It’s also important to take perspective into consideration. Put 12,000 people in a 46,000 seat stadium (not 49,500 as you state) and admittedly the crowd will look small, but put them in George and the stadium would be overflowing!
Growing your support base takes time and, considering the growth in support for an inaugural event at a new venue… I’d say hats off to SARU for what they have accomplished.

Please note that I compare this year’s tournament to George last year, rather than Hong Kong, seeing as I like to compare apples with apples.

I will agree with you that the stadium did appear empty, especially on Friday, and that the television footage may have been a little misleading as they focused in on the crowds in the west and south stands, but can you honestly tell me they don’t do exactly the same at other events around the world?

I will not however agree that there was no atmosphere at the event… I simply have to think back to the Kenya supporters club dancing in the stands on Friday, the outrageous costumes worn on both days, the cheers reverberating around the stadium throughout both days, the crowds interacting with the teams as they walked around the field, signing autographs on Saturday… to know that there was, most definitely, an awesome atmosphere!

Your attitude in fobbing off the reasoning that attendance figures were down on Friday because people were working says more about you, I think, than it does about the event.

The fact that the IRB had already announced that they were looking at moving the Sevens tournaments from a Friday and Saturday to a Saturday and Sunday ahead of the Nelson Mandela Bay Sevens, after attendance trends at both the Australian and Dubai legs showed a marked difference in Friday and Saturday attendance, with Fridays trending significantly lower, gives credence to concerns that working individuals are unable to attend on a Friday, wouldn’t you say?

As for making tickets cheaper, ticket prices, believe it or not, were in fact cheaper than the George event last year (on the lower end in any case). The cheapest ticket on Friday was R80 and the most expensive was R250, and on Saturday the prices ranged from R100 to R300. In George for 2010 the prices for a Friday ranged from R160 to R240 and on Saturday from R180 to R260.

All in all, I think you may have missed the mark on this one.

Its a simple equation:
PE = 7′s future
Stellenbosch = 15′s distant past

And PE is, lets just say politely, more accessible…

The one step that could be taken to lift PE another notch is to hold the 7′s on Saturday and Sunday, not Friday and Saturday…

Saturday was truly good

- not quite on the level of Hong Kong or Dubai, but these tournaments have built up a reputation for being a international party and have a comparatively long history
- But PE on Saturday was at least as good as any other tournament on the Calender.

Not too farken bad on a first attempt, and PE will definitely improve. I will be pencilling in PE next year on my Rugby To-do list on evidence of what I saw with my own eyes this weekend – I want to be a part of that vibe.

(I also wouldn’t mind gooing a few spare or empty beer cans at those farken fake AB jersey wearing twats)

castles?

As some of you on this site know, I have always had a love-hate relationship with Sevens. I love the fact that the game, like T20 cricket, provides fans with plenty of action in a short space of time and allows minnow rugby nations, like Kenya and Portugal, to be a lot more competitive than they are in the 15-man arena.

However, I hate the fact that the best players do not take part. In South Africa, only those who aren’t good enough to play Super 14 rugby (with the exception of the talented Robert Ebersohn) are picked for the Sevens side. And while these guys tell everyone how much they love Sevens, it’s obvious they’d rather be playing 15-man rugby. Hell, even Fabian Juries, our greatest-ever Sevens player, turned his back on the abbreviated game this season when the Cheetahs included him in their Super 14 training squad. So much for him being a Sevens specialist.

The reality of the situation is that the SA Sevens team consists of Vodacom Cup-standard players, and because of this, I think they devalue the Bok jersey. Let’s be honest, do the likes of Mzwandile Stick and Marius Schoeman really deserve to wear the green and gold? My answer is a resounding no. I think the SA Sevens side should play in a different jersey, perhaps with gold being the dominant colour, and be called the Proteas. This would give the team its own unique identity and prevent the Bok jersey from being cheapened.

Take the Australian cricket team, for example. Would the famous baggy green cap be as special if their T20 players were also allowed to wear them? Of course not. Only those who are picked for Tests — the pinnacle of the game — have that honour.

Finally, I think SA Rugby should be doing everything in its power to get Sevens rugby televised on the SABC. Our Sevens team is full of black players, and black South Africans — many of whom do not have access to SuperSport — should be able to watch them throughout the year. Sevens is also a great way to introduce people to the sport, and they’d soon become fans of the 15-man version too. Hopefully, SuperSport would consider the bigger picture and share their TV rights with the national broadcaster — starting with the Sevens World Cup.

By Simon Borchardt

This entry was posted on Friday, December 12th, 2008

Looked like people were having fun from the bits i saw on tv. Also i think a large stadium like that can be very impersonal..

But I can’t deny, that last 20 minutes was awesome. Trick is to get that kind of vibe throughout proceedings next year. Hire the St Georges band!

I would have held this event on saturday and sunday and not the friday. Wellington and Dubai still the best.

watch the Wellington 7′s – brilliant, as was their RWC. Real rugby fans supporting all the teams.

watch the Dubai 7′s – despite no team of locals, its fun all the way.

watch the HK 7′s – party party party, tourists flocking in, no spare seats.

the SA 7′s is lemon custurd

who would like to disagree?