Source:
https://scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/1378992/promotion-relegation-system-small-step-right-direction
Sport/ Rugby

Promotion-relegation system a ‘small’ step in right direction

More opportunities to advance for non-core sevens teams ‘a must’ if IRB hopes to continue spread of the game

Tonga’s Saia Palei pushes forward during the qualifier final match won by Zimbabwe at the 2013 Hong Kong Sevens. Photo: Nora Tam

I suppose it’s better late than never. The International Rugby Board has finally seen the light and implemented a true promotion-relegation system for its World Sevens Series, rather than the travesty which took place last year.

Yet, they have fallen short once again by only promoting one team to replace the side at the bottom of the 15-core team standings at the London Sevens next year.

Why one? Two would have been better, giving sides like Hong Kong a better chance of becoming a core team and playing in all the legs of the series.

The IRB’s reasoning is the existing core countries have invested a lot in their national sevens programmes and it would be a crime if government and other support declined if they were not in the series.

But this argument falls badly short and turns the circuit into a closed shop as it was last season when the IRB decided that the three relegated teams – Canada, Spain and Portugal – would get the opportunity to win back their places right away.

The trio was relegated at the end of the penultimate leg in Scotland, and the following week in London they were playing in the qualifiers to decide the three teams to be promoted. These guys were battle-hardened and sevens savvy and Hong Kong came up short – literally – against Spain. It was hardly a surprise.

What does it do for other hopefuls like Hong Kong who harbour hope of making it into the big league one day?

We were critical of the IRB and it was not too impressed someone had the cheek to question their system. Well, we raise the question again: shouldn’t more than one team be allowed to win promotion, such as the two finalists from the 12-team qualifier at the Hong Kong Sevens next March 28-30?

Countries are trying to boost their sevens programmes because of the Olympic factor. The only way to do this is to play regularly at the highest level. If countries like Canada, Spain and Portugal have invested heavily in sevens, what about the rest of the aspiring world?

The IRB’s fear is that a newly promoted team will not be up to the standard of the other core teams. That might be the case, but it is only through regular competition that you can improve.

The Sevens World Series has been rather shambolic, with the IRB making up the rules as it goes along. A case in point has been the changing format of the Hong Kong Sevens over the past few years.

Last year’s second-tier event saw four teams join Hong Kong in booking spots in the final qualifiers at the London Sevens. Hong Kong had played in the core competition after winning that honour by virtue of being crowned Asian champions.

This year, that 16th place team has still not been filled with the IRB still thinking what to do. Here’s a suggestion – field a British team as the Home Unions will have to come under one flag at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

That 16th spot was kept open for Hong Kong in case they failed to finish in the top two in the Asian Sevens Series won by Japan this year. Hong Kong finished second and, along with Japan, will represent Asia in the 12-team qualifier, which include sides from all six regions including Oceania, with the Cook Islands and newcomers American Samoa.

The IRB has to broaden the scope of the game – starting with two up, two down. If sevens is to be the vehicle to push the boundaries of the game worldwide, then more opportunities must be made available.