NZ Sevens up for grabs next season
Fiji will not host New Zealand’s leg of the Sevens World Series until 2023 at the earliest and next year’s event is shifting from Hamilton to another New Zealand city.
New Zealand Rugby (NZR) chief rugby officer Nigel Cass, speaking on the first day of the 2020 Hamilton Sevens yesterday, said the governing body was initially hoping to take the sevens to Fiji as soon as next year.
Hamilton replaced Wellington as hosts in 2018 and the move has been a resounding success on and off the field, but NZR wants to keep its flagship sevens tournament fresh and innovative.
Cass confirmed New Zealand would host again in 2022 but revealed a tournament in Fiji, the spiritual home of sevens, could not happen next year because of a lack of infrastructure.
‘‘We were working with the Fijians and were really hopeful of getting a tournament in Fiji for 2021,’’ Cass said. ‘‘Unfortunately, you can appreciate from the venue [Waikato Stadium] here, there isn’t the infrastructure for a tournament of this type.
‘‘For next year, that’s not going to be possible in Fiji. We’re not giving up, though.
‘‘We’re really, really keen, as are the Fijians, to make it work and we remain really hopeful for [hosting it] there in 2023.’’
Cass indicated there were a ‘‘number of options’’ for hosts in New Zealand next year but wouldn’t expand on which cities had expressed an interest.
NZR chief rugby officer
‘‘It’s a great thing to have it in Hamilton every other year,’’ he said.
‘‘We’re talking with a number of parties about a one-off event, a really special one to host the sevens.’’
Cass did not rule out Wellington regaining hosting rights after its long association with the tournament from 2000-17.
However, it seems unlikely the sevens would make a shock return to the capital after interest dramatically fizzled out in its final years there.
Possible host cities next year could be, among others, Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Napier, Queenstown, Rotorua or Tauranga.
Cass said discussions were under way for the 2021 tournament after NZR decided to not host it in Fiji.
Boisterous Fijian crowds have long been a feature of the New Zealand Sevens and the three Hamilton tournaments have been no different.
Fiji were winners in Hamilton in 2018 and 2019 and their fabled team, the reigning Olympic champions, have lit up Waikato Stadium. The Fijian fans have packed the stands and made all the noise for a wonderful atmosphere, so taking the sevens to Fiji would be a special occasion for the game.
Frankly, the New Zealand Sevens would be nothing without the Fijians and their phenomenal wave of supporters in blue and white brings the whole weekend to life.
Cass said NZR would do everything its can to host the sevens in Fiji in 2023 and insisted not holding it there next year was not postponing a Fijian tournament forever.
‘‘In some ways, the Hamilton tournament is the Fijian tournament,’’ he said.
‘‘We share the hosting rights with them now because of the make-up of the crowd and the noise they make.’’
Suva has hosted Super Rugby matches before but two World Series tournaments, featuring at least 28 men’s and women’s teams combined, on one weekend would be a far greater challenge from a logistical standpoint.
Cass said they wanted a Fiji tournament to be perfect ‘‘because of how special it would be’’.
‘‘They need infrastructure, training facilities, and a large enough stadium, which could be temporary, but it’s still a lot of work.
‘‘You probably don’t want to host it in Suva but closer to the international airport in Nadi.
‘‘We’re doing everything we can to make that work.’’
‘‘We’re talking with a number of parties about a one-off event, a really special one to host the sevens.’’ Nigel Cass