Hong Kong Sevens Logo |
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| Sport | Rugby sevens |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1976 |
| No. of teams | 24 |
| Country(ies) | 22 countries |
| Most recent champion(s) | New Zealand |
| Official website | www.hksevens.com |
The Hong Kong Sevens (Chinese: 香港國際七人欖球賽) is considered the premier tournament on the IRB Sevens World Series in rugby sevens—a variant of rugby union.
Organised by the Hong Kong Rugby Football Union (HKRFU), the event is held annually at the last weekend of March in Hong Kong, commencing on a Friday afternoon, and concluding on the Sunday evening. In 2012 the event will take place slightly earlier, 23 - 25 March.
Bill McLaren, in his autobiography Talking of Rugby writes at length about his Hong Kong Sevens experiences:
Contents |
The Hong Kong Seven heads were established in 1976 after a discussion between the chairman of the HKRFU, South African entrepreneur, A.D.C. "Tokkie" Smith, Duncan McTavish (HKRFC then captain), Trevor J. Bedford OBE (Chairman of Hong Kong Land, Jardine Matheson Limited, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group and Director of HSBC) and Ian Gow, a Rothmans' Tobacco company executive. Gow wanted his firm to sponsor a rugby union tournament with top teams from throughout the world. McTavish and Smith suggested that a rugby sevens tournament would be more logistically feasible and be a better spectacle than a 15-a-side tournament. After an initial proposal was refused by the Rugby Football Union in England, the HKRFU changed its focus and sent out invitations to Asian and Pacific sides.
On 28 March 1976, clubs from Indonesia, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Tonga, Japan, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Fiji participated in the first Hong Kong Sevens Tournament at the Hong Kong Football Club in Happy Valley sponsored by Rothmans' Tobacco and Cathay Pacific. This was an important step as this was one of the first rugby tournaments that attracted commercial sponsorship. Of the countries represented in the inaugural sevens tournament, only Australia and New Zealand did not send national sides, instead being represented by the Wallaroos and the Cantabrians respectively. These two clubs met in the final where the Cantabrians won 24-8.
The series then grew into a competition with national representative sevens sides competing, and with this growth, the tournament moved to the Hong Kong Stadium in 1982.
The Hong Kong Sevens were ahead of their time, and an influential force in the modernisation of rugby union, for example, the Hong Kong Sevens were one of the first rugby union tournaments to attract major sponsorship, when the airline Cathay Pacific sponsored the 1976 tournament.[2] They also provided a level of cosmopolitan international competition, which tended not to exist in rugby before the first Rugby World Cup in 1987,[3] especially since Hong Kong was not seen as one of the "Big Eight", and other than some involvement with France, the Commonwealth teams tended to be notoriously clannish. By 1986, the Hong Kong Sevens were held up as a positive example to others:
However, despite this apparent diversity, some of the same old problems which had dogged international rugby were still manifest in the Hong Kong Sevens in the 1980s - for example, in a photograph of the Hong Kong vs Bahrain game at the tournament in 1984, the teams do not appear to include anyone who is ethnically Arabian or Chinese, instead both teams are quite clearly of northern European ethnic origin.[4]
In 1994, the venue was deemed too small for the tournament and was rebuilt into a 40,000 seat stadium now named the Hong Kong Stadium. Today, 24 national representative sides compete in the tournament. These include the 16 'core' members of the IRB Sevens World Series, plus eight further invited teams.
In 1997 and 2005, the Hong Kong Sevens was not held; taking its place was the Rugby World Cup Sevens, which Hong Kong hosted in both years. Fiji won both World Cup Sevens tournaments. In 1998, the first tournament after the transfer of sovereignty to China, tickets were not sold internationally and the event was stricken with a bankrupt sponsor Peregrine. The Union's Organising Committee worked hard, and successfully implemented its marketing strategy to get the local population involved through "Friday Night is Party Night" and secured CSFB as sponsors "on a spur-of-the-moment",[5] the event was a comparatively huge success. In 2011, after HSBC negotiated title sponsorship to the entire World Sevens Series tournaments, it was no longer possible for Credit Suisse to sponsor the Hong Kong leg after 14 years.[5]
The Hong Kong Sevens is the sport's most prestigious annual rugby sevens event organised by the IRB Sevens World Series, it is contested by 24 teams; all other World Series tournaments have 16 teams participating. The teams are divided into six pools of four teams, who play a round-robin within the pool. The winning team of the tournament acquires 30 points towards its rankings in the World Series instead of the normal 24, and the runner-up earns 25 points instead of the normal 20. Through the 2008–09 IRB Sevens season, the Hong Kong Sevens awarded 24 points to the runner-up, and 16-team events offered only 20 points for the winner and 16 for the runner-up.)
