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Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2012:03:25:14:19:04 by Kath..

Robinson and Healey highlight England Sevens stars to follow in Hong Kong

Issued by Simon


Jason Robinson highlights Turner, Norton and Damudamu as dangermen


Jason Robinson and Austin Healey have identified the players they believe are potential matchwinners for England as the build-up begins for next weekend's Cathay Pacific/ HSBC Hong Kong Sevens.


World Cup winner Robinson watched England lift the Dubai title in December where half back Mat Turner impressed him and went on to claim the Player of the Tournament accolade.

Healey, who won 51 caps for England, singles out prolific finisher Dan Norton’s “unbelievable searing pace”.

And both agree that Fijian-born centre Isoa Damudamu possesses the X-factor to help England as they try to go one step further than their Hong Kong runners-up spot last season.

“Turner was outstanding in Dubai and you need a player who will put his mark on Hong Kong. He’s not big, but he’s a very dangerous player, especially in close quarters, where he can make space and turn games,” said Robinson, who will be in Hong Kong next week as an HSBC Ambassador.

“He’s got great feet and is one of those players who needs to get hold of the ball. The more he gets hold of the ball, the more likely he is to cause problems.”

Former Gloucester, Bristol and England U20 wing Norton is second on the series scoring charts with 23 tries from the first five tournaments.

“It's great in a sevens team to have someone with unbelievable searing pace and he can turn a game in an instant, we've seen that on a couple of occasions,” said Healey.

“There's good players throughout that side. Damudamu is a great player. He reminds me of Tim Rodber. He's big and he's really quick and when you have someone with that physicality and that pace it can really help.”

Robinson added: “He’s very powerful and really helps the England game.

“While you’ve got your fliers, you need a bit of power and he brings that. He can get the offloads and that’s what the likes of Turner and Norton will be looking forward to. Give the ball to them and they can cause problems.”

Robinson believes the Hong Kong leg is vitally important as England seek to move up from fourth place in the Series standings and make up ground on front-runners New Zealand, who are just five points ahead of Fiji.

“It’s been very close this year with Samoa winning, Fiji winning, New Zealand winning, England winning. It’s very tight up there, so every win is so important. Those points are crucial come the end of the Series,” Robinson said.

“I’ve heard so much about Hong Kong from the England players. It’s the most famous sevens tournament in the world. Yes, they want to win all of the legs, but this seems to be the one that stands out above them all. This is the one.”

After teaming up with Gregan to run coaching clinics in Dubai, Robinson is eager to working with the former Wallaby again as they host an introductory rugby clinic at Good Hope, an all-girls school near Choi Hung in Kowloon.

Immediately after the Hong Kong Sevens, Robinson will head back to England to attend the Rosslyn Park HSBC National Schools Sevens, the world’s largest school rugby tournament with over 7,500 children participating.

Tickets are now available for the Marriott London Sevens weekend on 12th & 13th May 2012, with weekend passes starting from £30, single day tickets from £18 and kids tickets at £5 each day. Throughout the month of March all category 2 weekend tickets are available for just £20. VisitTicketmaster.co.uk or call 0844 847 2492. (Tickets are subject to availability and booking fees apply).

England Sevens: John Brake and Greg Barden on reeling in leaders in Hong Kong

Issued by Simon Mills


John Brake in action against South Africa this season

Half back John Brake believes England can eliminate errors from their game and close the gap on the New Zealand at this weekend’s Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens.

England trail the HSBC Sevens World Series leaders by 18 points going into the sixth of this season’s nine legs following defeats against their rivals by a single score in the semi final and quarter final stages of the Wellington and Las Vegas tournaments.

The setbacks forced England to sharpen the focus on their basics and put in what head coach Ben Ryan described as their toughest ever month of training ahead of Hong Kong, where they face Argentina, Kenya and Samoa on March 23 and 24 before the knockout stages get under way.

Get it right at the Hong Kong Stadium and the momentum will be with England again heading to the Japan Sevens in Tokyo (March 31-April 1) before the Glasgow Sevens (May 5-6) and the London Sevens (May 12-13), the new finale to the series.

“You can always say it [the narrow defeats] was the bounce of the ball but I think really it was always in our control,” said Brake, a full-time England Sevens player based in Farnham, Surrey.

“If we look back at some of the mistakes we’ve made and the way we’ve lost games, we’ve got to take the referee out of the game and the opposition out of the game and it’s always down to us. We’ll always look at ourselves first before we look at anyone else.

“For the rest season you’ve always got to be positive. We sit in fourth place and although the margin in points looks big it can be closed up very quickly with one tournament win, we know that, and the beauty of this season is that we’re going to finish off back on home turf.

“I know we didn’t deliver there [at Twickenham] last season but with a settled squad the guys will be confident and going into the last tournament in front of a big home crowd.”

