Sevens World Series/7's News

[Armchair Fan Profile]

Who knows. At least in the two camps held until now they've been working with a large group of players and something may be arranged to upset as little as possible the clubs. There are 6-7 guys that should be totally free since they play abroad or in clubs that won't qualify for play-offs and then the remaining 5-6 may be picked depending on how play-off are drawn.

[Neptune Profile]

South Africa are on fire. Bagged 4 in a row and have been losing finalists in the first leg. Kudos to them.
Let's see who will challenge them in Vancouver.

[Suiram Profile]

Worth adding that the US looked really really solid. Ben Pinkelman is the future, maka unufe may actually be back on form, and Tomasin is a really solid all around player for someone who never got time past years.

I'd say it showed our capability against South Africa. they are dominant but that was a close game and one that was winnable as Friday said without gifting tries in the first half.

Will see how Vancouver goes but if the US plays well again could be a good sign that they are turning the corner this year.

Only concern is probably that the pipeline of younger players isn't totally clear. Pinkelman is amazing and lots of guys aren't that old but would hope there could be a few more prospects pushing guys.

By the way, did Leuta or Elder play in the entire tournament? I guess the new rules mean it can be better to spell a star player and bring him back in the final minutes at the expense of the 11th or 12th guy on the roster.

Seemed to be doing that for both backs and forwards. Unufe on for Baker early 2nd half. Baker gets 2 min rest than Baker on for Iosefo pushing inside. I think it was similar for the forwards with Pinkelman coming on for Barrett then Barrett swapping in for durutalo at the end

[Coloradoan Profile]

Friday definitely went with a short bench in the games that were close. Think Leuta and Elder got on against Chile and maybe Samoa. Pinkelman and Tomasin are still pretty young, at least by US standards for the circuit. One person getting a bit older is Niua. He was outstanding all tournament. Great vision, playmaking, tackling, some monster cleanouts and physicality in contact. Barrett was outstanding but Niua was right there with him for best US player IMO. I'm not sure we have anyone to replace him who has both that combination of physicality and playmaking ability. Side note: that same ability suits him quite well for the 2nd 5/8 role in the 15s side.

[Suiram Profile]

Niua is amazing. I remember last year or the year before when people were critical because he lacks a little pace these days. But he really is the centerpiece of the whole team. His passes are just so effortlessly perfect. Every game he throws at least one 30 m+ pass and they are really almost always perfect.

It's a bit odd but I could see Tomasin replacing him
Longer term. Solid defender with good hands / passing and quick thinking. Maybe not quite right, but definitely limited options.

Don't know why he never really caught on in 15s. Maybe he has grown later in life with Friday and Brown. Also, he may do better in broken play that is common in 7s and less so in 15s

[TheStroBro Profile]

Well our depth just got smacked upside the head. I know the US hasn't had Carlin part of last season and we just got him back for Sydney. But with him going out it really hurts us going forward, at least I don't know what our 7s training squad looks like.

It doesn't really seem like the players on the front line are that much different, but the coaching that Friday has put in place over the last twelve months has been impressive. We're competing to the end of tournament and barely losing to the eventual winner. Staying in North America should help us going forward, we don't have to switch time dramatically.

[Coloradoan Profile]

He did earn a contract with Glasgow a few years ago but I think the problem is that he's on the low end of pace, at least he didn't by the time he got the contract, for 13 at that level. Honestly, he would have done a lot better in NZ IMO as he would have likely been more of a 12 and is well-suited to being a playmaking 12.

You could be right about Tomasin. He's clearly come on strong as he's getting major minutes now.

[Coloradoan Profile]

Well our depth just got smacked upside the head. I know the US hasn't had Carlin part of last season and we just got him back for Sydney. But with him going out it really hurts us going forward, at least I don't know what our 7s training squad looks like.

It doesn't really seem like the players on the front line are that much different, but the coaching that Friday has put in place over the last twelve months has been impressive. We're competing to the end of tournament and barely losing to the eventual winner. Staying in North America should help us going forward, we don't have to switch time dramatically.

Baker is way better than Isles at this point. While of course it hurts to lose Isles, it's hard to see Isles playing much more than 3-4 minutes a game when healthy.

[TheStroBro Profile]

He did earn a contract with Glasgow a few years ago but I think the problem is that he's on the low end of pace, at least he didn't by the time he got the contract, for 13 at that level. Honestly, he would have done a lot better in NZ IMO as he would have likely been more of a 12 and is well-suited to being a playmaking 12.

You could be right about Tomasin. He's clearly come on strong as he's getting major minutes now.

He was never on Glasgow's 15 side. He was on the Glasgow 7s, which I would have never thought there was a professional 7s union overseas. But even that contract didn't last long as he went into full residence with USA 7s since then.

Although I find Perry Baker very fast and awesome, both of them on the field when Isles was healthy created an interesting dynamic. I think Carlin is done, he may not be, but we'll see. I'd like to see Perry go for the XVs, he can add 15 more pounds and not lose a step with his frame so that he has the added durability.

[Suiram Profile]

There is no way perry can add 15 lbs. if he could he would have done so in college and probably would have got a shot in the NFL.

I think you just need to accept that his body type is what it is

[TheStroBro Profile]

There is no way perry can add 15 lbs. if he could he would have done so in college and probably would have got a shot in the NFL.

