2009–10 IRB Sevens World Series
Encyclopedia
The 2009–10 IRB Sevens World Series
was the eleventh of an annual series of rugby union sevens tournaments for full national sides run by the International Rugby Board
since 1999–2000. Samoa
won the series crown for their first time.
Sevens is a stripped-down version of rugby union, with seven players on each side rather than fifteen. Games are much shorter, seven or ten minutes each half, and tend to be very fast-paced. Sevens is traditionally played in a two-day tournament format. However, the most famous event, the Hong Kong Sevens, is played over three days, largely because it involves 24 teams instead of the normal 16.
|- bgcolor="#efefef"
! colspan=4 style="border-right:0px;"; | 2009–10 Itinerary
|- bgcolor="#efefef"
! width=8%|Leg
! width=10%|Venue
! width=8%|Date
! width=5%|Winner
|-> Dubai
The Sevens
December 4–5, 2009
|-
South Africa
Outeniqua Park
, George
December 11–12, 2009
|-
New Zealand
Westpac Stadium
, Wellington
February 5–6, 2010
|-
United States
Sam Boyd Stadium
, Las Vegas
February 13–14, 2010
|-
Australia
Adelaide Oval
, Adelaide
March 19–21, 2010
|-
Hong Kong
Hong Kong Stadium
March 26–28, 2010
|-
London
Twickenham
May 22–23, 2010
>-
Edinburgh
Murrayfield
, Edinburgh
May 29–30, 2010
Two minor changes were made to the schedule:
The core teams were unchanged from 2008–09; the most recent change came before that season, when the USA replaced its neighbor Canada
.
16-team events (all except for Hong Kong)
24-team event (Hong Kong)
Four trophies are awarded in each tournament. In descending order of prestige, they are the Cup, whose winner is the overall tournament champion, Plate, Bowl and Shield. The Shield was contested in Hong Kong for the first time in 2010. Each trophy is awarded at the end of a knockout tournament.
In a 16-team tournament, the top two teams in each pool advance to the Cup competition. The four quarterfinal losers drop into the bracket for the Plate. The Bowl is contested by the third- and fourth-place finishers in each pool, with the losers in the Bowl quarterfinals dropping into the bracket for the Shield.
The Hong Kong Sevens adopted a new structure effective with its 2010 edition. As in previous years, the 24 teams were divided into six pools of four teams each, with the competition points system and tiebreakers identical to those for a 16-team event. Also as in the past, the six pool winners and the two top second-place finishers advanced to the Cup competition. The changes made in 2010 were:
|- bgcolor="#efefef"
! colspan=4 style="border-right:0px;"; | Individual points
|- bgcolor="#efefef"
! width=5%|Pos.
! Player
! Country
! Points
|-> 1
Ben Gollings
332
>-
2
Mikaele Pesamino
282
>-
3
Lolo Lui
264
>-
4
James Stannard
257
>-
5
Tomasi Cama
241
>-
6
Cecil Afrika
210
>-
7
Kurt Baker
191
>-
8
Lavin Asego
173
>-
9
Mzwandile Stick
171
>-
10
William Ryder
166
|- bgcolor="#efefef"
! colspan=4 style="border-right:0px;"; | Individual tries
|- bgcolor="#efefef"
! width=5%|Pos.
! Player
! Country
! Tries
|-> 1
Mikaele Pesamino
56
>-
2=
Kurt Baker
33
>-
2=
Humphrey Kayange
33
>-
4=
Ryno Benjamin
32
>-
4=
Collins Injera
32
>-
6
Brackin Karauria-Henry
30
>-
7
Alafoti Fa'osiliva
29
>-
8=
Renaud Delmas
28
>-
8=
Clinton Sills
28
>-
10
Sherwin Stowers
27
IRB Sevens World Series
The IRB Sevens World Series, known officially as the HSBC Sevens World Series as of the 2010-11 season, through sponsorship from banking group HSBC, and also sometimes called the World Sevens Series, is a series of international rugby union sevens tournaments organised for the first time in the...
was the eleventh of an annual series of rugby union sevens tournaments for full national sides run by the International Rugby Board
International Rugby Board
The International Rugby Board is the governing body for the sport of rugby union. It was founded in 1886 as the International Rugby Football Board by the unions of Scotland, Wales and Ireland. England refused to join until 1890. The International Rugby Football Board changed its name to the...
since 1999–2000. Samoa
Samoa national rugby union team (sevens)
The Samoa national rugby union team represent Samoa internationally in rugby sevens, a competitive sports tournament titled the IRB Sevens World Series which takes place annually in seven countries; United Arab Emirates, South Africa, New Zealand, United States, Hong Kong, Australia, England and...
won the series crown for their first time.