Ryan has made one change to his squad for Hong Kong, calling up centre Charlie Walker (Harlequins,) who arrived in Hong Kong on Sunday having secured the Under 20 Six Nations title with England on Friday night.

“I’ve not come up against him yet but he’s got great gas, wheels, pace, whatever you want to call it, and I’ll make sure I’m fresh on my feet so I’m not rounded by a jet-lagged 19 year old,” said Brake, a former teammate of Chris Ashton’s at Northampton Saints.

“I know how keen you can be when you’re 18 - I remember my own first experience of sevens with England. I was young and fresh and you want to do as best as you can and beat the older guys. That’s him now.

“It’s exciting to bring a fresh face in and he can come in and slot into centre and wing, give us a few options there and put some pressure on the guys who are starting. That competition’s really got us training hard in the last few weeks.”

The Hong Kong factor – expats make up the bulk of the 40,000 crowd on all three days at the So Kon Po stadium – should give England a lift, too, according to captain Greg Barden.

“It shouldn’t mke a difference but it does. It’s a home from home for us and the whole week around the sevens and around England is brilliant.

“We’ve got to take it all on board and use it but it all comes down to those three games to qualify for the next stage. We’ve got some hard games, Argentina, Samoa and Kenya. They’re good teams and we’ll have a good battle with them.”

tickets are now available for the Marriott London Sevens weekend on 12th & 13th May 2012, with weekend passes starting from £30, single day tickets from £18 and kids tickets at £5 each day. Throughout the month of March all category 2 weekend tickets are available for just £20. VisitTicketmaster.co.uk or call 0844 847 2492. (Tickets are subject to availability and booking fees apply).

Walker steps up for England Sevens in Hong Kong

Issued by Simon Mills


Charlie Walker in Six Nations action against Ireland for champions England U20

Harlequins centre Charlie Walker’s feet have finally touched the ground in Hong Kong as he steps straight from the Under 20 Six Nations into the HSBC Sevens World Series with England.

The 19 year old from Leicestershire helped England beat Ireland 20-9 at London Wasps last Friday night – securing a second title in a row for Rob Hunter’s side – and was heading for Heathrow and the Far East the following day.

He is likely to make his international sevens debut at some point during the March 23-25 Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens, where Argentina, Kenya and Samoa are England’s Pool A rivals.

England are fourth in the overall series, 18 points behind leaders New Zealand, and looking to cut back that advantage this weekend before the global tour heads for the Japan Sevens in Tokyo (March 31-April 1).

“We got the win [against Ireland] and the goal we set out to do at the start of the season which was to win the Six Nations so there was a great buzz, then on Saturday I was off to Hong Kong, so it was a pretty hectic weekend but it’s awesome to be here,” said Walker.

“Rob Hunter and Nick Walshe had pulled me aside one lunchtime and said ‘after Ireland you’ll be flying to Hong Kong to join the England Sevens boys’. I didn’t know what to say, particularly because it’s Hong Kong and it’s one of the biggest tournaments with one of the biggest followings.

“Definitely as a younger player looking to get better you’ve got to play in front of big crowds, that’s the way you’re going to get experience and with that comes confidence and learning how you improve yourself as a player, so for me it should be a great opportunity and something to relish.

“From what I’ve heard this is the big one, the one you want to go to. We’ve been into town and down to the markets to see what Hong Kong is about. It’s an unreal place and I’m really looking forward to it."

Walker, a 100m track finalist at the English Schools Athletics Association championships, has plenty of pace as well as the ability to make and take tries, touching down three times in the Six Nations campaign.

He has to familiarise himself with England’s systems inside a week, though, and teammates are helping him get to grips with the changes.

“It’s hard to get up to speed and coming into it you can tell the difference [t0 15s] because they’re such a small squad and they’re a lot tighter and closer together,” he said.

“Luckily some of the moves and calls are the same as England Under 20s so that’s quite easy to pick up, but most of the guys have taken me through the moves to show me what I need to do in attack and defence, and how we’re going to play.”

Tickets are now available for the Marriott London Sevens weekend on May 12 and 13 2012, with weekend passes starting from £30, single day tickets from £18 and kids tickets at £5 each day. Throughout the month of March all category 2 weekend tickets are available for just £20. (Tickets are subject to availability and booking fees apply).

Birthday boy Norton wants Hong Kong present

Issued by Simon Mills

Dan Norton has scored 23 tries for England Sevens this season

Wing Dan Norton can celebrate his birthday by passing a new landmark for England and going to the top of the try-scoring charts in the HSBC Sevens World Series.

The former Gloucester and Bristol paceman is 24 tomorrow (Thursday, March 22) on the eve of the Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens.

His next and 72nd career try will take him past former captain Simon Amor into fourth place on England’s all-time list behind Ben Gollings (220), Richard Haughton (106) and Rob Thirlby (101).

Five more would see him overtake injured New Zealander Frank Halai – who misses the next two tournaments through injury – as the leading scorer on the World Series.

