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Rugby sevens is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players, instead of the usual 15, with shorter matches. The game originated in Melrose, Scotland, and the Melrose Sevens is still played annually. The game is popular at all levels, with amateur and club tournaments generally held in the summer months. Notable international competitions include the IRB Sevens World Series and the Rugby World Cup Sevens. Rugby sevens is also played at some multi-sport events such as the Commonwealth Games. Although it was conceived as an event for rugby union, rugby league has also adopted the sevens format.
[edit] Overview
Nestling beneath the shadow of the
Eildon Hills, the Greenyards at
Melrose in Scotland is the original home of rugby sevens
Rugby sevens is sanctioned by the IRB, and is played under substantially the same laws and on a field of the same dimensions as the 15-player game. While a normal rugby union match lasts at least 80 minutes, a normal sevens match consists of two halves of seven minutes with a one-minute half-time break. The final of a competition can be played over two halves of ten minutes each, with a half-time break of two minutes. (In the IRB Sevens World Series, only the Cup final, which determines the overall winner of an event, is played with 10-minute halves; all finals for lower-level trophies are played with 7-minute halves.[1]) This allows rugby tournaments to be completed in a day or a weekend. However, sevens scores are generally comparable to union scores; scoring occurs with much greater regularity in sevens, since the defenders are more spaced out. Scrums are composed of just three players from each team. Because of the speedy nature of the game, good sevens players are often backs or loose forwards in fifteens rugby.
Rugby sevens was initially conceived by Ned Haig, a butcher from Melrose, Scotland as a fund-raising event for his local club in 1883. The first ever sevens match was played at the Greenyards, where it was well received. The first ever officially sanctioned international tournament occurred at Murrayfield as part of the "Scottish Rugby Union's celebration of rugby" centenary celebrations in 1973. Due to the success of the format, the ongoing Hong Kong Sevens was launched three years later. In 1993, the Rugby World Cup Sevens, in which the Melrose Cup is contested, was launched. Three of the best known sevens competitions are the Hong Kong Sevens, Wellington Sevens, and the Dubai Sevens which now make up parts of the IRB Sevens World Series.
[edit] Variations to the Laws of the Game
There are several variations in laws which apply to Rugby Sevens,[2] primarily to speed up the game and to account for the reduced number of players. The main changes can be summarised as follows:
- 7 players per team on field (instead of 15).
- 5 substitutes, with only 3 interchanges (instead of 7 and 7).
- 7-minute halves, though 10-minute halves are allowed in the final of a competition (instead of 40-minute halves).
- 1-minute half-time, 2 minutes in finals (instead of 10 minutes).
- Matches drawn after regulation are continued into Extra Time, in 5-minute periods.
- Conversion attempts must be drop-kicked (instead of having the option to place-kick).
- Conversions must be taken within 40 seconds of scoring a try (instead of 60 seconds).
- 3-man scrums (instead of 8).
- The scoring team kicks off (instead of the non-scoring team).
- Yellow cards net a 2-minute suspension (instead of 10 minutes).
- Suspensions are more severe in Sevens than in Fifteens. The team plays a man down for 1/7th of the match instead of 1/8th, and losing 1 man out of 7 opens up more space than 1 man out of 15.
- Referees decide on advantage quickly (where one play usually ends advantage, not true in fifteens).
- In major competitions, there are additional officials present (in-goal touch judges) to judge success of kicks at goals and hence the game is not delayed waiting for touch judges to move into position to judge conversion attempts.
[edit] Positions
[edit] Major tournaments
[edit] Summer Olympics
There have been proposals for sevens to be included in the Olympic Games (it has been in the Commonwealth Games since 1998). The IRB pointed towards sell-out crowds at Commonwealth Games and World Cup sevens as proof of the sport's popularity.[citation needed] However, the International Olympic Committee turned down the bid for the purposes of the 2012 Olympics to be held in London. One IOC official from Switzerland, Dennis Oswald, dismissed the bid declaring: “When it comes to rugby, I am not a specialist, but people within the sport tell me that rugby sevens is something of a joke.” Oswald later confirmed that he had never in fact watched a game of sevens, or indeed, fifteens rugby. Although disappointed, the IRB responded by pointing out that in terms of the Olympic motto: Citius, Altius, Fortius (faster, higher, stronger), a rugby player was more likely to possess all of these attributes than competitors in some other Olympic events. The IRB has recently moved to counter criticisms that it only proposed for a male Olympic tournament, establishing a series of Sevens events for women; the 2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens included a women's championship for the first time.
[edit] FIRA European Sevens
[edit] 2005 FIRA European Sevens
Portugal defeated Russia 28-26 to the Grand Final of the 2005 FIRA European Sevens in Moscow to retain the trophy they have won for the last three years. Spain won the Plate with a 25-14 win over Germany, whilst Lithuania claimed the Bowl. Portugal topped their group on day one, recording four victories and a 7-7 draw, against Italy. In Pool B, Russia delighted the home fans with five wins out of five, including a 33-7 victory over France. They followed that up on day two by defeating Italy 17-0 in the Cup semi-finals, whilst Portugal beat France 22-7.
[edit] Statistics
[edit] Rugby league sevens
Rugby league may also be played under seven-a-side rules, though this is less common as an alternative when compared with rugby league nines. The game is substantially the same as full rugby league, however scrums involve only three players per team, and all kicks at goal must be made by drop-kicks. The major tournament was the World Sevens played prior to the start of the National Rugby League season in Sydney, but the tournament has been cancelled.
Rugby league sevens is particularly popular with pub teams — formed from the regulars at a particular public house, the reason for this is that it is often difficult for a single pub to form a full squad of 13 players and four substitutes of willing players.
[edit] Women's Rugby sevens
Women's rugby sevens has been dominated by New Zealand, with either the New Zealand team (1999-2001) or Aotearoa Maori Women’s Rugby sevens team (playing as New Zealand) [1] winning the annual Hong Kong Sevens tournament from 1997 until 2007. The United States won the Hong Kong Sevens in 2008 by defeating Canada in the final (New Zealand failed to send a team).
The inaugural Women’s Rugby World Cup Sevens tournament took place in Dubai together with the men’s tournament during the first weekend of March 2009. England defeated Canada 12-0 in the Bowl final while Australia edged New Zealand 15-10 in extra-time to become the first to win the Women's Rugby World Cup.
Women's rugby sevens has submitted bids to be added to the Olympics in 2016 and the Commonwealth Games in 2018.
[edit] References
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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National rugby union teams (sevens) |
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| IRB Sevens core teams |
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| Other teams |
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| Defunct |
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