England star set to play in Diamond 7s

3:18pm Friday 1st August 2008

ENGLAND international Isoa Damudamu will be in action at Down Grange this weekend as he attempts to be on the winning side at Basingstoke RFC's International Diamond 7s tournament.

The Fijian-born back-row forward, who has played for the England Sevens team on a number of occasions, is to captain army outfit Marchwood Sharks at the event, which will take place on Saturday.

The tournament is one of several events being organised to mark 'Stoke's Diamond Jubilee, and a total of 12 teams will fight it out for victory during a busy day of rugby, with the first match kicking off at 10.45am and the final due to start at 6.30pm.

As the name suggests, sevens rugby is a seven-a-side affair, with each team generally fielding three forwards and four backs.

Games are played on a full-size pitch and the rules are much the same as for the 15-man game, except that conversions are drop-kicked rather than placed.

Despite lasting just 14 minutes, games are often very high scoring and entertaining as there is plenty of space for attacking play.

The club has put up a prize fund of £10,000 in an attempt to attract some of the top sevens teams to the event. This seems to have done the trick as both the Army and Navy have teams entered and they will be joined by some famous invitational sides, such as the Marauders and Samurai International.

Three teams from Fiji - the Covenant Brothers, Veilomani Barbers and Kaiviti Crusaders - complete the line-up and are expected to feature more sevens internationals.

The teams will be split into four pools of three for the round-robin section of the tournament, which will take place between 10.45am and 3pm.

The top two sides from each pool will then progress to the quarter-finals, which will begin at 3.15pm, with the semis due to take place at 5.15pm and the final kicking off at 6.35pm.

The games will be seven minutes each way, apart from the final, when each half will last 10 minutes. The four sides who fail to make the knockout stages will compete in a plate competition.

Dr Steve Tristram, chairman of Basingstoke RFC, is looking forward to the event.

"It should be a very good day," he said. "The Army and Navy always have strong teams and it is very exciting that we have an England international due to play."

On Sunday, the club is organising a social tournament, with teams from across Hampshire and Surrey invited to take part.

People have the opportunity to watch the Saturday tournament, enjoy a disco in the evening and then camp overnight before playing the following day. Away from the rugby, there will be plenty of other attractions, including a funfair.

Tickets can be purchased on the gate, at the club or by calling 01256 323308. Entrance to the ground costs £10, with a seat in the stand priced at £15. Under-16s pay £5 and a family ticket, for two adults and two under-16s, costs £20. Camping is £5 per pitch, with breakfast in the clubhouse the following morning also costing £5.

"We are hoping for a big crowd to help us celebrate our diamond jubilee," said Tristram. "Hopefully the sun will shine on us and bring more people to Down Grange for what should be a great weekend of rugby."

See Monday's Gazette for coverage of the International Diamond 7s tournament.

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