Start Your School’s
Olympic Journey
What is Rugby Sevens?
Putting it simply, Rugby Sevens
is rugby union, only shortened.
The rules are the same (with
the odd variation or two), the
scoring is the same, the pitch
is the same. The only major
differences are in the number
of players on the pitch and the
length of time a game lasts.
Each team has seven players – three
forwards and four backs – and games
last 14 minutes, made up of two
seven-minute halves and a one-minute
half-time break.
For schools, clubs, and even countries,
that do not have a tradition in
rugby union and who may find the
complexity of the sport somewhat
daunting, Rugby Sevens is the perfect
introduction. The emphasis is on
ball handling, speed and skill, and
athletes from other sports have made
a straightforward transition into Rugby
Sevens to pursue a career on the
circuit.
A Brief History
Rugby Sevens has been around almost
as long as the 15-a-side version of
the sport. In 1883 Melrose RFC, in
the Scottish borders, asked a pair
of butchers, Ned Haig and David
Sanderson, to come up with a rugbybased game that could help the club’s
fundraising efforts.
It needed to be fast, high scoring and
exciting, all of the hallmarks of Rugby
Sevens that remain today. Indeed the
sport quickly caught on, becoming
a fixture of Melrose summers and
spreading across the globe.
In 1993 World Rugby gave Rugby
Sevens a global presence that comes
“Some of the biggest
names in the history of
the sport have played
Rugby Sevens - Lomu,
Shelford, Dallaglio,
Dawson”
with its own World Cup, with England
winning the inaugural tournament
in Edinburgh, with the trophy called,
appropriately enough, the Melrose
Cup.
Some of the biggest names in the
history of the sport have played Rugby
Sevens, from legendary All Blacks like
Jonah Lomu and Wayne Shelford to
Rugby World Cup winners Lawrence
Dallaglio and Matt Dawson, who were
two of England’s own cup-winning
squad in 1993.
Rugby Sevens - A Growing
Sport
In the 21st Century Rugby Sevens has
become one of the quickest-growing
sports in the world, with tournaments
springing up on every continent.
“From 2016 you will
see Rugby Sevens in
the Olympic Games,
too, with Rio de Janeiro
holding the first ever
competition at that
level”
At the heart of this growth has been
the World Rugby Sevens Series, which
holds legs as far afield as Wellington
(New Zealand), Las Vegas (USA), Hong
Kong, Dubai and London. This is the
pinnacle of the sport, with crowds
to match, and tens of thousands of
people flock to every location to enjoy
some good times and better rugby!
as those held at Bury St Edmunds,
Bournemouth and Newquay have
become established dates on the
calendar, with teams entering from far
and wide.
Here in the UK tournaments such
And from 2016 you will see Rugby
Sevens in the Olympic Games,
too, with Rio de Janeiro holding
the first ever competition at that
level. Introduction into the Olympic
programme has seen the number
of countries taking Rugby Sevens
seriously increase rapidly, not least
because the demands on training
and the number of personnel are
considerably smaller than the full
version of the sport.
So as well as the traditional
powerhouses of New Zealand, Fiji,
South Africa and England it will be no
surprise to see the likes of Kenya, the
USA and Portugal spring the odd shock
or two!
The Elite Insurance Sevens Series
The Elite Insurance Sevens
Series is giving young rugby
players from across the East
of England the opportunity
to start their own Olympic
journey.
Since its inception in 2013 the Sevens
Series has grown rapidly, and in 2015
well over 100 schools and clubs took
part. Teams take part in a regional
tournament – Northamptonshire,
Bedfordshire, Milton Keynes,
Cambridgeshire, Suffolk and
Oxfordshire – with the winners and
runners-up then heading to Franklin’s
Gardens, home of 2014 Premiership
champions Northampton Saints, for
Get in Touch
finals day.
There are separate tournaments
for schools and clubs, with specific
competitions for Under-18s boys
“Coaching is available
from the Saints’
community team FREE
OF CHARGE”
teams and girls teams anticipated to be
launched in 2015/16.
Each team that enters is provided with
branded t-shirts, with each tournament
refereed by fully-qualified officials.
Coaching is available from the Saints’
community team FREE OF CHARGE on
a first come, first served, basis, with
each school or club also able to send
staff members on a complimentary
‘Coach the Coaches’ session.
2015/16 Elite Insurance
Sevens Series Locations
Northamptonshire
Bedfordshire
Milton Keynes
Cambridgeshire
Suffolk
Oxfordshire
Want to know more? Then email [email protected]
or call 01604 599113!