The Carlton Super Sevens

Just when the better halves were breathing a sigh of relief that the RWC 2011 was finally over and Webb Ellis was back home in New Zealand after an absence of 24 years, we are given another opportunity to whet our rugby appetite.

The much hyped and glamorous Carlton Super Sevens kicks off on Saturday at Bogambara. The concept is unique in that there are ten franchises which have been up for grabs on similar lines to that of the Indian Premier League.

The ten franchise teams will comprise of a mixture of International players, National players, local club players and schoolboys added to the fray. The International Players have been drawn from the US, New Zealand, Portugal, Wales, Germany and Fiji to name a few. Some fancy team names have been thought of and I am sure that the crowds will eventually settle for a cheer for the team that they support. My mind goes back to the Chennai Super Kings – Whistle podu da.

The experience that these players will bring to the team is expected to be immense and our local club players and the school boys will gain valuable experience in playing alongside such national and international stars. One of the many successes of the IPL has been that hidden talents have generally manifested itself as these relative unknown players rub shoulders and share a common dressing room.

There are those that have the necessary talent within them and just need a spark to ignite and the confidence to showcase the same. A case in point was the handling of a relatively unknown Yousuf Pathan by Shane Warne in the early stages of the IPL, so much so that Pathan made it to the Indian playing eleven.

Each of these teams will have an Overseas Coach in addition to a local manager. The tournament will be held over two consecutive weekends starting in Kandy on 29/30 October before moving down to Colombo on 5/6 November at the Royal Sports Complex.

An interesting point to note is that whilst the Kandy leg of the games will commence at 10 am each day, the Colombo leg will commence at 1 pm and continue till late at night. This will obviously be a new offering and the Colombo leg will entice a lot more viewers. Into this add the various trimmings that goes with a sevens tournament and it will be entertaining weekend to say the least.

Finding accommodation in Kandy has proved to be a herculean task given the dearth of quality hotel rooms at affordable prices for the large crowds that are expected to throng the event. The shifting of venue form Nittawela to Bogambara appears to be good move given the proximity to larger parking space and accessibility to public transport. A snapshot of the teams indicates that the crème a la crème of local rugby players will be on show and we are obviously in for a treat. As the tournament will shift to Colombo the following weekend, there could be an issue where the bulk of the Colombo crowd will not fancy a trip to the hills and opt to witness the event at the Royal Complex.  The teams have been split into two groups and at this point it is difficult to provide any form of prediction on the game and the likely favourites. Maybe the second week could be a lot different as the teams themselves would have played and showcased their skills and thereby the apparent strength and weaknesses of the teams could be measured. Looking at the teams on paper there appears to be a nice blend of experience and youthful exuberance.  It is heartening to note that the major Corporates in the country have come together in ensuring that they sponsor such a glamorous and prestigious event which will obviously go a long way in ensuring that the Sri Lankan sevens game improves further so that we are able to compete at the international level with a view to winning in the not too distant future.  Thus after watching fifteen man rugby and its own share of thrills and spoils we are now set to embark upon another journey. The seven’s game is a different ball game, maintaining possession, spotting half gaps and making things happen from half chances will be the order of the day.

We are obviously set for an enjoyable two weekends of fascinating and fast paced rugby courtesy the Carlton Super Sevens. Whether this will find favour with the home front will be a million dollar question, unless there have been rugby converts in the past 45 days.