Singapore Cricket Club (SCC) International Rugby 7s Tournament 2009

This event has finished

It may be set to join the ranks of Olympic sports – but don’t be fooled, Rugby Sevens is far from becoming respectable, at least not for those who watch it. Despite recent recommendations by the International Olympic Committee to add Sevens to the 2016 Summer Games, the sport retains a well-earned reputation for being the premier event to attend for people who really don’t care about sport. Few self-respecting sporting events would proudly boast, for instance, a bouncy castle. But the Singapore Cricket Club (SCC) is unrepentant, bringing not just a castle, but airbrush tattoo stands and even rock bands for the 62nd instalment of its popular SCC International Rugby 7s Tournament – it’s clearly going for the family-friendly vibe.

Such a carnival atmosphere is in keeping with a sport as famous for its colourful antics off the field as for the action on it. A spin-off of rugby union, with seven players per team instead of 15, the games are shorter – halves last seven minutes instead of 40 – and more open and explosive in format, while retaining the big tackles and runaway tries so popular in conventional rugby.

The sport’s party-time reputation was first made famous (or infamous) in Hong Kong, then on the IRB World Series circuit. It will no doubt be alive and well at the Padang, where for a relative pittance on the door ($25 for the weekend, $10 for children), and with numerous food stalls and all-day happy-hour drinks prices, spectators get to watch 21 prominent Sevens club teams from 11 countries around the world. Unlike the Hong Kong version, these are not international-level teams but outfits from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Fiji, Japan, Malaysia, the Middle East, South Africa, Kenya, the USA, the UK, and our own Singapore Cricket Club. The Women’s Rugby World Cup qualifiers precede the event, so the overall package makes for a high-quality double header.

All this, combined with the sport’s Summer Olympic status set to be finally decided in an IOC vote in Copenhagen on 2 October, means the atmosphere at this year’s event might be more celebratory than ever.

For further information go to www.sccrugbysevens.com.

SCC International Rugby 7s are set to play on The Padang (6-8 Nov).