where the senior squad train, the youth teams and senior academy play home games, and the club maintain their administrative offices. The senior squad play home games at the Madejski Stadium in Reading and compete in the top...
at The Stoop
The Stoop
Twickenham Stoop is a sports stadium located in the western suburbs of London, England. The stadium is home to Harlequins rugby union team, who play in the Aviva Premiership, and tenants London Broncos, who play in the Super League...
.
Hazell won his first cap starting as openside flanker
Flanker (rugby union)
A flanker is a position in the sport of rugby union. Flankers play in the forwards, and are generally classified as either blindside, or openside flankers; numbers six and seven respectively. The name comes from their position in a scrum in which they flank each set of forwards...
in England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
’s victory over Canada
Canada national rugby union team
The Canada national rugby union team represents Canada in international rugby union. They are governed by Rugby Canada, and play in red and black. Canada is classified by the International Rugby Board as a tier two rugby nation. There are ten tier one nations, and seven tier two nations, the...
at Twickenham
Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham Stadium is a stadium located in Twickenham, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is the largest rugby union stadium in the United Kingdom and has recently been enlarged to seat 82,000...
in November 2004 and another as a replacement in the match against South Africa
South Africa national rugby union team
The South African national rugby union team are 2009 British and Irish Lions Series winners. They are currently ranked as the fourth best team in the IRB World Rankings and were named 2008 World Team of the Year at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards.Although South Africa was instrumental...
a week later. The Investec series represented his first serious breakthrough into the senior England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
team.
Hazell played in four games of the 2005 Six Nations, scoring a try against Italy
Italy national rugby union team
The Italy national rugby union team represent the nation of Italy in the sport of rugby union. The team is also known as the Azzurri . Italy have been playing international rugby since the late 1920s, and since 2000 compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland,...
.