Sevens is a stripped-down version of rugby union, with seven players on each side rather than fifteen. Games are much shorter, seven or ten minutes each half, and tend to be very fast-paced. Sevens is traditionally played in a two-day tournament format. However, the most famous event, the Hong Kong Sevens, is played over three days, largely because it involves 24 teams instead of the normal 16.
Itinerary
The series' tournaments were identical to those in 2008–09 and spanned the globe, visiting five of the six populated continents.! colspan=4 style="border-right:0px;"; | 2009–10 Itinerary
|- bgcolor="#efefef"
! width=8%|Leg
! width=10%|Venue
! width=8%|Date
! width=5%|Winner
|->
2009 Dubai Sevens
The Emirates Airline Dubai Sevens is played annually as part of the IRB Sevens World Series for international rugby sevens . The 2009 competition was held on December 4 and December 5 at The Sevens....
The Sevens (stadium)
The Sevens, also written as "7he Sevens", is a purpose-built rugby sevens stadium in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.It was the venue for the first HSBC A5N Youth Rugby Festival in February 2009.-External links:* * *...
|-
2009 South Africa Sevens
The Emirates Airlines South Africa Sevens is played annually as part of the IRB Sevens World Series for international rugby sevens . The 2009 competition took place on 11 December and 12 December at Outeniqua Park in George, Western Cape, the second of eight Cup events at the 2009–10 IRB Sevens...
Outeniqua Park
Outeniqua Park is a multi-purpose stadium in George, South Africa. It is currently used mostly for rugby union matches and was the home stadium of the South African leg of the IRB Sevens World Series from 2001 through 2010, after which it moved to Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth.The...
, George
George, Western Cape
George is a city with 203,253 inhabitants in South Africa's Western Cape province. The city is a popular holiday and conference centre and the administrative and commercial hub of the Garden Route.- Location :...
|-
2010 Wellington Sevens
The Emirates Airline Wellington Sevens is played annually as part of the IRB Sevens World Series for international rugby sevens . The 2010 competition, took place on 4 February and 5 February the third of eight Cup tournaments in the 2009–10 IRB Sevens World Series...
Westpac Stadium
Westpac Stadium, is a major sporting venue in Wellington, New Zealand. Due to its shape and silver coloured external walls, it is colloquially known as The Cake-Tin to the locals and other New Zealanders...
, Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
|-
2010 USA Sevens
The USA Sevens is played annually as part of the IRB Sevens World Series for international rugby sevens . The 2010 competition, which took place on February 13 and February 14 at Sam Boyd Stadium in the Las Vegas suburb of Whitney, Nevada, was the fourth Cup trophy in the 2009–10 IRB Sevens World...
Sam Boyd Stadium
Sam Boyd Stadium is a football stadium located in Whitney, Nevada, an unincorporated community in the Las Vegas metropolitan area; the mailing address of the stadium is "Las Vegas". The stadium is named after Sam Boyd, a major figure in the hotel/casino industry in Las Vegas. The stadium consists...
, Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
|-
2010 Adelaide Sevens
The Adelaide Sevens is a rugby union sevens tournament, part of the 2009–10 IRB Sevens World Series. The competition was held at the Adelaide Oval, South Australia between 19 March and 21 March....
Adelaide Oval
The Adelaide Oval is a sports ground in Adelaide, South Australia, located in the parklands between the Central Business District and North Adelaide...
, Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
|-
2010 Hong Kong Sevens
The 2010 Hong Kong Sevens is a rugby union sevens tournament, part of the 2009–10 IRB Sevens World Series. The competition was held from March 26-28 in at Hong Kong Stadium in Hong Kong and featured 24 teams. Samoa won its third consecutive Cup after defeating New Zealand in the final...
Hong Kong Stadium
Hong Kong Stadium is the main sports venue of Hong Kong. Redeveloped from the old Government Stadium it reincarnated as Hong Kong Stadium in 1994...
|-
2010 London Sevens
The London Sevens was a rugby union sevens tournament, the seventh of eight Cup tournaments in the 2009–10 IRB Sevens World Series. The 2010 competition was held at Twickenham Stadium between 22 May and 23 May. Australia won the tournament with a 19–14 victory over South Africa in the final...
Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham Stadium is a stadium located in Twickenham, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is the largest rugby union stadium in the United Kingdom and has recently been enlarged to seat 82,000...
2010 Edinburgh Sevens
The Edinburgh Sevens was a rugby union sevens tournament, the eighth and final Cup tournament in the 2009–10 IRB Sevens World Series. The 2010 competition was held at Murrayfield Stadium between May 29 and May 30.-Format:...
