Matt Pini
Encyclopedia
Matthew James Pini, also known as Matt Pini (born Canberra
, 21 March 1969), is an Australian-born Italian naturalized rugby union player. He played as a fullback.
Pini played for Brisbane
, from 1990/91 to 1995/96. He moved to Richmond, England
, where he played one season, in 1997/98. He spent the next season at RC Narbonne
(1998/99). He had then his only speason spent at Italy
, representing Rugby Roma Olimpic
(1999/2000). Moving to Newport Gwent Dragons
, he would play there from 2000/01 to 2002/03.
Pini was one of the few players ever to compete at the Rugby World Cup
for two different countries, Australia
and Italy
. He had 8 caps for the "Wallabies", from 1994 to 1995, scoring 2 tries, 10 points in aggregate. He played 2 games at the 1995 Rugby World Cup
.
He adopted Italian citizenship, due to his Italian ancestry, which allowed him to represent Italy. He had 12 caps for his new country, scoring 2 tries, 10 points in aggregate, from 1998 to 2000. He played at the 1999 Rugby World Cup
, being used in 3 games. He also played 4 games at the 2000 Six Nations Championship
. He renounced the National Team the same year.
He is head coach of Gallopers Old Boys, in Ashgrove
, a team from the Queensland
Premiership, in Australia
, since 2007/08.
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
, 21 March 1969), is an Australian-born Italian naturalized rugby union player. He played as a fullback.
Pini played for Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, from 1990/91 to 1995/96. He moved to Richmond, England
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...
, where he played one season, in 1997/98. He spent the next season at RC Narbonne
RC Narbonne
Racing Club de Narbonne Méditerannée is a French rugby union club that play in the second-level Rugby Pro D2, after finishing at the bottom of the 2006-07 Top 14 table....
(1998/99). He had then his only speason spent at Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, representing Rugby Roma Olimpic
Rugby Roma Olimpic
Società Sportiva Dilettantistica Rugby Roma Olimpic are an Italian professional rugby union team.Based in Rome, the senior team competed in the Italian top tier competition, the Super 10....
(1999/2000). Moving to Newport Gwent Dragons
Newport Gwent Dragons
Newport Gwent Dragons are one of the four professional Rugby Union regional teams in Wales. They are jointly owned by Newport RFC and the Welsh Rugby Union and play all their home games at Rodney Parade, Newport. They play in the RaboDirect Pro12, the Anglo-Welsh Cup and the Heineken Cup...
, he would play there from 2000/01 to 2002/03.
Pini was one of the few players ever to compete at the Rugby World Cup
Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is an international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board and held every four years since 1987....
for two different countries, Australia
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
and 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,...
. He had 8 caps for the "Wallabies", from 1994 to 1995, scoring 2 tries, 10 points in aggregate. He played 2 games at the 1995 Rugby World Cup
1995 Rugby World Cup
The 1995 Rugby World Cup was the third Rugby World Cup. It was hosted and won by South Africa, and was the first Rugby World Cup in which every match was held in one country....
.
He adopted Italian citizenship, due to his Italian ancestry, which allowed him to represent Italy. He had 12 caps for his new country, scoring 2 tries, 10 points in aggregate, from 1998 to 2000. He played at the 1999 Rugby World Cup
1999 Rugby World Cup
The 1999 Rugby World Cup was the fourth Rugby World Cup, and the first to be held in rugby union's professional era. The principal host nation was Wales, although the majority of matches were played outside the country, shared between England, France, Scotland and Ireland...
, being used in 3 games. He also played 4 games at the 2000 Six Nations Championship
2000 Six Nations Championship
The 2000 Six Nations Championship was the first series of the Six Nations Championship, following the inclusion of Italy into the Five Nations championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-sixth series of the northern hemisphere...
. He renounced the National Team the same year.
He is head coach of Gallopers Old Boys, in Ashgrove
Ashgrove
Ashgrove can refer to:* Ashgrove, Queensland, Australia* Electoral district of Ashgrove - an electoral area for the unicameral Queensland Legislative Assembly* Ashgrove, Bath and North East Somerset, England...
, a team from the Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
Premiership, in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, since 2007/08.