The 2010 edition saw several significant changes to the tournament format. Foremost among these changes was the introduction of the fourth-level Shield trophy, which had not previously been awarded in Hong Kong. More important within the context of the IRB Sevens as a whole, the Cup and Plate are now contested in the same manner as in other competitions, with the losing quarter-finalists in the Cup parachuting into the Plate semifinals.
The total prize money stands at US$150,000. The Cup Champion wins US$100,000, and the runner-up takes home US$25,000; each semi-finalist loser receives US$12,500.[6]
Points are awarded in each pool on a different schedule from most rugby tournaments—3 for a win, 2 for a draw, 1 for a loss. The first tiebreaker is the head-to-head result between the tied teams, followed by difference in points scored during the tournament.[7]
Like all other World Series tournaments, four trophies are awarded at the end of a knockout tournament. The six pool winners, plus the two top-rated second-place teams play for the Cup and Plate. The Cup is awarded to the overall tournament champion. As for the other IRB tournaments, four quarterfinal losers drop into the bracket for the Plate. The Bowl is contested by the four remaining second-place teams, plus the four top-rated third-place teams, while the Shield is contested by the eight remaining teams. The Shield was contested in Hong Kong for the first time in 2010.[8]
The Hong Kong Rugby Sevens is traditionally one of if not the biggest event on the Hong Kong sporting calendar. As such, there is a tremendous party atmosphere, with the involvement of the entire rugby-playing community.[9] A one-day women's tournament, The Cable&Wireless Worldwide Hong Kong Women's Rugby Sevens, precedes the men's contests.[10] Under the auspices of the Hong Kong Mini Rugby Football Union, children with local clubs aged between 6 to 12 years play tournaments before the main matches each day. They also take part in the March Past immediately before the semi-final round.
For spectators, particular emphasis on the South Stand, where hordes of rugby fans dress up and dance for most of the duration. Activities that typically ensue as the weekend progresses include the throwing of empty beer jugs around the South Stand, Mexican waves, and streakers running across the pitch. Outside the stadium, the 'Sevens Village' at the Indian Recreation Club nearby is an alternative venue to gather and watch matches on giant screens, eat and drink to excess while matches are in progress; and after the match, partying continues with champagne and live music and DJs in the champagne tent.[11]
Since 2007 the South Stand has been made officially accessible to over-18s only, due to its hyper and somewhat provocative atmosphere. Streakers were formally arrested. In addition, following an incident in 2010 when one spectator invaded the pitch, climbed onto the crossbars at the south end of the stadium before dodging back into the stands and disappearing, organisers stepped up security and announced a zero-tolerance policy of invaders in 2011. Out of concerns for safety, the local Rugby Union sent out notification that anyone entering the playing area who should not enter would be arrested by the police, instead of just being ejected from the arena.[12]
| Year | Venue | Cup | Plate | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | Final Score | Runner-up | Winner | Final Score | Runner-up | ||
| 1976 | HK Football Club Stadium | Cantabrians |
24-8 | Wallaroos |
Hong Kong |
19-16 | Tonga |
| 1977 | HK Football Club Stadium | Fiji |
28-18 | Marlborough |
Tonga |
20-4 | Indonesia |
| 1978 | HK Football Club Stadium | Fiji |
14-10 | Manawatu |
Bahrain |
10-0 | Singapore |
| 1979 | HK Football Club Stadium | Australia |
39-3 | Samoa |
Papua New Guinea |
13-10 | Hawaii |
| 1980 | HK Football Club Stadium | Fiji |
12-8 | Co-Optimists |
Japan |
44-0 | Singapore |
| 1981 | HK Football Club Stadium | Barbarian F.C. |
12-10 | Australia |
Tonga |
22-18 | Japan |
| 1982 | Hong Kong Stadium | Australia |
