Adelaide 7s. Should it stay in SA or move elsewhere?

[grievous]

Some background

ADELAIDE will take a huge role in rugby's return to the Olympic Games in 2016 - if South Australia can convince the Australian Rugby Union to keep the event in the state.

South Australia's five-year contract to host a leg of the IRB Sevens World Series expires next year and it is likely to face fierce opposition from rival states to host an international sevens tournament.

The International Olympic Committee's decision to readmit rugby sevens to its family for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games is certain to create enormous interest from cities - especially the Gold Coast - wanting a date on the IRB calendar.

While the IRB has been forced to review its plans following the IOC's announcement, the game's governing body is adamant it wants an annual event in Australia.

Just who hosts the tournament is in the hands of the ARU.

The IRB is developing a strategic plan for sevens beyond 2011, with a project group consulting with its member unions.

Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar.
Related Coverage

* Fire up: More at our Rugby Sevens supersite

* Four Nations 'daunting' for Pumas Herald Sun, 1 Dec 2010
* Adelaide at the double Adelaide Now, 2 Jun 2010
* New world force in sevens rugby The Australian, 24 May 2010
* Replace lost Test income: O'Neill The Australian, 18 May 2010
* Australia's World Cup black hole The Daily Telegraph, 18 May 2010

End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar.

The process will take several months with the plan to be presented to the IRB council in November.

Given the success of the series and the rapid growth of sevens, the IRB is loath to alter a winning formula.

"For all intents and purposes no one wants to see it (series) scrapped from its current format," Ireland-based IRB tournament operations manager Beth Coalter said.

"Maybe there will be tournaments added to it."

"The series has been a success and it is exciting to see how it is going.

"Adelaide has worked well by linking to Hong Kong (next week) and the event has been a big contributing factor, as have all the tournaments, to the success of sevens.

"The competition is so different to four or five years ago - it is amazing to see how it has evolved. Sevens is now far more confrontational and it has more elements of the 15s game - especially defensively, rather than athletes just running up and down the pitch."

The IRB has already changed its mind on scrapping the Rugby World Cup Sevens, held every four years, but consideration is being given to lifting its status further to be the qualifying event for the Olympics.

While the number of tournaments in the series - there are eight under the current five-year agreement - is being reviewed, there will also be a push to encourage regional events with the IRB hopeful the Oceania zone can organise more competitions to provide players with increased sevens exposure.

Another question being discussed is whether to reduce the number of teams on the circuit - currently 12 - to boost opportunities for other countries to compete at this level.

Twelve teams will contest the Olympics with Russia and China among the countries already lifting their interest in the game.

"Eight tournaments (in the series) works well but should there be 10, should there be more teams?" Coalter said. "There are lots of things which need to be discussed.

"We need to involve all our member unions to see how they are approaching sevens now, to give them an input into what they want.

" It will be quite a process for the next two or three months."

Adelaide has no other 1st class fixtures but is that a good enough reason?
Would the eastern states do a better job?

 

[wamberal]

It is hard to see Adelaide ever becoming a cult location for the Sevens, like Hong Kong - whether or not Hong Kong is a good model is another matter, of course. Hong Kong is much more about the beer etc than about rugby.


I would like to see it in Melbourne for a few years, to give the Rebels a bit of added exposure. In either Sydney or Brisbane it would be crowded out a bit by loig. Perth is just too far away from the rest of Oz to develop a big following.

 

[observer]

I would like to see it in a more traditional rugby area where we are trying to develop the game - Melbourne, Perth,. Throw in Brisbane, Sydney, Parramatta and the Gold Coast.

 

[Rothschild]

Rugby Gold Coast is spending massive resources in order to eventually secure the event. With the success again of the local 7's tournament held back in early November, there is quiet optimism that they can wrestle the event away from Adelaide in the not too distant future.
Skilled park offers a near perfect venue, (if you can get the stench of Mungo and Poof ball from the playing surface).
Additionally there would be a great support base from Brisbane and travel by train to the venue gate is attractive.

 

[en_force_er]

Could it be Western Sydney Rugby's flagship event?

If it was in Melbourne I think it would get pretty good numbers as Melbourne is an extremely ex-pat filled city.

 

[barbarian]

I think Melbourne would be a good home for it. Would get a huge crowd, the Melburnians love international sporting events like this. Would raise the profile of the game in a valuable market.

Adelaide isn't really doing much for us at the moment.

 

[en_force_er]

Adelaide isn't really doing much for us at the moment.

I think the reasons the 7s are in Adelaide is because of the "what else are we doing for SA rugby" rather then "what is SA rugby doing for us".

Adelaide doesn't have the ex-pat rugger community of other areas and thus I think attracting attention to rugger there would be better served by relocating a Rebels home game against the Lions or the Cheaters there once a year.

It would be an Australian rugby team linking with an Australian rugby community rather then a International event linking with a mostly local community.

 

[stoff]

the Melburnians love international sporting events like this.

And like ones we steal from SA even better. We also managed to fill Etihad twice for the Comm Games 7s, so we have some history with it.

BTW, where is that article from - it has an absolute shocker of a contradiction in it towards the end.

Another question being discussed is whether to reduce the number of teams on the circuit - currently 12 - to boost opportunities for other countries to compete at this level.

Eight tournaments (in the series) works well but should there be 10, should there be more teams?" Coalter said.

