Could a Team GB sevens programme run by Scottish Rugby happen in the future?
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SCOTTISH RUGBY have not given up on the concept of a full-time Team GB Sevens teams, and are prepared to take the lead in financing and running any such programmes.
As it stands, men’s and women’s GB Sevens teams will compete on the HSBC SVNs Series circuit next season, but only on a “camp and competition” basis after a stripping back of the programme last month. Essentially, this means that there is no core squad, limiting the teams’ ability to be competitive and restricting the scope for player development.
Scotland lost their own full-time Sevens programme back in 2022, when it was decided that Scotland, England and Wales should join forces as Team GB for the 2023 HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series onwards. This was apparently mandated by World Rugby so as to align the series with Olympic qualification requirements, but you couldn’t help but suspect that not too much resistance had been put up by the unions impacted – with Scottish Rugby in the time of CEO Mark Dodson and Performance Director Scott Johnson having been frustrated in their plans to disband the sevens a programme a few years earlier (in 2015) after the scheme was leaked to the media prompting public outcry.
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There has been regime change at Murrayfield since those days, and new Chief Executive Alex Williams explained earlier this week that he and current Performance Director David Nucifora are keen for Scottish Rugby to take the lead in ensuring that Team GB avoids becoming essentially a glorified invitational team.
World Rugby’s failure in recent years to build the HSBC SVNs Series into the sporting, marketing and commercial powerhouse it had the potential to beome less than a decade ago is a big problem, but Williamson says the rugby argument in favour of embracing sevens outweighs the financial challenges this strategy will create.
“We continue to work on it,” said Williamson. “We would really like there to be a fully-funded full-time sevens program. David [Nucifora], to use finance phrasing, is long on sevens. He thinks it’s a really important thing, particularly for a smaller union like ours because it provides excellent opportunities for young players and opens their minds to so many different skills. So, we would really much prefer this to be to be a full-time program, and we are working on that still, we haven’t given up on that.
“And in that vein, we would happily take the lead on the program if we can convince England and Wales to support us with that, and that’s a negotiation we are in.
“I have no sense as to whether we will be successful with that, but if we can be then we would love to be at the front of that.”
Williamson was keen to highlight the historical and cultural resonance of Sevens in Scotland, but played down the prospect of a full-time dedicated Scottish programme being revived.
“Certainly around the Olympics it would [have to be GB],” he said. “We haven’t road-tested whether it has to be the whole time, but we should assume for the time being that it is a GB sevens programme … but it would be hosted by us and facilitated by us if we can.
“That’s a work in progress and I wouldn’t want to give you the impression that it is highly likely because I’m not sure that it is.
“By its nature, and the fact that we are really strong on it while England and Wales for different reasons are not as interested, we would definitely put more time and energy into it, and probably player resource as well.
“It’s a natural place for us to be. It is a Scottish game, we would love to be running round doing it.
“Everyone I have met is a lover of sevens and has got a willingness to invest, but only in Scotland.”
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