Murrayfield Stadium
Murrayfield Stadium is a sports stadium located in the west end of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Its all-seater capacity was recently reduced from 67,800 to 67,130 to incorporate the largest permanent "big screen" in the country though it still remains the largest stadium in Scotland and one...
, Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
Two minor changes were made to the schedule:
- The USA event moved from San Diego, its home from 20072006-07 IRB Sevens World Series2006–07 IRB Sevens World Series was the eighth of an annual series of rugby union sevens tournaments for full national sides run by the International Rugby Board since 1999-2000.New Zealand won the 2006-07 series by winning the final tournament in Edinburgh...
to 2009, to Las VegasLas Vegas, NevadaLas Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
. - The Adelaide event moved from its previous slot of one week after Hong Kong to one week before.
Core teams
Before each season, the IRB announces the 12 "core teams" that will receive guaranteed berths in each event in that season's series. The core teams for 2009–10 were:The core teams were unchanged from 2008–09; the most recent change came before that season, when the USA replaced its neighbor Canada
Canada national rugby union team (sevens)
The Canadian national rugby union sevens team compete in the IRB Sevens World Series, Rugby World Cup Sevens, Pan American Games and the Commonwealth Games.-Current squad:12-man squad for the 2011 Dubai Sevens:-See also:* World Sevens Series...
.
Points schedule
The season championship is determined by points earned in each tournament. Effective with this season, the IRB changed the points allocations for all events as follows:16-team events (all except for Hong Kong)
- Cup winner (1st place): 24 points
- Cup runner-up: 20 points
- Losing Cup semifinalists: 16 points
- Plate winner (5th place): 12 points
- Plate runner-up: 8 points
- Losing Plate semifinalists: 6 points
- Bowl winner (9th place): 4 points
24-team event (Hong Kong)
- Cup winner: 30 points
- Cup runner-up: 25 points
- Losing Cup semifinalists: 20 points
- Plate winner (5th place): 16 points
- Plate runner-up: 10 points
- Losing Plate semifinalists: 8 points
- Bowl winner (9th place): 5 points
Tournament structure
In all tournaments except Hong Kong, 16 teams participate. Due to its place as the sport's most prestigious annual event, the Hong Kong tournament has 24 teams. In each 16-team tournament, the teams are divided into pools of four teams, who play a round-robin within the pool. Points are awarded in each pool on a different schedule from most rugby tournaments—3 for a win, 2 for a draw, 1 for a loss. The first tiebreaker is the head-to-head result between the tied teams, followed by difference in points scored during the tournament.Four trophies are awarded in each tournament. In descending order of prestige, they are the Cup, whose winner is the overall tournament champion, Plate, Bowl and Shield. The Shield was contested in Hong Kong for the first time in 2010. Each trophy is awarded at the end of a knockout tournament.
In a 16-team tournament, the top two teams in each pool advance to the Cup competition. The four quarterfinal losers drop into the bracket for the Plate. The Bowl is contested by the third- and fourth-place finishers in each pool, with the losers in the Bowl quarterfinals dropping into the bracket for the Shield.
The Hong Kong Sevens adopted a new structure effective with its 2010 edition. As in previous years, the 24 teams were divided into six pools of four teams each, with the competition points system and tiebreakers identical to those for a 16-team event. Also as in the past, the six pool winners and the two top second-place finishers advanced to the Cup competition. The changes made in 2010 were:
- The Plate competition was contested by the losing quarterfinalists from the Cup, as in all other events in the series.
- The Bowl was contested by the four remaining second-place finishers and the top four third-place finishers. In previous years, these teams competed for the Plate.
- The Shield was contested by the remaining eight entrants. In previous years, these teams competed for the Bowl.
Table
2009–10 Standings | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pos. | Country | Dubai | South Africa (George) |
New Zealand (Wellington) |
USA (Las Vegas) |
Australia (Adelaide) |
Hong Kong | England (London) |
Scotland (Edinburgh) |
Overall | |
1 | 20 | 6 | 20 | 24 | 24 | 30 | 16 | 24 | 164 | ||
2 | 24 | 24 | 16 | 20 | 12 | 25 | 12 | 16 | 149 | ||
3 | 12 | 6 | 12 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 24 | 20 | 122 | ||
4 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 8 | 6 | 20 | 8 | 6 | 108 | ||
5 | 16 | 12 | 16 | 6 | 4 | 20 | 6 | 16 | 96 | ||
6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 8 | 10 | 20 | 6 | 80 | ||
7 | 6 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 16 | 8 | 62 | ||
8 | 6 | 16 | 6 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 52 | ||
9 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 34 | ||
10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 20 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 32 | ||
11 | DNP | DNP | 6 | 0 | DNP | 5 | 4 | 0 | 15 | ||
12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 12 |
Individual points
! colspan=4 style="border-right:0px;"; | Individual points
|- bgcolor="#efefef"
! width=5%|Pos.
