Wales Sevens not resting on laurels

Posted on Mar 25, 2013 in Sevens, Wales

A ‘buoyant’ Wales Sevens side landed in Tokyo this morning braced for a tough draw in round seven of the HSBC Sevens World Series, the Tokyo Sevens at the Prince Chichibu Memorial Ground.

Paul John’s men put up a heroic performance in the prestigious Hong Kong Sevens in the weekend, losing a nail-biting final against defending champions Fiji in front of a packed Hong Kong Stadium.

It was the first time Wales had ever reached a Cup final in the IRB Sevens series. Leading 19-0 at halftime, Wales were just 10 minutes away from glory but super-sub Osea Kolinisau entered the fray and scored a second half hat-trick to deny Wales glory.

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“It was an amazing atmosphere as there was a lot of Welsh support there,” said Wales Sevens head coach Paul John. “I’m really proud of the effort the boys put in.

“The boys played some cracking rugby and entered the competition with a great attitude. They really accounted themselves well throughout the tournament. To go 19-0 up against a very good Fiji side in the first half of the final was an exceptional effort. Unfortunately we couldn’t get our hands on the ball in the second half and Fiji came away with the title.

“There is no time rest on our laurels though as we’ve got Kenya, USA and Scotland this week in the Japan Sevens. Some might say it is an easy group but as last weekend proved, there are no longer any easy groups on the circuit.

“We’re carrying a few bumps and bruises but just have to re-charge our batteries and maintain the momentum into this weekend.

“Kenya will be looking for revenge after we beat them in Hong Kong in the semi-finals and are looking for a top three finish while USA and Scotland will be desperate to get away from the bottom of the series standings as they won’t want to be relegated.”

Wales’ haul of 19 points for reaching the final has seen them jump to sixth place in the overall standings with 63 points with New Zealand leading the way with 113 with three rounds to play.

IRB Confirms Pool Draw for Round 2 of HSBC Sevens World Series in Dubai

Posted on Oct 16, 2012 in Sevens

The IRB has confirmed the pool draw for round 2 of the HSBC Sevens World Series, the Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens on 30 November-1 December 2012.

The draw was made live on television before the Cup final of the Gold Coast Sevens, the opening round of the 2012/13 season.

Having failed to reach the Cup quarter finals in Australia, defending Dubai champions England face a tough task with pool matches against South Africa and Samoa as well as Portugal.

Pools – Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens

Pool A

Fiji, Kenya, Spain, Scotland

Pool B

New Zealand, Argentina, Wales, Russia

Pool C

South Africa, Samoa, England, Portugal

Pool D

France, Australia, Canada, USA

Following their win on the Gold Coast, Fiji have an early lead in the HSBC Sevens World Series 2012/13. They currently lie on 22 points ahead of New Zealand (19), South Africa (17), Kenya (15) and Argentina (13).

England face Samoa, Kenya and Spain on first day of new HSBC Sevens World Series

Posted on Sep 17, 2012 in England Sevens

England will face Samoa, Kenya and Spain on the opening day of the HSBC Sevens World Series on October 13.

The draw was made today for the Gold Coast Sevens in Australia, the first of nine legs in this season’s series which concludes with the Marriott London Sevens next May.

England finished third in last season’s competition, with Samoa in fourth place and Kenya 12th. Spain are a new ‘core’ team after finishing second in the qualifying competition in Hong Kong this year.

England have an expanded squad of 19 full-time players this season led by head coach Ben Ryan and warmed up last weekend against Spain and France in Villajoyosa.

Ryan said: “We’re in excellent shape after a very demanding pre-season programme and standards in the squad have been driven up by the intense competition for places.

“The draw for the Gold Coast brings home just how close we are now to the kick-off of what promises to be the biggest season ever for sevens. We’re in the Olympic cycle now with the HSBC Sevens World Series followed immediately by the Rugby World Cup Sevens in Moscow next June.

“Every draw is a difficult one now: Samoa were tough to play throughout last season, Kenya always give us tough games and we know Spain really well – they’ve got lots of talent and will want to prove they deserve their place at the top table.”

