While the 2018-19 World rugby sevens season has already begun with tournaments in Dubai and Capetown, the 2019 leg kicks off on Saturday in Hamilton, before moving to Sydney next weekend.
Sevens rugby conflicts supporters of the game. The purists claim it’s too short, too unlike “real rugby”, just a try-fest. While some fans – largely the ‘rugby is rugby’ tribe – are absolutely sold on it. Here’s why you should watch the World rugby sevens series.
It’s rugby, but very different.
The differences between sevens and XVs are no doubt a turn off for some, but for me, they add extra incentive. Short games with plenty of scoring, which are fast moving more often than not, is enough to have me hooked for a whole weekend.
Referees rarely have a big impact in games, so results are nearly always decided by world-class athletes doing battle, not by ruck interpretations or disputable offside calls.
Good luck predicting the winner.
The monkey, at least in XVs, on World Rugby’s back – a monkey which has been there for almost ten years – is the All Blacks’ domination. 2007 was the last time that the Rugby World Cup was won by someone else, and any victory over New Zealand makes headlines globally.
Sevens, however, is a completely different kettle of fish. While Fiji were the dominant country in the 2017-18 season with five titles, the Blitzboks, Australia, USA and New Zealand all took home at least one trophy – highly commended goes to heavy outsiders Kenya, who finished runner-up to Fiji in the Vancouver tournament.
New Zealand and Fiji have won the two editions, in this season, with the USA finishing with the silver medal on both occasions.
Olympic qualification is on the line.
Australian rugby is fighting hard for mainstream coverage, but is currently buried underneath football, league, AFL and cricket in terms of public interest. Outside of the World Cup and perhaps Lions tours, the Olympics is a great opportunity to get rugby in front of Australians’ eyeballs, making qualification crucial.
The host country, Japan, and the top four ranked countries from this series qualify, as well as a quota team from each continent, while the remaining teams have to go through a regional championships process.
Last time around, Australia snuck into fourth on the ladder, but keeping that place against teams like USA and England will be nothing short of a huge challenge, especially given they’re currently in sixth.
Tony
Guest
Care to revisit your opinion of NZ 7's teams after the Sydney results
CUW
Roar Rookie
of the 19 titles NZ have won 12 , Fiji and Boks 3 each and the surprise Samoans once around 10 years ago. Boks have placed 2nd 7 times , Fiji 6 times , England 4 times and NZ and Aussy once each. but NZ have not won since 2014 - with Fiji and Boks dominating 1st and 2nd placings ....
CUW
Roar Rookie
i wonder if the big XV stars will opt to play at the Olympics 7S guys like Reiko Ioane Ben lam SBW Ardie Savea for NZ the speedy backs of Boks a whole lot of Fijians :) it ill be fantastic if some of the best go to Olympics 7S
Tony
Guest
Why are we only talking about Mens 7's here, the Black Ferns Womens 7's team is the best sports team in NZ. I wld watch them anyday over the boys, such fantastic athletes.
Mark
Guest
Fiji may have won the most tournaments in the 17/18 World Series, but South Africa won the Series (total points over the Series). They have won the last 2 Series, but Fiji are the Olympic champions and NZ won the Sevens World Cup last year. One of those 3 teams generally wins each tournament, but as you mention Canada, US, Argentina, England, Australia and Scotland have all won a tournament in the past few years. Kenya won one a number of years back and have been a finalist since, and the USA are leading this year’s Series point score.
Muzzo
Roar Rookie
Haha Kibui, you obviously misread what I wrote, as I said " Series", not tournaments. To say NZ are not the team they were 10 years ago, is a tad, out of touch, as ATM, they are currently placed 4th in the Series table, & if you care to observe, they have usually finished within the top six at series end. After all, they did take out last years Sevens RWC, also the Commonwealth Games, title, a title that they have only lost just the once.
Bobby
Roar Rookie
Watching our Sevens is about as enjoyable as going to the dentist for a co u old of root canals, bit like watching the Wallabies ATM
kibui butt
Guest
Australia won the Sydney 7s last year; NZ aren’t the team they were 10 years ago; and the beauty of 7s is that any of the top 7 or 8 teams can win a round, Kenya, Canada, Arg, Scotland have all done it in the last 3 years. The 7s game attracts and is growing faster than 15s; it has its own nuances and running harder lines and breathtaking, lung bursting runs are commonplace; I can appreciate and love the grunt of scrummaging and massive ruck contact(I’m a tight head); but dismissing the sublime open play of sevens is a disservice to the code.
Muzzo
Roar Rookie
Yeh Ben, Spain are a breath of fresh air, & hopefully they can carry their form into this upcoming Sydney leg of the Series. In regards to the NZ win, in which a certain commentator mentioned the Australian v New Zealand rivalry. Yeh right, as these two teams have played each other 79 times in World Series Sevens, with the win ratio 64 - 13, in favour of NZ. Some rivalry! Apart from that NZ have won about 12 Series titles, I think it is, & Australia have yet to win one.
Muzzo
Roar Rookie
Well with Sevens being an Olympic Sport, we can see just how quickly, this part of the game we love, is growing. We have seen, especially in NZ, how this part of the game has helped in the development of some outstanding stars for the 15's part of the game. Stars, as Christian Cullen, the IRB ( now WR ) legend Jonah Lomu, Mils Muliaina, who is the only NZ'er, to claim wins in both the Seven's RWC & the 15's RWC. there are also others, who have evolved from Seven's. It's a game, that most play for the love of the game, which in most cases, the way it should be.
Ben
Guest
Aus out in the quarters. 17-24 to NZ. Spain definite improvers.
woodart
Guest
watching teams like spain give NZ a good game, then this morning beating wales makes for good veiwing. we have full free to air coverage here in NZ, which is in stark contrast to the 15s game. any sport that has to rely on die hard traditionalists is going down the gurgler(look at cricket, having to reinvent itself to stay relevant).
Beergardener
Roar Pro
I love it. Didn't get to see any of today's play (was at the cricket), but would rather watch it than many super rugby and even some league games
Thaikiwi
Roar Rookie
The beauty of sevens is that rugby can use this to expand the game, all of those new countries that cant get their head around the full games rules, all those countries that inherently produce smaller players, I hope to see in the future smaller circuits such as an asia circuit for those countries aiming to be on the world circuit and using that as stepping stone. It has the potential (if its not already) a bigger spectator sport than rugby, I know in my days in Dubai a day out at the sevens tournament was always in the calendar because otherwise you never saw a live full rugby match. Can it be a pathway, of course it can, Lomu was a forward until he played sevens and it certainly was a pathway for him to become the worlds premier winger. Rugby is using the sevens as a pathway to highlight rugby into the USA. Funnily enough of all the people I talk to around the world Australia is the one country that seems disinterested in the sevens, maybe because they are flooded with oval ball sports?
Bobby
Roar Rookie
Sevens is a hybrid of the real game of rugby, somewhere between touch footy and real 23 rugby. Some say it's a pathway to rugby and some .make transition but not that many (to call it a pathway). Sevens is open and running but the nuances that make rugby a wonderful sport are just missing. Having said that the poor buggers make a ridiculous small amount of money !