The rapidly-growing cousin of the 15-man game that we’ve all become used to, Sevens rugby is a sport that provides something for everybody. It’s time we all got into it a little bit more.
From the intricacy of play to its fast-paced nature, the physicality and the tactics, the seven man version of the game is spreading and has become well known for its global tours stretching from Cape Town to Hong Kong and well beyond. It’s a brilliant way for rugby to be approached.
The World Sevens Series runs from mid-October to mid-May, with ten rounds. It’s played at a frenetic pace and the fixtures are organised and packed together in similar fashion.
In conventional rugby, on those unfortunate occasions when a game just doesn't come to life as you'd hope, 80 minutes can feel like a long time. Sevens, with each half lasting seven minutes, addresses this effectively. The final of each tournament has two ten-minute halves. You’ve barely got into the end-to-end action before the game is over and there’s a winner. As a result the game is played at a remarkable pace and demands quite a different sort of athleticism to conventional rugby.
Speaking of end-to-end, that’s exactly what Sevens is. There are not 15 players to clog up the field, and the abundance of space means running galore - often why teams such as Fiji are able to thrive in Sevens but struggle in Union.
The fast pace that the game runs at means that you don’t have a chance to look away without missing a move. The restart time is quick too. The weekend-long tournaments also provide chances for ebs and flows in dominance between different teams and make for a refreshing tournament and a brilliant atmosphere. The format of the series means that each tournament offers something worth playing for, as it all counts towards the final points tally.
When I spoke to former England Sevens player Mat Turner, he said that the appeal of the game is found in the space, the high tempo, and the combination of physicality and mentality it provides.
With its inclusion in the Olympics, the players now have a chance to walk away with one of the greatest accolades that the sporting world has to offer. Not only this, but more and more American universities are starting to offer Sevens programmes, in a bid to make the US a bigger player on the international sevens stage.
I asked Mat what had led to his own switch to from Union to Sevens and he said that the opportunity had presented itself to him through former England coach Ben Ryan when the Union game wasn’t going the right way. Showing that the game not only offers something different for the fans, and potential fans, but also in some cases for the players themselves.
The iconic locations, the uncertainty of each game, and the fact the matches balance on one bounce is what made the game so exciting for Mat.
Having played Union and Sevens, Mat says: “I would really push kids to play more Sevens, as I think it opens many more doors on a global scale”. Players often make the move from Sevens to Union, such as Seabelo Senatla of South Africa. Although he's not played for a few years now and since taken a position as the head coach of Sri Lanka, Mat said the boots aren't totally hung up, so hopefully we'll see him back on the field soon enough.
Expect to see more Sevens Rugby in the coming years, it's a sport that so many countries are getting involved in. Pakistan to Portugal, or South Korea to Sri Lanka. It’s growing... and fast.
Obviously we have the typical rugby suspects too, such as New Zealand, Wales etc. It’s short, exciting, and to the point. It’s a game for all, and a game we should all try to get a bit more into.
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