Much has been said about the effect Olympic acceptance has had on rugby, but perhaps the most visible consequence of it occurred in the opening round of matches on Pitch 1 on Thursday.
Russia, who have minimal rugby pedigree yet are Olympic behemoths, thrashed New Zealand 33-7 in the Women’s World Series.
New Zealand are the defending series and Dubai champions, and they even had Sonny Bill Williams supporting them – and more specifically his sister, Niall – on Day 1.
“The team was very well prepared with minimal mistakes, but it was just the first game and we will continue to work hard and do our best,” Nadezhda Kudinova, Russia captain, said.
New Zealand recovered to win their remaining Pool A matches against France and Brazil.
Brothers reunited
Two brothers usually divided by over 7,000 kilometres, who have represented separate countries at rugby, were reunited in Dubai on Thursday, with mixed results.
Ed Lewsey, a long-term resident of Abu Dhabi who is the incumbent scrum-half for UAE, was playing for The Conquistadors in the Gulf Social. They won one and lost one of their opening day fixtures.
His brother Josh, who used to play for England, winning the XVs World Cup in 2003, was a late recruit for Christina Noble Children’s Foundation in the International Vets, but did not even make it onto the field.
His flight arrived late Thursday morning meaning he missed the first pool game and was not ready for the second, but the defending champions still coasted to victory in both.
Olympic exposure
Global participation in rugby has more than doubled in less than a decade, according to a report commissioned by HSBC, the sponsors of the Sevens World Series.
A report released Thursday by a planning consultancy suggested the number of women players has grown across the world from 200,000 to 1.7 million in the past three years.
Clive Woodward, who coached England to win the 2003 World Cup, believes the progress has been a direct result of rugby’s readmission into the Olympic movement at next year’s Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Woodward said getting rugby sevens “as an Olympic event is just colossal for the sport as a whole”. “I think Rio will be a huge event and act as the springboard to take it really global.”
UAE open strong
The UAE national team enjoyed an evening to remember, as they claimed a 26-0 win over Gray Wolves in an International Open fixture that was played on Pitch 1. Adel Al Hendi scored three tries for the UAE.
The side, who are coached by Apollo Perelini, the former Samoa dual-code international, had lost out 36-7 in the opening pool match. A win over Qatar, who were easily beaten in both their matches on Day 1, in their final group game at 5.54pm on Friday should secure progress to the knockout stage.
Abu Dhabi Harlequins safely navigated the first significant challenge of their Gulf Men’s League title defence as they beat Jebel Ali Dragons on Thursday.
The 28-7 win over the side who preceded them as Dubai champions, secured late in the evening as supporters drifted away from The Sevens, meant they topped their group.
pradley@thenational.ae
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