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After the surprising news this week that England 7s have decided to part ways with Sevens legend Ben Gollings, UR7s took the chance to sit down with him and discuss how the separation came about, his favorites memories from a fantastic 12 year career and what the future holds for the IRB 7s record points scorer and his newly formed BG10Academy

Hi Ben, thanks for chatting with us, were you surprised not to be offered a new contract and do you feel you have been treated fairly?

I was very suprised when I heard and struggled to believe that was it and that it was all over. The RFU did nothing wrong with how the dealt with it contractualy at the end but I did not want to go out the way that I have.

Did you still think you can offer something to the England side?

I do still think I have a lot to offer. I'm certainly not ready to give up playing and feel I am in great shape and my fitness levels have never been better and I felt I was playing good rugby. With my experience I feel I could offer a lot to the younger people around me both on and off the field.

Do you think not being offered a contract had anything to do with performances from this past season or is it just for England to move on to a younger generation?

I am not fully sure what the reasons are behind not getting a contract. I can't believe its performance related. I felt I played well this season and it was the whole team took a hit in the last 2 tournaments of the year which was a shame. I don't feel my age should be an issue as I feel I can still offer more than my younger counterparts. I also feel I could have helped the younger players come into the game and then step aside when they were ready.

Did you expect to be offered a coaching role once you finished playing for England?

I would love to coach my country at some stage but did not feel I would be offered the role straight away as they already have coaching staff in place. I would certainly put my had up if the role did come up.

What are your top 3 memories of playing for England?

There are a number of memories but the ones that stand out are winning Hong Kong for the first time in 2002 and then winning again in 2006. Being able to run out with my 2 sons woody and rocco at twickenham in 2010 was great and of course the memorable come back against New Zealand to win at Twickenham 2009

Which coach that you have played under for England has had the biggest impact on 7s?

All the coaches have had a big impact on the sevens team, but the one who sticks out for me is Joe Lydon who really put the England Sevens team on the map a created a platform to build off in the future.

Who do you think from the current England squad will play for GB in the Olympics in 2016?

I think the likes of James Rodwell, Dan Norton and Matt Turner have a chance, in fact all the team has potential but there is a long way to go before the Olympics

Who are the top 3 players you have ever played with or against and why?

From a Sevens context Waisali Serevi, Amasio Valence and Eric Rush. They are the 3 guys who set the bench mark for Sevens players, displaying incredible skills and pace and stamina. It was amazing to play against these guys and always a great battle.

Who played for England as a young lad, that you knew straight away would go on to bigger things in the 15s game?

The likes of Matthew Tait, Josh Lewsey, Jamie Noon, Ben Foden and Nick Duncombe are to name but a few. There have been some great players that have come through England Sevens in the past 12 years.

What does the near future hold for Ben Gollings with regards to actually playing rugby, will you continue to play 7s for invitational sides or move into coaching?

I am not ready to hang u the boots yet and feel I still have a lot to offer on the field. I will look to play as well as maybe coaching at the same time. if the opportunity arises to play some invitational sevens then I will but at this stage i'm going to enjoy a bit of time off while I decide and let the body recover.

Coaching is definitely something I want to move into and enjoy and I am in the process of setting up an academy.

Tell us more about your academies? What are they, where are they, who are they for?

My academy is based around getting young people involved in the game of rugby especially sevens as well as offering some educational information including lifestyle and being a professional sportsperson.

They are aimed at children aged 8-16yrs but there will also be camps for 16+yrs and we will look to spot talent at the camps and then offer elite sessions.

The big picture is to create a sevens team that can go and play in the invitational tournaments. It is very exciting times and i would love to see plenty of the young players to go on to have successful careers in rugby.

Ben, thanks so much for sitting down with us and good luck with everything, I know we can speak for the 7s community when we say you will be missed on an international field but we look forward to seeing you on the invitational circuit and wish you luck with BG10Academy