Michael Brial

Michael Brial

Birth name	Michael Cameron Brial
Date of birth	(1970-05-11) 11 May 1970
Place of birth	Narrabri, New South Wales, Australia
Height	6 ft 4 in (193 cm)
Weight	230 lb (104 kg)
School	Narrabri High School
Rugby union career
Position(s) Number 8 Youth career 1984-1986 Narrabri Blue Boars 1986-1992 Narrabri High School Amateur team(s) Years Team Apps (Points) 1986-1992 Eastern Suburbs () Provincial / State sides Years Team Apps (Points) 1986-1992 Central North () 1992-1995 New South Wales 66 (64) Super Rugby Years Team Apps (Points) 1996-2000 NSW Waratahs () International career Years Team Apps (Points) 1987 Australia U17 1990 Australia U21 1993-1997 Australia 13 (5) National sevens team Years Team Comps 1997 Australia 7s

Michael Cameron Brial (born 11 May 1970, in Narrabri, New South Wales) is an Australian former rugby union player. He played as back-row, usually as number 8.

Career

Club career

Brial grew up playing rugby league in his high school days. He first played rugby union at the age of 14, joining the Narrabri Blue Boars, where his brother Brenden played. Two years later, he joined the Narrabri High School team, with which he won the under-19 Wiburd Shield. He also represented Central North in the U-14, U-16 and U-19 teams. In 1992, Brial made his debut for New South Wales during the match against Wellington at the Athletic Park, earning also a spot in the Australia XV squad for the 1992 end-of-year tour in Ireland and Wales. He also played for the New South Wales Waratahs during the Super 12, where he captained the team between 1998 and 1999, until his retirement in 2000.

International career

Brial earned his first international cap for Australia against France in Bordeaux, on 30 October 1993, as a substitute for Ilie Tabua as blindside flanker. In the second test in Paris, he debuted in the starting XV as a loosehead flanker. He was not called up for the 1995 Rugby World Cup squad. In 1996 he played mostly as number 8 and earned ten caps. In July 1996, during the second Bledisloe Cup test against New Zealand in Brisbane, Brial furiously punched Frank Bunce, with whom he had a feud four years before in a provincial game. However, Brial was not sent out by the referee. His last cap was during the Bledisloe Cup test against New Zealand, on 23 October 1997, in Melbourne. In his entire international career he earned 13 caps in aggregate and scored 1 try and 5 points in aggregate. He also was part of the Australia national rugby sevens team which took part at the 1997 Rugby World Cup Sevens in Hong Kong.

External links

• Michael Brial profile at Rugby Australia
• Michael Brial at New Zealand Rugby History
• Michael Brial at ESPNscrum