SA Vipers reign supreme

South African Vipers took the top spot in the Albitt Cup as the reigning champions after edging out Fiji’s Davetelavu  in a thrilling finish to the 62nd Singapore Cricket Club Rugby 7s 2009. They beat the Fijians in a score of 24-0 when the final whistle blew.   

Earlier in the day, the Vipers played against Ponsonby in a quarter-finals match and won 23-0.  In the semi-finals, they played in an outstanding match against SA Universities and beat them in a close fight 7-0.

“We’re extremely pleased with our performances over the past two days. We fielded new players this year to give them an opportunity to develop their skills. The SCC 7s has, since our participation been a good platform for us to raise our standard of play. The competition has been really keen and we hope to return next year,” said Paul Treu, coach of the South African Vipers.

Competitions began at 8.00am on both days and spectators were treated to world-class rugby action with a stellar line up of teams from countries including South Africa, Japan, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Australia. Even the sporadic rainfall, did not deter nor dampen players’ spirits as they battled for the winning title.

“We’ve had a sensational turnout over the last two days and this year’s 7’s has seen an increase of more than 2,000 spectators. The addition of the large TV screens and floodlights has made the event spectator-friendly. Everyone has been treated to a world-class level of rugby. The quality of rugby action improves every year and it makes this year no exception,” said Peter “Stitch” Hutton, Chairman of the SCC 7s Rugby Committee.

Highlight of this year’s SCC 7s was the return of the Schools and Colleges tournament which were played for the first time after 15 years under the main SCC tournament umbrella. In the finals, Nhulunbuy High School from Australia, the only foreign team competing in the U-16 category took top spot while Tanglin Trust School reigned supreme in the U-18 category. It was an unbelievable experience for the young players who were given the opportunity to play on the Padang.  

For the first time as well, the nation hosted the International Rugby Board (IRB) sanctioned Women’s Rugby World Cup Qualifying event which was played at the SCC. In the finals on 6th November, Kazakhstan showed once again that they were the region’s dominant force in women’s rugby after a 43-5 win over Japan. Following their win they will represent Asia and go head to head against three-time defending champions New Zealand, alongside hosts England, France, Canada, USA, South Africa, Wales, Ireland, Scotland, Sweden and Australia at Women's Rugby World Cup 2010, which takes place in London from 20 August to 5 September.

Fans can look forward to more world-class rugby action as plans are underway for 2010’s SCC 7s tournament which promises to bring more excitement to the spirit of the games.

Text courtesy: Strategic Public Relations Group

Images courtesy: Isaac Tang / SCC 7’s

This article is also available in the following Country/s. Malaysia, Japan, India, Hong Kong