Breathing new life into sevens rugby
Sevens rugby
Dolphin Rugby Club and The Creation Sports Academy are hard at work to organise and host the third leg of the Global 7’s club rugby sevens tournament at Swakopmund.
The Namibian event scheduled for 30 November 2024 will be preceded by tournaments in Fiji (26 and 27 October) and South Africa (23 and 24 November).
“It is a huge honour for Dolphin to host this international competition. The tournament sanctioned by the Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) is for amateur club players and seeks to provide them with the chance to develop to represent their country. Eligible players must not play professional club rugby, Super Rugby or be active in the United Rugby Championship, for example,” explained Rowhan Besser, chairman of Dolphin Rugby Club.
Union backing
The NRU gave its stamp of approval for the tournament that will be contested over three legs in 2024 with the winners of each event pocketing medals and trophies.
Johan Diergaardt, vice-president of the NRU, said: “The board granted its approval last Saturday. Our players need exposure. The game needs to be developed and we cannot stand in the way. There is currently no active sevens rugby program in the country and we discussed the revival of the game from grassroots level. This event and the Ongos Sevens tournament will allow us to appoint a coach and select a team.”
Diergaardt says Namibia needs funding and an active sevens program to take the sport forward. “Playing one tournament a year is not enough.”
Each participating country will be liable to cover players' travel expenses to the host country.
Besser confirmed that preparations are on track. “We are having weekly meetings facilitated by the organisers of the Global 7’s club tournament. It will cost us an estimated N$1.2 million to host this event and we extend an invitation to companies who would like to partner with us and ensure the success of the event.
“The hosts are responsible for providing accommodation for the 80 touring members for seven days. They must also ensure transportation, provide meals, the tournament venue and training facilities.
“This tournament will propel our rugby forward. Rugby sevens tend to be played at a faster pace than the 15s game and thus, sevens players are often backs or loose forwards in fifteens rugby. Clubs will be able to recruit players and broaden their depth. The opportunity allows players to gain experience, compete in other countries and they could possibly secure contracts with international teams,” Besser said.
Each host country will have eight women's and eight men's club teams participating. Visiting squads will consist of two men's teams of 14 players each and six staff members (40 in total).
Dolphin and NRU will host the Namibia event at Vineta Sports Field in Swakopmund. Port Elizabeth and Uitenhage will host the South African leg at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in the Eastern Cape. Lautoka Rugby Union and Yasawa Rugby Union will host the Fiji event at Churchill Park Stadium in Lautoka City.
History
Over the years, the Namibia national men’s team has had rather limited exposure at international tournaments, including the Commonwealth Games and the World Rugby Sevens Series.
At the 2023 Rugby Africa Men's Sevens last September in Harare, Namibia failed to score a win in three matches against Kenya, Zambia and Nigeria and were ranked 10th. The 2019 team missed out on competing at the Tokyo Olympics after finishing fifth at the Rugby Africa qualifier.
The Namibian event scheduled for 30 November 2024 will be preceded by tournaments in Fiji (26 and 27 October) and South Africa (23 and 24 November).
“It is a huge honour for Dolphin to host this international competition. The tournament sanctioned by the Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) is for amateur club players and seeks to provide them with the chance to develop to represent their country. Eligible players must not play professional club rugby, Super Rugby or be active in the United Rugby Championship, for example,” explained Rowhan Besser, chairman of Dolphin Rugby Club.
Union backing
The NRU gave its stamp of approval for the tournament that will be contested over three legs in 2024 with the winners of each event pocketing medals and trophies.
Johan Diergaardt, vice-president of the NRU, said: “The board granted its approval last Saturday. Our players need exposure. The game needs to be developed and we cannot stand in the way. There is currently no active sevens rugby program in the country and we discussed the revival of the game from grassroots level. This event and the Ongos Sevens tournament will allow us to appoint a coach and select a team.”
Diergaardt says Namibia needs funding and an active sevens program to take the sport forward. “Playing one tournament a year is not enough.”
Each participating country will be liable to cover players' travel expenses to the host country.
Besser confirmed that preparations are on track. “We are having weekly meetings facilitated by the organisers of the Global 7’s club tournament. It will cost us an estimated N$1.2 million to host this event and we extend an invitation to companies who would like to partner with us and ensure the success of the event.
“The hosts are responsible for providing accommodation for the 80 touring members for seven days. They must also ensure transportation, provide meals, the tournament venue and training facilities.
“This tournament will propel our rugby forward. Rugby sevens tend to be played at a faster pace than the 15s game and thus, sevens players are often backs or loose forwards in fifteens rugby. Clubs will be able to recruit players and broaden their depth. The opportunity allows players to gain experience, compete in other countries and they could possibly secure contracts with international teams,” Besser said.
Each host country will have eight women's and eight men's club teams participating. Visiting squads will consist of two men's teams of 14 players each and six staff members (40 in total).
Dolphin and NRU will host the Namibia event at Vineta Sports Field in Swakopmund. Port Elizabeth and Uitenhage will host the South African leg at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in the Eastern Cape. Lautoka Rugby Union and Yasawa Rugby Union will host the Fiji event at Churchill Park Stadium in Lautoka City.
History
Over the years, the Namibia national men’s team has had rather limited exposure at international tournaments, including the Commonwealth Games and the World Rugby Sevens Series.
At the 2023 Rugby Africa Men's Sevens last September in Harare, Namibia failed to score a win in three matches against Kenya, Zambia and Nigeria and were ranked 10th. The 2019 team missed out on competing at the Tokyo Olympics after finishing fifth at the Rugby Africa qualifier.
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