! Player
! Country
! Points
|->
Ben Gollings
Ben Gollings is a rugby union footballer who plays fly-half for Rugby Lions and formerly for England Sevens.-Career:...
>-
Mikaele Pesamino
Mikaele Pesamino is a rugby union player in the Samoa Sevens team. He is one of the highest point scorers in the 2009–2010 IRB Sevens World Series.Pesamino was born in Vailele on the island of Upolu in Samoa....
>-
Lolo Lui
Lolo Lui, is a Samoan rugby union player and the current captain of the Samoa Sevens, champions of the 2009–10 IRB Sevens World Series...
>-
>-
Junior Tomasi Cama
Tomasi Cama is a New Zealand Rugby union player. He plays for Manawatu Turbos in the Air New Zealand Cup, and has also been included in the New Zealand Sevens team. He is the son of former Fiji sevens great Tomasi Cama.-Early career:...
>-
>-
>-
>-
>-
Individual tries
! colspan=4 style="border-right:0px;"; | Individual tries
|- bgcolor="#efefef"
! width=5%|Pos.
! Player
! Country
! Tries
|->
Mikaele Pesamino
Mikaele Pesamino is a rugby union player in the Samoa Sevens team. He is one of the highest point scorers in the 2009–2010 IRB Sevens World Series.Pesamino was born in Vailele on the island of Upolu in Samoa....
>-
Kurt Baker
This article is about the rugby player. For the musician, see Kurt_Baker_.Kurt Baker is a Rugby Union player. He plays for Taranaki as a Fullback....
>-
Humphrey Kayange
Humphrey Kayange is a Kenyan rugby union player. Kayange is well known within the rugby sevens community, as he has produced some of the best performances for the Kenya national sevens side. He is the captain of the team.-Career:...
>-
>-
Collins Injera
Collins Injera is a rugby player from Kenya. He is known for his achievements with Kenyan national rugby sevens team.- Career :...
>-
>-
Alafoti Fa'osiliva
Alafoti Fa'osiliva is a rugby union player in the national Samoa Sevens team representing Samoa internationally. The team are the current champions of the 2009–10 IRB Sevens World Series...
>-
>-
>-
Dubai
Event | Winners | Score | Finalists | Semi Finalists |
---|---|---|---|---|
Cup | 24 – 12 | |
||
Plate | 7 – 0 | |
||
Bowl | 38 – 7 | |
||
Shield | 17 – 14 | |
South Africa
Event | Winners | Score | Finalists | Semi Finalists |
---|---|---|---|---|
Cup | 21 – 12 | |
||
Plate | 21 – 7 | |
||
Bowl | 14 – 5 | |
||
Shield | 28 – 19 | |
New Zealand
Event | Winners | Score | Finalists | Semi Finalists |
---|---|---|---|---|
Cup | 19 – 14 | |
||
Plate | 26 – 22 | |
||
Bowl | 7 – 5 | |
||
Shield | 17 – 14 | |
USA
Event | Winners | Score | Finalists | Semi Finalists |
---|---|---|---|---|
Cup | 33 – 12 | |
||
Plate | 12 – 7 | |
||
Bowl | 28 – 17 | |
||
Shield | 17 – 7 | |
Australia
Event | Winners | Score | Finalists | Semi Finalists |
---|---|---|---|---|
Cup | 38 – 10 | |
||
Plate | 21 – 14 | |
||
Bowl | 33 – 12 | |
||
Shield | 22 – 19 | |
Hong Kong
Event | Winners | Score | Finalists | Semi Finalists | Quarter Finalists |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cup | 24 – 21 | |
|||
Plate | 12 – 5 | |
|||
Bowl | 35 – 19 | |
|
||
Shield | 19 – 17 | |
|
London
Event | Winners | Score | Finalists | Semi Finalists |
---|---|---|---|---|
Cup | 19 – 14 | |
||
Plate | 26 – 24 | |
||
Bowl | 19 – 17 | |
||
Shield | 24 – 21 | |
Scotland
Event | Winners | Score | Finalists | Semi Finalists |
---|---|---|---|---|
Cup | 41 – 14 | |
||
Plate | 19 – 0 | |
||
Bowl | 26 – 10 | |
||
Shield | 26 – 7 | |