The England and USA rugby sevens teams duke it out on the pitch.
PHOTO: HSBC SINGAPORE RUGBY SEVENS
Chances are, you’ve heard about the 2021 Six Nations Championship that ended on 26 March, with Wales taking home the Triple Crown and being declared champions. The Guinness Six Nations, like the Rugby World Cup, is a rugby union competition where two teams of 15 players compete on a rectangular pitch. This is also known as 15-a-side rugby, and it’s the variation people are usually referring to when they say “rugby”.
Another popular variation of the game is rugby sevens, which has been an Olympic sport since 2016, its debut also marking rugby’s return to the Olympic Games since rugby union was last played in 1924. This Olympic recognition has helped to cement rugby sevens’ position as a globally-recognised sport, but not many people know that entirely different sets of rules exist, resulting in a whole other game. But how do you tell the games apart, besides the number of players? We ask Steven Rodaway, General Manager of the HSBC Singapore Rugby Sevens and avid rugby fan.
With big events like the London Olympics and the England Rugby World Cup under his belt, Steven Rodaway takes his love for rugby and expertise in event organising to his role as General Manager of the HSBC Singapore Rugby Sevens.
PHOTO: HSBC SINGAPORE RUGBY SEVENS
The Pitch
Steven has had extensive experience with rugby, coming from Wales where it is the national sport, so we got his help to break down the different parts that make up the game. A great starting point was the pitch on which games are played upon. Steven points out that both games use the same sized pitch, and this impacts the game. “For a sevens game, on-pitch battles are fast and furious as there is more space for the players to express themselves, which delivers more excitement for fans,” explains Steven. This means that the reduced number of players on a full-sized pitch means more room for more action—literally.
The Game Duration
Another crucial difference between the two is the length of each game. We knew they differed in duration—we just didn’t know by how much. Steven explains that a 15-a-side game is longer, lasting for about 80 minutes. Sevens, on the other hand, takes much less time to complete, with two seven-minute halves and half-time taking a maximum of two minutes. That’s less than a quarter of the time needed for a 15s match!
For a sport centred on strategy (and not just brute force, as some people might have you believe), this means each game requires a different approach. Steven explains that the longer duration of a union game allows for more methodological battles. Spectators are treated to a more intricate game strategy-wise, which unravels at a leisurely pace that’s hard to look away from. This means that teams prioritise working strategically, which comes in the form of teams wanting to “dominate the set piece and territory, while forcing their opponents into mistakes which can be exploited,” as Steven puts it.
That said, points are scored at a faster rate in a sevens game, and players have a limited time to make their breaks through the opponent’s defensive line. The shorter game duration of a rugby sevens also means that spectators are able to enjoy multiple rousing games in a short period of time.
No matter the type of rugby, it isn’t just about tackling one another.
PHOTO: SINGAPORE SPORTS HUB
The Rules
That’s not all, as the differences in the rules for a rugby sevens streamlines the game and keeps the action going. For example, scrums (when players huddle together and wrestle for possession of the ball) only consist of three forwards from each team as opposed to the eight per team in 15-a-side, ensuring that scrums are set up and resolved more quickly since it takes less time to set up one row of three players compared to three rows of eight players. Conversions (the kick that takes place after a team scores a try) are also now drop-kicked instead of place-kicked and must be taken within 30 seconds, further reducing downtime.
The Verdict
It’s interesting to see how a single sport can present itself in different forms, while still being equally fun to watch. We asked Steven if he had a preference for either game, and he had this to say: “As a core rugby fan I enjoy both, I love the technical battles and the tension which builds during an 80 minute 15s game, but I also love the dynamism and sheer skill level you see in 7s.” Sounds like it’s a matter of personal preference then! There’s no doubt that the World Rugby Sevens Series is on the rise, and you can watch a leg of this series right here at the Singapore National Stadium, happening on 29th and 30th October 2021.
