In the Philippines, there are two things that come to mind when you say the word ‘rugby’ – one’s a sport and another, well, isn’t.
Justin Coveney has long been looking for a platform to be able to share his love for rugby to Filipinos after his 15-year career with the Philippine Volcanoes in various competitions in the past decade or so.
But when Physical: Asia presented itself as an opportunity, Coveney couldn’t wait to show the audience – Filipinos in particular – the beauty of rugby.
Unbeknownst to other countries, the word “rugby” has another connotation locally in the Philippines. And Coveney is well aware of that despite being born and raised in Australia, where the sport is more mainstream.
Having seen the conversations around the other meaning of “rugby” in the Philippines, which is an adhesive cement that is known to be abused by street children, Coveney hoped that the Netflix reality show will be able to change that.
Even if Physical: Asia wasn’t all about rugby, he suddenly had the audience to show the Philippines what rugby really was – the sport, that is.
[RELATED: Eruption proud as Coveney leads Team PH in Netflix’s Physical: Asia]
“There's a stigma, as everyone would know, around the word rugby. And in the Philippines in particular, there's two types of rugby. One of them is a sport and the other is not a sport,” Coveney quipped in an exclusive interview with
One Sports.
“So when the initial visuals came out and I was announced as a rugby player, I could see the same stigmas coming through. And we've got a rugby player. And I knew that was coming. I had a laugh as well. And I really wanted to use Physical: Asia as a platform to educate the Filipino people,” he added.
Among his teammates in Team Philippines, Coveney’s sport would’ve likely been the least known – with crossfit, boxing, sambo, and athletics all relatively within the conscience of Filipino sports fans.
But for rugby, it’s a different story.
Stepping up his game
Of course, Coveney couldn’t let the show do all the lifting when it comes to educating Filipinos on his sport.
Now getting his fair share of fame thanks to the viral nature of the show in the few weeks since it first aired, the Fil-Aussie has been keen on using his social media to keep the Filipinos informed.
“It actually did achieve that. A lot of people now know rugby. I made sure to step up my social media to ensure that I'm also educating people about rugby. I actually did a post called 'This is Rugby'. And very quickly, the stigma or the other rugby took a break. And everyone was inquiring about rugby.” said Coveney, who stepped up as Team Philippines’ skipper when Manny Pacquiao left the show.
“So I'm really happy about that. And I really wanted to put a spotlight on the Philippine Rugby Football Union and what we do and who we represent and when our games are. So I hope that the show did highlight a different type of rugby, a more positive type of rugby, which I'm sure it did,” he added.
Rugby will be getting its fair share of attention later this year when they compete at the Southeast Asian Games in Thailand this December.
However, due to scheduling conflicts, Coveney won’t be able to participate.
But with a full 2026 calendar, he’s hoping to represent the Philippines again soon – this time on a different stage from reality TV.
“I have some scheduling conflicts with that. So I do not think I'll be participating in the SEA Games this time around. But there are test matches next year. So I believe in January, there's a test against Guam. And there's also the President's Cup, which falls in the Q2 window,” said Coveney.
“So I'm preparing for that and training as hard as I can. And to be honest, you never know what opportunities will come up in terms of next time you get an opportunity to step in the arena,” he added.
—
Luisa Morales is a sports writer with a special interest in promoting women’s sports.
Her coverage highlights include the UAAP, PVL, Southeast Asian Games, and the FIBA World Cup. She also follows Alex Eala, the Philippine women’s national football team, and mixed martial arts.