I think you just need to accept that his body type is what it is

What are you talking about? He's 6'1" and listed at 179lbs. If he adds 15lbs, which would take dedication in the off season that only puts him at a list weight of 194lbs. His frame can definitely handle it. And you don't think he has a shot with the NFL now? What I didn't know was that he's 30, I figured he was 25. He's in his prime, but to say there's no way is a bit stupid.

[Coloradoan Profile]

He did earn a contract with Glasgow a few years ago but I think the problem is that he's on the low end of pace, at least he didn't by the time he got the contract, for 13 at that level. Honestly, he would have done a lot better in NZ IMO as he would have likely been more of a 12 and is well-suited to being a playmaking 12.

You could be right about Tomasin. He's clearly come on strong as he's getting major minutes now.

He was never on Glasgow's 15 side. He was on the Glasgow 7s, which I would have never thought there was a professional 7s union overseas. But even that contract didn't last long as he went into full residence with USA 7s since then.

Although I find Perry Baker very fast and awesome, both of them on the field when Isles was healthy created an interesting dynamic. I think Carlin is done, he may not be, but we'll see. I'd like to see Perry go for the XVs, he can add 15 more pounds and not lose a step with his frame so that he has the added durability.

Was talking about Niua getting a contract with Glasgow, not Isles.

Gotta echo Suiram about Baker adding weight. If he could so easily handle adding that kind of weight, he would have done so already. Professional athletes don't add that kind of weight out of nowhere at age 30 without steroids. The reason is because they are professional athletes and already working extremely hard on optimizing their bodies for their sport. He might be able to add a couple pounds if he focused solely on 15s, but it's hard to see that happening.

[Suiram Profile]

My point was exactly as Coloradoan said.

There is a genetic element. There is an effort and training element but Baker has picked up top tier 7s in about 2 years so I'd say he does not have an issue with effort. I'll plug a great book called The Sports Gene by David Epstein. It's about exactly this topic (but focuses on sports that are easier to measure like track & field and swimming)

My point about the NFL was simply that when he was younger the primary thing holding him back in football was probably size. I'd be shocked if he wasn't encouraged to add weight because most articles mention that his speed and skills were NFL caliber. And the fact that he couldn't kind of validates my logic that he just cant. Especially not at 30.

[TheStroBro Profile]

Well, one issue with him and the NFL is the fact that he entered college extremely late for an athlete of his age. He would have been a Freshman in college traditionally in 2005. In regards to the way 7s is played and practiced I don't think adding 15lbs would make sense. But I'm thinking moreso for Baker hitting the XVs during a WC year.

[Neptune Profile]

World Sevens Series top try scorer Collins Injera seems to have picked a knock in Vegas, and might not feature in Vancouver. I hope he recovers quickly.
Collins is currently at 242 tries with Norton closely trying to overtake him at 237. All the best to the teams.

[victorsra Profile Website]

Chile 10 vs 00 Russia in Vancouver.

Chile did what Brazil never did in a World Sevens Series. Congrats to the Chileans!

There was some time since the last invited team won a WSS match, isn't it?

[Coloradoan Profile]

Uganda won a couple matches earlier in the season.

[victorsra Profile Website]

Oh, yes, true, I forgot Uganda.

[Neptune Profile]

Uganda won a couple matches earlier in the season.

Uganda beat Japan 26-19 in Cape Town. Phillip Wokorach their star player plays for Kabras Sugar club in the Kenya Cup league.

[Armchair Fan Profile]

Let's see what the draw for Hong Kong looks like in a couple of hours.

[RugbyLiebe Profile]

Let's see what the draw for Hong Kong looks like in a couple of hours.

Do you know the exact date?

Competing teams are:
Spain, Germany (Europe)
Hong Kong, Sri Lanka (Asia)
Namibia, Uganda (Africa)
Papua New Guinea, Tonga (Oceania)
Guyana, Jamaica (North America)
Chile, Uruguay (South America)

It should be a really interesting tournament.

In ceterum censeo, that the NA-teams shouldn't be there, but form a qualification group with SA instead to form a competition with more teams. For the two remaining places have a runners-up tournament with:
Georgia, Italy, Portugal (Europe)
South Korea, China (Asia)
Madagascar, Zimbabwe, Tunisia (Africa)
Cook Islands (Oceania)
Colombia, Brazil, Guyana (Americas).

But good for all the participating teams that two more or less hobby rugger teams are in there. Does anybody knows something about the state of rugby in Guyana or Jamaica?

[Armchair Fan Profile]

Let's see what the draw for Hong Kong looks like in a couple of hours.

Do you know the exact date?

If I'm not mistaken, in 45 minutes it will be streamed on Hong Kong Rugby Union Facebook page.

[Neptune Profile]

There is also the women's qualifier too in Hong Kong.

[Armchair Fan Profile]

Pool A: Germany, Tonga, Uganda, Jamaica
Pool B: Hong Kong, Chile, Sri Lanka, Namibia
Pool C: Spain, Papua New Guinea, Uruguay, Guyana

[RugbyLiebe Profile]

Well there are no easy groups. Spain still should be pleased with the draw.
But in the end it doesn't matter - to go to the Worls 7s Series you have to beat them all.