 

[Hawko]

Having been exiled to Adelaide five years ago I would be mortified to lose my one chance at seeing live international rugby. Having stated my personal bias, I would make the following points:

1. The ground is an absolute beauty to watch rugby, particularly from the new stand. Watched the cricket test debacle from there on day 4, the ground and the viewing position was absolutely awesome. Think SFS but better!
2. The Adelaide sevens have gone well, got good if not spectacular crowds and really shown off good rugby in an AFL stronghold. It would be a craven capitulation to AFL to move it to NSW or QLD, a sign that we were pulling back from expanding the game's reach into enemy territory at a time when they are attacking us on all fronts.
3. Properly marketed it would be a great display to offer on FTA television (the semis and all four finals only) and a great advertisement for the game. People who have Fox would watch it there so it would not detract from their market and with some incentive Fox would share the semi and final rights I'm sure. The closer we get to the Olympics the more this will be the case. Doing that from Adelaide would deliver a larger TV audience in the eastern states.

 

[Hugh Jarse]

As much as I'd like to see it in good olde Sydney Town, Melbourne does do events quite well.

Can you imagine filling the G for two days? Perfect.

Melbourne is a great international city (not as good as ours) but is well placed to take advantage with international flights, and plenty of other things to do to package up with the 7's.

 

[Joe Mac]

I plan to go to Adelaide for the first time next year and watch it which, I am really looking forward to it. Having the wine regions so close makes for a great long weekend and if they spent a bit more time promoting it to the other states as just that, it could grow into a product similar in cult following to what the HK7's are; just to a different demographic.

I say stick with the serial killer state

 

[grievous]

Having been exiled to Adelaide five years ago I would be mortified to lose my one chance at seeing live international rugby. Having stated my personal bias, I would make the following points:

1. The ground is an absolute beauty to watch rugby, particularly from the new stand. Watched the cricket test debacle from there on day 4, the ground and the viewing position was absolutely awesome. Think SFS but better!
2. The Adelaide sevens have gone well, got good if not spectacular crowds and really shown off good rugby in an AFL stronghold. It would be a craven capitulation to AFL to move it to NSW or QLD, a sign that we were pulling back from expanding the game's reach into enemy territory at a time when they are attacking us on all fronts.
3. Properly marketed it would be a great display to offer on FTA television (the semis and all four finals only) and a great advertisement for the game. People who have Fox would watch it there so it would not detract from their market and with some incentive Fox would share the semi and final rights I'm sure. The closer we get to the Olympics the more this will be the case. Doing that from Adelaide would deliver a larger TV audience in the eastern states.

I really think Adelaide Oval is a poor venue. An oval and a big one for a start, it doesnt look great with under 20,000 in it. Sure its in the city, plenty of room to get into the carnival atmosphere.
Adelaide does not have a suitable rectangular venue. There is Hindmarsh the soccer venue but it has almost no in goal area and only seats 16,000 and the area has no atmosphere however there is s direct tram link to the city now. Note it did host the old Provincial 7s in the 90s.
I think promotion is a big thing, 7s is poorly promoted in Oz public hardly knows its on, these needs to change. NZ sells out in minutes, its not like Oz doesnt like a sporting event in the sun where you can drink beer all day.

 

[Ruggo]

Canberra would work. Why lock it in to one city. Take it to a new venue each year.

 

[en_force_er]

Absolutely, why not move it.

If we were the Honk Kong or Dubai 7s we'd want to keep the brand recognition but seeing as ours is a tournament that merely seems to make up numbers why not keep it nomadic. Perhaps the Rebels could even use it to spread some rugger love to Geelong, Qld could use it to show off Gold Coast (which already has some love for 7s) and NSW could use it to show Western Sydney it still loves it.

 

[observer]

An interesting yarn here how South Africa may be changing the venue of their sevens event.

George's final swansong for SA Sevens?

So have we just seen George play host to the SA Sevens for the very last time?

With its contract expiring this year the word on the street is that the SA Sevens extravaganza will upgrade to a more tourist-friendly location that possess a far bigger stadium.

This was the ninth time the World Series show has hit the quaint town nestled below South African’s stunning Outeniqua Mountains part of the picturesque Garden Route. In many ways it will be a shame for the event to leave from here – considering the improvements they made this year.

Most of the experienced players and coaches will tell you it offers the small-town local partisan crowd offers the Series something different from the other large scale showpieces. It’s bringing rugby out to the people rather than the other way around.

With the players enjoying the ‘chilled out’ vibe of the Fancourt Golf Club it’s a nice tonic to recover and recuperate following the stresses of Dubai.

But top-tier international sevens is changing. With top blue-chip sponsor on board in HSBC, revenues need to be generated and commercial interest ignited.

So could the SARU be willing to jack in George for the Table Mountain of Cape Town? It makes sense commercially with the tournament sponsors, Emirates, to have the matches in a city where to and from which it has flights.

Although extra seats have been put in for this weekend’s tournament in George, the 10,000 capacity is far off Cape Town Stadium’s 64,000. No more army tents for the players during tournament days with the impressive FIFA World Cup venues sure to please management.

Although the IRB will shake up the structure of the World Series next year with new tournaments if they continue to pair Dubai and South Africa logistically Cape Town makes better sense. It would cut out extra travel for the players on the tour for one.

Port Elizabeth and Rustenburg are the other main contenders as the IRB/SARU seek that highoctane entertainment that a Hong Kong or Wellington brings. The potential that a Cape Town could bring to the World Series is massive – with the right marketing to get the right bums on seats.

You only have to look at the RFU and London Sevens which has taken a good 10 years to develop a world class product. These things can take time so somewhere like Cape Town won’t be just a quick fix in my view.

Even moving to Cape Town the likes of HSBC can still work out some CSR for teams in visiting townships and meeting youngsters and rugby workshops.

A few cocktails in Bar Caprice at the stunning Camps Bay wouldn’t go amiss either!

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

I went to the Adelaide 7's last year and loved it. Adelaide Oval is a great ground and they have Pale Ale on tap. Therefore it should stay.

It's pretty well patronised too.