The Drovers begin their title defence of the newly titled Heineken National Sevens against Tier 2 runners-up Neath as they look to extend their winning run in the competition to 13 games. They brushed aside all-comers with their specialist brand of the shortened game, Jack Maynard scoring 21 points for them in the final as they beat Aberavon 46-21 with seven tries.
Rugby World Cup Sevens winner Lee Rees will captain a young Llandovery side tomorrow (Saturday), many of whom, like so many other players from the 16 Principality Premiership clubs will relish get the chance to impress the Wales Sevens tem management as they look to bolster their ranks with the Commonwealth Games and Rugby World Cup in mind next season.
“We have benefitted from having a number of sevens specialists within our squad in recent years,” said Drovers head coach Euros Evans. We still have Lee Rees and Rhodri Jones but we also have a lot of youngsters who will be looking to show what they can do in the sevens game and also ahead of next season’s Principality Premiership.”
While the tournament at Cardiff Arms Park at the start of the season kicked-off before any competitive rugby had been played, the standard in Llanelli could be even higher with every player battle-hardened after an exceptional season of Premiership rugby.
Newly crowned Principality Premiership champions Merthyr will be chasing another piece of silverware and they will begin with a tough game against host club Llanelli. The Ironmen reached the semi-finals of the Plate at the start of the season.
Plate winners Newport meet Bedwas, Swansea will take on Bridgend and Aberavon face Ebbw Vale. Bargoed meet Pontypridd, Plate runners-up RGC 1404 will play Cross Keys and Carmarthen Quins clash with Cardiff.
“This is a vital competition for identifying and developing our next international sevens players,” explained Wales Sevens head coach Gareth Williams. “The tournament has been brought forward from the end of August with a view to potentially selecting players into our set-up for the Rugby Europe tournaments this summer.
“As we have seen in recent years, players who impress on that circuit are in prime position to put themselves forward for World Series selection. With the Commonwealth Games and Rugby World Cup Sevens taking place next year, it’s an exciting time for rugby sevens and a fantastic opportunity for any players who impress at Parc y Scarlets.”
Aberavon wing Steff Andrews has been scoring tries for fun in the Premiership this season and also found time to play for Wales on the World Series circuit. He will be hoping to get the Wizards over the line after a number of near misses in recent seasons.
“Aberavon have been pretty successful in recent years and reached two semi-finals and then the final last year. Let’s hope we can keep up our good record at a new venue,” said Andrews.
HSBC World Series Impact Player of 2016/17 Sam Cross was first spotted in this competition and now has an Olympic silver medal for his efforts at the Rio Olympics.
He said, “The Heineken 7s is one of the highlights of the rugby calendar in Wales. I was fortunate enough to play in one of the events a couple of seasons ago, which is how I ended up being selected for Wales Sevens, so I’ve got very fond memories. The guys playing this weekend will know what an opportunity this could be for them, and for the supporters, it’s a brilliant day of top-class rugby sevens.”
In the women’s tournament, current champions Newport Gwent Dragons start against Cardiff Blues while home side and last year’s losing finalists, Scarlets, host the Ospreys.
Wales Women head coach Rowland Phillips will be on hand to keep an eye on any emerging talent keen to impress.
Tickets for the Heineken National Sevens are available tonight and tomorrow via tickets.scarlets.wales to collect at Parc y Scarlets, or direct from the Ticket Office.
