The Sevens Tournament

During these times of change within the Welsh Rugby Union and within rugby in general, one of the consistent items on the rugby calendar continues to be the seven a side tournament hosted by the Old Penarthians at their home at Cwrt-y Vil Playing Fields, Penarth. This year is the 59th consecutive season that the event has been held and the club maintains strongly that it is the oldest surviving sevens tournament in Wales. A fact of which the club is rightly proud.

The tournament started in 1950 as the ‘brain child’ of the then Honorary Secretary, Bill Whittaker, and it has traditionally been competed for on the third Saturday of May every year since. There have been a few exceptions forced on the event by the timing of the WRU Cup Final and the extension of the league season but this year tradition returns. The tournament was initially played at the Penarth County School and it remained the home of the event until 1963, with one year’s sabbatical to Cogan in 1951. In May 1964 the event was the first function to be held at the newly completed clubhouse in St Marks Road, which at the time was devoid of furniture or fittings and members satisfied the thirst of the spectators by pulling pints from casks set up on trestle tables.

From those humble beginnings the event and the club has grown under the vision of successive committees and their respective chairman, but one person stands out in this period as a driving force, and that is Club President and former Honorary Secretary, Roy Churchill. Last year Roy acted as Master of Ceremonies at the sevens for the fortieth time, having already served as secretary for 30 years.

This year there has been a drive to enlist more volunteers from within the club to ensure all the large and small tasks are undertaken and the club is thankful to a few local businessmen for their financial support. However, it is the teams and the players that make the event the success that it is and it is only their continued participation that will see the event survive the rigours of a competitive league season, end of season tours and the demands of alternative summer attractions. The club is also indebted to those team managers who selflessly use their negotiating skills to ensure that players turn up to represent their teams.

The sixteen invitation teams that compete are traditionally based on the old school network in the South Wales area, rather than on specific rugby clubs. However, this has developed in recent years to include collegiate sides from Swansea and Loughborough, an old boys team from Arras in France and even a specific invitational sevens team, Crusaders, who won the 2003 event and are returning this year. Of the original invitees to the tournament only five remain in this year’s draw, the hosts, Old Penarthians, Cardiff HSOB, Old Illtydians, Old Cantonians, and Cowbridge GSOB. Of these only Old Penarthians and Old Cantonians have been ever present.

The invited teams who will enter the draw for 2008 are :-

Cardiff HSOB	Old Penarthians
Warriors	South Wales Fire Service OB
Ysgol Glan Taf OB	Llanrumney OB
Old Breconians	Old Illtydians
Cardiff & District	Caerphilly GSOB
Cowbridge GSOB	Old Cantonians
St Josephs OB	Llanishen HSOB
Cardiff University OB	Pontyclun CSOB

The first round winners progress into the next round of the Main Trophy Competition whilst the losers continue their efforts in the Plate Competition. The remaining rounds are played on a knock out basis to decide the winners of both competitions. The inaugural winners were Old Penarthians and the most successful side in the tournament has been Caerphilly GSOB , with nine victories from thirteen finals. Keith Potter of Senghenydd, who presented the current trophy in 1979, brought the side together but unfortunately they have been unable to commit themselves to the event this year.

There is also a Player of the Tournament Trophy, initiated in 1974, and awarded to the player who has made the biggest impact on the day. The first winner was Neil Collins of St. Josephs. The only person to have won the award twice is David Bishop of Old Illtydians and three brothers have gained the trophy, all of Caerphilly GSOB, Andrew, David and Paul Phillips. Perhaps the most memorable winner was however Mark Ring, who within two hours of returning home from a tour to South Africa with Cardiff RFC was playing for Old Illtydians.

It is this type of spirit and enjoyment of rugby that sets the Old Penarthians Seven-a-Side Tournament apart from other rugby events in that it allows the famous and not-so-famous to rub shoulders in a competitive atmosphere to provide enjoyment for an enthusiastic and knowledgeable audience.