The Teams for 2009
(Who do we think will be there and are they any good?)
This is our best guess of who is coming. As usual there will be changes between now and the tournament but the printer's deadline for the programme means we go to press with what we have.
The format for the Men's 7s will be the traditional 60 team format with 12 pools of 5 teams on Saturday. The Ladies 7s tournament will probably be a 16 team format, playing in 4 pools of 4 on Saturday, but this could change. We expect the Veterans 10s to have 10 teams in two pools of 5 on Saturday but we may need to increase this to a 12 team format.
The Format of the Men's 7s, for the uninitiated, is as follows. On Saturday the 60 teams play in 12 pools of 5. These pools are seeded by the fixture secretary. It does mean some fairly average teams will be able to boast of having played against some top sevens outfits. However, they will probably not mention the score because the tries scored on Saturday are a key part of the seeding for Sunday, there is no mercy shown as teams pile up the scores.
The top two teams from each of the Saturday pools go through to the main tournament, the Silver Pier, on Sunday. They play in 8 pools of three teams on Sunday morning. The winners of each pool go through to the Quarter Finals. The Final of the Silver Pier is the last game of the tournament, finishing at five o'clock on Sunday afternoon. There is prize money for the winners (3000), the runners-up (1000) and the losing semi-finalists (500).
The teams finishing third in each Saturday pool play in the Heineken Boot competition. There are four pools of 3 teams on Sunday morning. The winners go through to the knock-out stage at the Semi-Finals stage. There is no prize money for the Heineken Boot. We have had enough problems with glory hunters who throw Saturday pool games to try get into and to win the Heineken Boot, rather than qualify in the Silver Pier and get knocked out in the Sunday Pool Games.
The teams finishing fourth in each Saturday pool play in the Integer Plate competition. There are four pools of 3 teams on Sunday morning. The winners go through to the knock-out stage at the Semi-Finals stage.
The teams finishing fifth in each Saturday Pool can enjoy themselves on Saturday evening as they get to watch the tournament on Sunday.
The Ladies 7s Tournament format has not yet been finalised. We will probably play a 16 team format but this could change. On Saturday the 16 teams play in 4 pools of 4. Like the Men's 7s, the pools are seeded so on Saturday you could be playing against the top national sides.
The top two teams from each of the Saturday pools go through to the main tournament, the Ladies Silver Pier, on Sunday. They play in two pools of four teams on Sunday morning. The top two teams from each Sunday Morning Pool play cross semi-finals (first in pool 1 plays second in pool 2 and visa versa). The Final of the Ladies Silver Pier is the penultimate game of the weekend and there is prize money for the winners and the runners up.
The teams finishing third and fourth in the Saturday Pools play for the Ladies Plate on Sunday. They go straight into the knock-out phase at the quarter-final stage.
We currently expect the Veterans tournament to have 10 teams playing in two pools of five on Saturday but we may need to expand this to 12 teams. The 10 team format has the teams finishing first and second in the two Saturday pools will play for the Veterans Silver Pier, first playing cross semi-finals (first in pool 1 plays second in pool 2 and visa versa) and then a Final deciding the winner. The teams finishing third and fourth in the Saturday pools will play for the Veterans Plate, starting with cross semi-finals (third in pool 1 plays fourth in pool 2 and visa versa) and then a final. Unlike the other tournaments, the teams finishing fifth in the Saturday pools get to play on Sunday, playing against each other for the Veterans Wooden Spoon.
So, who is coming? Some old friends will not be there for various reasons including Susies Exiles, Bahrain Vagabonds, Scufflers and Backstabbers. We’ll miss them, but the tournament goes on and hopefully we will see them again in the future. This is our best guess. As usual we list the teams in based upon how we think the teams will do in the tournament. As usual, this is guesswork by the Fixtures Secretary based upon previous experience and the information sent in by teams. Also, as usual, the predictions will be very close to the mark. Also, the final line up of Dutch teams is only known after the National Sevens tournament, the weekend before the Amsterdam Sevens. The expected teams are included below. Most teams keep their players secret until the last minute. However, we have been told that Mel's Exiles have added a certain Waisale Tikoisolomoni Serevi to their team as player/coach. This could be your chance to meet, watch and even play against a legend.