Exiles Sevens’ First European Adventure
The Exiles DHL Sevens squad are off to Amsterdam this Friday to compete in the Amsterdam Heineken International Sevens Tournament. Amsterdam hosts its 36th annual tournament this weekend – on Saturday, May 19 and Sunday, May 20.
This international event attracts teams from all over the world so there is a selection process to go through before a side is accepted.
The Sevens preliminaries begin early on Saturday morning and go on throughout the day. Some 64 teams will play in groups of five to decide seeding for the final day of competition on Sunday. Some of the sides taking part in the competition are Samurai, Kooga Wailers, who recently won the Kinsale Sevens event, Susies Saloon, Bahrain Vagabonds, French Flair, De la Salle Panthers, URC Roma, Catalan Wanderers, Moldova TV, Marauders, Scorpions and Young England.
There is also a parallel International Tournament with the Sevens teams from nations such as Spain competing.
Exiles team manager Ces Shaw and coaches Peter Halsall and Kevan Bell are currently reviewing medical reports before selecting their final squad, which will come from: Martin Anayi, Gareth McComb, Matt Burke, Adrian Lightowler, David Fenlon, Mark Bruce, Matt Williams, Matt O’Regan, Harry de Stacpoole, Sean Flannery, Patrick McCarthy, Alistair Bressington, Nathan Bressington and Jonathan Lightowler.
Notable absentees, due to injury or unavailability, include Jon Feeley, Michael Kirkwood and Jon Skurr. A post-tournament report will appear on IrishRugby.ie next week.