Inter-Club Rugby Sevens July 31st and August 1st in Colombo

by Hafiz Marikar

This year's Inter-Club Rugby 7's is fixed for July 31st and August 1st in Colombo. This is a tournament which keeps getting better and better. Rugby sevens is a seven-a-side version of rugby union. Played on the standard rugby pitch, but with far less than the usual fifteen players in a full union match.

The sevens game has grown in popularity to the extent that it now has been granted full Olympic status and will make its debut at the 2016 Olympic Games. It has also been played at Commonwealth Games since 1998, and there are several big international competitions including the IRB Sevens World Series and the Rugby World Cup Sevens to place it in the public eye.

Last year, Havelock Sports Club snapped the sevens after thirteen long years. In the last sevens, we saw sixteen teams Havelock SC, CH and FC, Kandy SC and CR and FC coming into the semis-finals in such a major event.

This time, too, Kandy Sports Club will be fielding a talented side. They first won the sevens championship in 1999 under Harris Omar and went on to win in 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010. So this time round they will be fielding a star-studded side. The other clubs like Havelock S.C the defending champions, CR and FC, Police SC , Army SC , Air Force SC and Navy SC too will be seen in action.

Earlier, the Police SC, CR & FC who dominated the Sevens, by winning in 1977, 1982, 1983, 1996 and 2010. All these clubs too are packed with some top class players and some interesting rugby can be expection.

Today Sevens rugby is very popular in the country, in Schools and clubs.