18-14 | Scottish Border Club |
South Korea |
32-6 | Japan |
| 1983 | Hong Kong Stadium | Australia |
14-4 | Fiji |
South Korea |
30-6 | Canada |
| Year | Venue | Cup | Plate | Bowl | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | Final Score | Runner-up | Winner | Winner | ||
| 1984 | Hong Kong Stadium | Fiji |
26-0 | New Zealand |
Australia |
Sri Lanka |
| 1985 | Hong Kong Stadium | Australia |
24-10 | Public School Wanderers |
Tonga |
Hong Kong |
| 1986 | Hong Kong Stadium | New Zealand |
32-12 | French Barbarians |
United States |
Papua New Guinea |
| 1987 | Hong Kong Stadium | New Zealand |
12-6 | Fiji |
French Barbarians |
Hong Kong |
| 1988 | Hong Kong Stadium | Australia |
13-12 | New Zealand |
United States |
Taiwan |
| 1989 | Hong Kong Stadium | New Zealand |
22-10 | Australia |
Tonga |
Netherlands |
| 1990 | Hong Kong Stadium | Fiji |
22-10 | New Zealand |
Hong Kong |
West Germany |
| 1991 | Hong Kong Stadium | Fiji |
18-14 | New Zealand |
Argentina |
South Korea |
| 1992 | Hong Kong Stadium | Fiji |
22-6 | New Zealand |
Hong Kong |
Romania |
| 1993 | Hong Kong Stadium | Samoa |
14-12 | Fiji |
Tonga |
Romania |
| 1994 | Hong Kong Stadium | New Zealand |
32-20 | Australia |
South Korea |
Hong Kong |
| 1995 | Hong Kong Stadium | New Zealand |
35-17 | Fiji |
Canada |
Hong Kong |
| 1996 | Hong Kong Stadium | New Zealand |
19-17 | Fiji |
France |
Japan |
| 1997 | Hong Kong Stadium | Fiji |
24-21 | South Africa |
Tonga |
United States |
| 1998 | Hong Kong Stadium | Fiji |
28-19 | Samoa |
South Korea |
Morocco |
| 1999 | Hong Kong Stadium | Fiji |
21-12 | New Zealand |
Japan |
Hong Kong |
| 2000 | Hong Kong Stadium | New Zealand |
31-5 | Fiji |
France |
Ireland |
| 2001 | Hong Kong Stadium | New Zealand |
29-5 | Fiji |
United States |
Hong Kong |
| 2002 | Hong Kong Stadium | England |
33-20 | Fiji |
South Africa |
Morocco |
| 2003 | Hong Kong Stadium | England |
22-17 | New Zealand |
Canada |
United States |
| 2004 | Hong Kong Stadium | England |
22-12 | Argentina |
Scotland |
Cook Islands |
| 2005 | Hong Kong Stadium | Fiji |
29-19 | New Zealand |
Portugal |
Italy |
| 2006 | Hong Kong Stadium | England |
26-24 | Fiji |
Wales |
China |
| 2007 | Hong Kong Stadium | Samoa |
27-22 | Fiji |
Wales |
Russia |
| 2008 | Hong Kong Stadium | New Zealand |
26-12 | South Africa |
France |
Russia |
| 2009 | Hong Kong Stadium | Fiji |
26-24 | South Africa |
Tonga |
Portugal |
| Year | Venue | Cup | Plate | Bowl | Shield | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | Final Score | Runner-up | Winner | Winner | Winner | ||
| 2010 | Hong Kong Stadium | Samoa |
24-21 | New Zealand |
Australia |
Canada |
Hong Kong |
| 2011 | Hong Kong Stadium | New Zealand |
29-17 | England |
South Africa |
Canada |
Kenya |
2011 Hong Kong Sevens
Sevens has proved to be a fertile ground for nurturing young players.[13]
For New Zealand, Jonah Lomu,[14] Christian Cullen, Zinzan Brooke, John Schuster, Rodney So'oialo, Joe Rokocoko, Mils Muliaina and Rico Gear were first introduced to the international game of Sevens. For Australia, former Australian captain George Gregan first demonstrated his ability at the Hong Kong Sevens in the same team as Joe Roff and Ben Tune. Sevens launched the careers of Rupeni Caucau, Napolioni Nalaga, Sireli Bobo, Noa Nadruku, Joeli Vidiri, William Ryder, Marika Vunibaka and Vilimoni Delasau to name just a few Fijians. For England, Lawrence Dallaglio, Matt Dawson, Austin Healey, Josh Lewsey, Mathew Tait and David Strettle have developed their game in the shortened code. For Wales, Jamie Roberts, James Hook has gone on to play at fly-half for his national team after playing in the Hong Kong Sevens.[15] South Africa, also, have seen Jean de Villiers, Bryan Habana, Ricky Januarie, Brent Russell and Kabamba Floors showcase their variety of skills at the event. Sevens also launched the international career of former Argentina 15s captain Agustín Pichot, who now serves on the coaching staff of the country's sevens team.
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