With the Asia Rugby Sevens Series just 2 months away, places in the national Sevens team are up for grabs! SRU Club Series 2 is the final chance for local players to showcase their flair and skills to be called up into the national training squad.
Despite not having speedster Bryan Ng, Series 1 winners SCC still emerged top of Group A after convincingly put aside Oldham(22-12), Blacks 1(38-0) and Blacks 2(56-0) while losing narrowly 17-19 to Bedok 1 in the opening game. Bedok 1 led by National skipper Danial Marc was about to celebrate a successful Day 1 before lapses in concentration allowed Blacks 2 to pull out a 12-17 win against the Kings. Over in Group B, leaders Saints proved too strong for Wanderers(33-0), Oldham 2(38-0), Oldham 3(26-0) and Bedok 2 (22-0). Rumours of ex internationals making a comeback for Bedok 2 was confirmed when the team took the field. All eyes were on Daniel Thiam and Kai Hock as they strung together some neat plays and hard hits. However, speed and fitness are still key components of the game and Bedok 2 bow out of the tournament after the group stages.
In the cup semifinals, SCC commanded the game from start to finish against a youthful Wanderers side and won the game 31-7. The next semifinals brought back traditional schools rivalry as Alumni of the Oldham (ACS) and Saints family faced each other again but this time at club level. Saints eventually won the game 24-15.
In the cup finals, it is difficult to separate both teams as both are equally aggressive at breakdowns and have players with pace to finish at every opportunity. Saints were undefeated throughout the tournament and SCC only lost 1 game in the group stages. Saints drew first blood with Bronson Ro sprinting 50m to score the first try in the finals. Saints continued to piled up the pressure and added a converted try to the scoreboard with 4 mins left on the clock. SCC was not going down without a fight. Their urgency rewarded them with a Try under the posts and with a few seconds left on the clock, a grubble kick managed to get the ball past a worn out Saints defence and SCC scored between the post to win the finals 14-12!
This was not the fairytale ending that Saints was hoping for but kudos to both teams for raising the standard of rugby in Singapore!
Over in the Women’s tournament, Laos Women were invited to add competition to the tournament. The last time Laos Women’s played in Singapore was at the South East Asian 7s in April. Laos Women started the tournament well by putting aside Bedok Kings Fire 24-7. They eventually bowed out as Plate runners-up after losing 27-5 to NTU Kakis.
Tournament favourites Blacks Thunder continued their unbeaten run from Series 1 and finished Cup Champions of Series 2 and Overall Champions. The return of Esther to the Blacks squad filled with other exciting National prospects, Elly ensured Blacks dominance in the Singapore women’s scene. Final score Blacks Thunder 17-10 Bedok Kings Wind.
SRU Club Sevens Series 2 Results:
Men
Bowl Champions: Bedok 1
Plate Champions: Wanderers
Cup Champions: SCC
Overall Club Sevens Series Champions: SCC
Women
Shield Champions: Bedok Kings Water
Bowl Champions: Blacks Lightning
Plate Champions: NTU Kakis
Cup Champions: Blacks Thunder
Overall Club Sevens Series Champions: Blacks Thunder
Photo Credit: SGH Photography