But the birthday present he really wants for England to lift the Hong Kong title after missing out in last season’s final.

“I’d just like us to win regardless of anything else - I just want to win the tournament,” said Norton.

“It’d be a nice present on Sunday evening if we’re standing on top with the cup. I can’t really ask for anything more than that. We’ve hit a final and a semi final here in the last two years and now we want to go one step further.”

The three-day, 12-team tournament sees England play Argentina (12:30 GMT) on Friday, March 23, and Kenya (03:20) and Samoa (11:30) on Saturday, March 24 before the following day’s knock-out stages.

The Hong Kong format is different to the series’s usual 16-team programme – a second 12-team competition takes place in Hong Kong this year to promote three new ‘core’ teams into the global event – which means no straightforward pool games.

In the build-up, England have worked hard on their fitness since defeats against New Zealand and Argentina in Las Vegas last month – and on their approach to the detail of winning big games.

“We’ve worked over the last four or five weeks to better our fitness levels. There’s been more running, more gym work and more out-of-hours training to get those levels back up to the top,” said Norton.

“We’ve maybe lacked a bit of clarity in what we’re doing on the field and we’re being more thorough in meetings, revising what we’ve learned and trying to get as much information out of each other as we can. It’s about turning over every stone and making sure we are thorough in our processes.

“Regardless of who you’re playing – whether it’s a core team or not – we’ve just got to go out and execute our game plan properly and if we do that we can win. The times we’ve lost, we haven’t stuck to that plan 100 per cent like we should have.

“Argentina got one over us in Vegas so this is a chance to turn the tables on them, although every group is going to be very hard with the set-up of the tournament. It’ll certainly be good for the neutral!

“We know what we’ve got to do and that’s to win six games if we want to win Hong Kong, regardless of who we’re facing.”

Hat-trick for Norton as England snatch second win at Hong Kong Sevens
Saturday March 24, 2012
Issued by Simon Mills


Dan Norton is top of the HSBC Sevens World Series try charts

Dan Norton went to the top of the HSBC Sevens World Series try charts with a hat-trick in England’s 21-17 win against Kenya in the opening game of Day 2 at the Cathay Pacific/ HSBC Hong Kong Sevens.

The former Gloucester and Bristol wing struck twice early on and then stretched the lead at a crucial point in the second half with Christian Lewis-Pratt adding three important conversions.

England now take on Samoa in the final Pool A match today (11.30 GMT) which will determine who they face in tomorrow’s quarter finals.

Norton, 24 earlier this week, took his season’s try tally to 27 draw level with injured New Zealander Frank Halai.

His first touchdown followed some quick footwork and acceleration from deep in his own half and the second was made by some slick interaction down the right by forwards Chris Cracknell, Rob Vickerman and Tom Powell.

Kenya got back in the game with a Collins Injera try at the end of the first half before Isoa Damudamu and John Brake moved the ball for Norton’s third after the interval.

The Kenyans rallied again with Horace Otieno and Felix Ayange touching down before running out of time.

“We made a couple of errors but we’re two from two and that’s all that counts,” said head coach Ben Ryan.

England finish in fourth place at Hong Kong Sevens
Sunday March 25, 2012
Issued by Simon Mills

England added 15 points to their cause in the HSBC Sevens World Series after finishing in fourth place at the Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens.

They opened the tournament’s final day with a dramatic 19-14 quarter final victory over Australia but couldn’t take their chances against Fiji in a 14-7 reverse to the Islanders who went on to beat New Zealand and lift the title.

The tournament ended on a low note with a 28-0 defeat to South Africa in the third/fourth play-off and England now regroup and head for the Japan Sevens in Tokyo (March 31-April 1).

It leaves England fourth in the overall series with 89 points, behind leaders New Zealand (111), Fiji (109) and South Africa (93).

“It’s never nice losing especially in front of a crowd like this when two thirds of them are cheering for us and you feel you’ve let them down,” said England’s Mat Turner.

“We’ll use the emotions we have and hopefully come back next week and give the crowd something to watch.”

Captain Greg Barden added: “We gave away something like 15 pieces of possession in the final game and at this level that’s suicide. You’ve got to keep the ball.”

Stephen Dippenaar, William Small-Smith, Cornal Hendricks and Branco du Preez scored the Blitzbokke tries.

England dominated the bulk of their game against Fiji but didn’t take a couple of scoring chances and dropped off tackles to let in Jimilai Naikadawa and Metisuela Talebula.

Earlier Dan Norton struck from behind his own line with the last play of the game to see England home 19-14 against Australia.

The former Gloucester and Bristol wing added two more tries to his tally this season with second half touchdowns after Turner had opened the scoring.

Norton's double took him to the top of the HSBC Sevens World Series score charts this season with 29, two ahead of his nearest rival Frank Halai of New Zealand.

His winner against Australia came in stunning fashion, started behind his own line with a cut inside one opponent and step outside another before his 80m dash to the line.