The cross-over for the knock-out stages means England potentially face Fiji or Australia in the quarter-finals if they make it out of Pool C.

Champions New Zealand face South Africa, the USA and newcomers Canada in Pool A while Wales are in a competitive Pool D with Argentina, France and Portugal.

Gold Coast Sevens draw:

Pool A – New Zealand, South Africa, USA, Canada

Pool B – Fiji, Australia, Scotland, Tonga

Pool C – England, Samoa, Kenya, Spain

Pool D – Argentina, Wales, France, Portugal

England Sevens squad:

Dan Bibby, John Brake, Chris Brightwell, Chris Cracknell, Sam Edgerley, Mike Ellery, Christian Lewis-Pratt, James Lightfoot-Brown, Tom Mitchell, Dan Norton, Mark Odejobi, Ollie Phillips, Tom Powell, Jack Preece, James Rodwell, Mathew Turner, Rob Vickerman, Marcus Watson, Jeff Williams.

RaboDirect Pro12 final goes global

Posted on May 17, 2012 in RaboDirect Pro12

The 2012 RaboDirect PRO12 Final will be beamed around the world into more than 80 countries as Leinster Rugby attempt to make it third time lucky at the RDS, Dublin on Sunday, 27 May (kick-off 4.00pm).

As the top seeds from the regular season, Joe Schmidt’s team earned the right to host the Final at their home ground after beating Glasgow Warriors in the Play-Off last weekend. That triumph set up a repeat of the 2010 Final against the Ospreys.

The 2010 Final was the first time the competition had used the Play-Off system to determine the champions. This is the third season in a row that Leinster has reached the Final and they are still seeking their first win.

Interest in the game is intense and the Irish language TV channel TG4 will act as the host broadcaster. TG4 will screen the match live, as will RTE in Ireland and the Welsh language station, S4C, in the UK. The game will also be shown delayed live in Italy on RAI Sports 2 at 9.00pm local time.

In addition to coverage within the nations that provide teams to the RaboDirect PRO12 competition, the game will also be screened in the following countries either live or delayed live:

• Malta– Go Malta
• Middle East– Orbit Showtime Network – (23 countries) Algeria, Bahrain, Chad, Djibouti, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates
• North America – Fox Soccer Plus
• Canada– Rogers Sportsnet World
• Sub Sahara Africa Setanta – (50 countries) Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Comoros, Congo, Cote d’Ivorie, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Reunion, Rwanda, Sao Tome & Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, St. Helena, Swaziland, Tanzania/Zanzibar, The Gambia, Togo, Uganda, Western Sahara, Zambia, and Zimbabwe
• Asia Setanta – (8 countries) Brunei, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand
• New Zealand– Sky New Zealand

Overseas viewers are advised to check with their Broadcasters as to whether they are showing the game live or delayed.

England Counties name squad for East Africa tour

Posted on May 16, 2012 in English Counties

The England Counties today named their 26-man squad for next month’s three match tour to Uganda and Kenya.

Eleven counties and 15 clubs are represented within the squad which contains 12 debutants. 

Rob Baldwin (pictured) will captain the tour party, having led the side to a 34-16 victory over the Counties’ Irish counterparts, the Ulster Bank International Team, in March.  Nine other players featured in the spring international, whilst Jim Wigglesworth steps up after impressing for the England Counties U20s earlier this month.

The England Counties squad is the representative flagship of the county and community game and since being founded in 2002 has visited North and South America, Europe and the Far East.  Nine players have previous touring experience but the side will be treading new ground when they head to the African continent.

The squad assembles on the 1st June and the 17-day tour incorporates the largest tour outreach programme ever undertaken.  Working with the Tag Rugby Trust, the squad and management will carry out frequent coaching sessions and visits, aiming to raise the profile of rugby and leave a lasting legacy for the host unions.

The squad plays both Uganda and a combined East Africa side in Kampala before taking on the challenge of an East Africa Invitation XV in Nairobi.

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