One of the most anticipated arrival in Rio de Janeiro last August for the Olympic Games was that of New Zealand rugby player Sonny Bill Williams. The All Black and occasional heavyweight boxer was just the profile organisers needed for the inaugural Olympic Rugby Sevens competition.
That Williams would go on to rupture his Achilles was a huge disappointment for the event. But the point had been well made. Rugby was a serious part of the Olympic roster and the biggest names in the game wanted a shot.
Ireland has come late to the Sevens game but with a programme in place and a squad of 15s players learning how to specialise, the summer will dictate what direction the team will take in the short term.
With a Grand Prix tournament lined up in June and July and the Irish squad facing weekends in Moscow, Lodz, Lyons and Exeter, the two top teams from those events will qualify for the Hong Kong Sevens and a shot of getting into the elite Sevens World Series of 15 core teams. The Tokyo Olympics in 2020 is the dream.
Fionn Carr, the former Leinster and Connacht winger is part of the ambitious set up. Now playing with Naas, the Olympic Games have always been at the back of his mind since he first received the phone call to come and join the Ireland Sevens squad.
“If you ask any athlete in any sport if they want to go or even if there is a chance to go to the Olympics they will take your hand off,” he says. “That I’m sure is in the back of every player’s mind.
“Our initial goal now is to get through this European Grand Prix in the summer, compete with the top teams around Europe and stake a claim for that spot for the World Series next year.”
None of the Irish players are on contracts with the IRFU, but they will face full-time players from other countries contracted to their unions.
The Irish programme has been in place for more than two years without a specialist Sevens-only player. There is an element of catch-up, even against countries where rugby would not be seen as strong.
“Yeah certainly,” says Carr. “Playing against players who are full-time Sevens players, it is an advantage for them. I suppose everyone’s goal is to get to the camps and do everything to the best of our ability like the professionals and then prove we are up to that standard. Let’s say we get on to a World Series then there might be contracts negotiated.”
The summer Grand Prix event is effectively the European championships of Sevens rugby with the first tournament in Russia. Ireland share Pool A with Wales, Georgia and Germany.
England, who compete in the World Rugby Sevens Series and regularly play against the best teams in the world are in Pool C with France, Belgium and Portugal.
“All the guys who are in the camps have played 15s,” explains Carr. “Everyone either has played 15s or is playing 15s.
“Playing the 15s game does stand to the guys. It makes you a little bit more aware of space. But then again you can see the guys who are more specialised in Sevens probably read the game that little bit better.
“It’s important that we all get as much game time as possible so when we get to these Grands Prix, we are hitting the ground running, everyone knows their role, everyone knows the systems.”
More open
The game is more open, shorter with seven-minute halves, with more scores and less heavy tackling. That means fewer collision injuries and fewer concussions.
It is also a game for mobile, fast players with good aerobic fitness. But like most sports a good “big ‘un” is more effective than a good “small ’un”.
Sevens has greater breadth than its bigger brother. Fiji (population 900,000) winning the first ever Olympic gold medal in the country’s history last year was met in Rio as proof of global spread.
“There are little differences,” says Carr. “Even if you are a forward in Sevens you can be a playmaker. If you are a big fella and you have got the fitness you’ll be fantastic at the game but it probably does tend to be more the leaner guys and the quicker guys.”
They play with sweepers at the back, a concept familiar to most people. But as Carr points out, it is a ruthless game and a missed tackle often means a try. It is also a hard ground game with the World Series following decent weather around the globe.
“We went to Dubai earlier in the year, which was probably my first experience of Sevens,” he says. “It was fantastic, thousands of people there for two or three days playing and watching. It does have that carnival atmosphere.”
Ireland are far from that. But a good summer and who knows.
