Rugby Sevens

Rugby sevens is a variant of rugby union in which only seven players per side feature, instead of the full 15. The version of rugby union is very popular, with notable competitions including the IRB Sevens World Series and the Rugby World Cup Sevens. Rugby sevens is also played at events such as the Commonwealth Games. Although it was conceived as an event for rugby union, rugby league has also adopted the sevens format.

Rugby sevens is sanctioned by the International Rugby Board (IRB), and is played under substantially the same rules and on a field of the same dimensions as the 15-player game. While a normal rugby union match lasts upwards of 80 minutes, a normal rugby sevens match lasts approximately 15 minutes (allowing for the one-minute halftime break, injury time and so forth). Competition finals last somewhat more than 20 minutes; each half in a competition final is ten minutes instead of the normal seven minutes. This allows rugby tournaments to be completed in a day or a weekend. However, sevens scores are generally comparable to union scores; scoring occurs with much greater regularity in sevens, since the defenders are more spaced out than in rugby union. Scrums still exist within sevens, composed of just three men from each team. Given the speedy nature of the game, players are usually either from the backline or loose trio of forwards in 15 man rugby.

Rugby sevens was initially conceived by Ned Haig, a butcher from Melrose, Scotland as a fundraising event for his local club in 1883. The first ever sevens match was played at the Greenyards, where it was well received. The largest sevens tournament in the world is the Rosslyn Park Schools tournament, with an attendance of over 3,000 schoolchildren from around the world. Rugby Sevens specialists Wellington College have dominated the rugby sevens festival winning 6 times out of the last 9 years with a five year unbeaten spell between 1998-2003. Results from the tournament can be seen on The Schools' Rugby Website. The first ever officially sanctioned international tournament occurred at Murrayfield as part of the "Scottish Rugby Union's celebration of rugby" centenary celebrations in 1973. Due to the success of the format, the ongoing Hong Kong Sevens was launched three years later. In 1993, the Rugby World Cup Sevens, in which the Melrose Cup is contested, was launched. Two of the best known sevens competitions are the Hong Kong Sevens and Wellington Sevens, which now make up parts of the IRB Sevens World Series.

Variations to the Laws of the Game

There are several variations in laws which apply to Rugby Sevens, primarily to speed up the game and to account for the reduced number of players. The main changes can be summarized as follows:

Only 7 players are allowed per team.
Up to 5 substitutes can be named and 3 used.
A match lasts 14 minutes plus added time with the exception of tournament finals which may last 20 minutes.
The half time change of ends must not last more than 1 minute.
If a match is drawn, extra time is played in periods of 5 minutes, with a change of ends between each one and no interval in play. Play ends with the first score in extra time.
Conversion attempts must be drop kicks, and must be attempted within 40 seconds of the try being scored.
Suspended players are only sin-binned for 2 minutes.
- This is a somewhat more serious penalty than a sin-binning in the 15-man game. In terms of time, 2 minutes out of 14 (in a normal match) is a higher percentage of the overall time than 10 minutes out of 80. More importantly, the loss of one player is more damaging to a 7-man team than in the 15-man game, especially when one realizes that a sevens team must cover the same area as a team in the 15-man game.
After a score, it is the scoring team that kicks to the opposition from the central spot.
Scrums consist of three players per team.