Sevens And The City

If you are anything like me you are trying very hard to embrace the notion of the off-season… that period of the year when you actually have to plan how to fill your weekends for they are not automatically populated with Premiership Rugby, European Rugby, the QBE Internationals or the RBS 6 Nations. I know how tough it is however if you are within a reasonable distance to London then I have a solution for one of these ‘off weekends' and it is rugby related; Sevens And The City.

This year is the second annual Sevens And The City and for those of you that haven’t heard of it before and didn’t attend last year, allow me to provide a little introduction. Sevens And The City is the brainchild of two men that we know very well from their time with Saracens, David Strettle and Matt Stevens. David aka Strets' has years of experience developing Sevens tournaments in La Manga Spain and with the facilities on hand at Allianz Park it seemed like a no brainer to open out the stadium to a large summer tournament. Strets chose his work husband carefully and together they put together a tremendously successfully inaugural competition. Last year’s tournament included, Netball, 4Fittest the athletic competition and four different levels of Sevens action. It was an outstanding day, and set the platform for this year’s event which is described by Strets as ‘bigger, bolder and better’ than ever before!! 

So it is time to get your diaries out, the tournament is at the beginning of July, the 4th and 5th, at Allianz Park and again it will feature multiple competitions. For the experienced rugby festival go’er it is time to dust off the tent and pitch up for the duration with a delightful Friday night opener included. The competitive action will happen on Saturday and Sunday and for those wishing to let off a little steam in the middle Kimberley Wyatt and Seb Fontaine will be delivering some cracking entertainment into the wee hours! Rugby wise there are three competitions; Open, Social and Party, Netball wise there are two levels, Tag Rugby is included and the huge fitness competition 4Fittest. Team numbers are already strong with 80+ teams registered in all rugby competitions, 40 for the netball and 20 for the 4Fittest… there are spaces though so now I’m handing over to you!! 

Personally I won’t be dusting off the athletic gear, unless any ladies teams fancy a ringer (!) however as a spectator this weekend has been in my diary for a long, long time. Last year’s elite competition was won by England and they’ll be back to defend their title in the CME Group Cup after a successful season on the HSBC World Sevens Series. Personally I’m swaying towards the glamping option for a beautifully named ‘Pod Pad’ that includes a plug socket is definitely my style!! Last year was a roaring success and whether you are a player or spectator it is a great event to delight in during the somewhat challenging and dare I say it bleak off season!! 

All of the important information and links are here: Website, Spectator Tickets and of course Team Entry