• • Facebook
  • Digg
  • Del.icio.us
  • Technorati
  • Reddit
  • Stumble Upon
  • Furl

Tom Chick

The UK Sevens season may have come to an official end but there is still one more mouthwatering event that will be providing some fast paced, try-friendly and big hitting rugby for Sevens fans - and it is all in aid of charity.

Of course the famous charity Sevens event in England is the Middlesex Sevens but on Thursday the second RCUK Charity Sevens will be held in Richmond and the event brings together business and rugby for a day which will also provide a mixed touch rugby tournament at the Athletic Ground.

The founder of RCUK Charity Sevens is none other than England international and Stade Francais’ James Haskell who has a strong link with Sevens having represented England in the past before going on to full honours.

This year, however, in between switching the Guinness Premiership for the Top 14 and taking a break from intensive French lessons, you may have seen him dotted around the country assisting with many of the O2 Scrum on the Beach events.

But this tournament is his very own brainchild and it is his school friends that now work in the oil industry who helped him to come up with the idea to splice rugby and business together to raise money for good causes.

With Haskell at the helm the event has managed to once again lure other England internationals and Guinness Premiership stars to head to Richmond to offer their support for the chosen charity, Demelza.

Auction for stars

In fact what makes this tournament different to any other on circuits around the world is that the participating teams have an option to bid for one of the many Guinness Premiership players to coach them and get their support throughout the day, something RCUK Sevens’ PR Executive John Thompson believes will help raise awareness for the event.

“Being mentored by a professional rugby player is obviously a great boost to a team - not only does the team benefit from the top level experience on offer it is also great for morale and a unique experience,” said Thompson.

“We have been extremely fortunate in attracting a wealth of talent and support from some high profile players. Not only will they be lending their expertise and skills to those they coach but their participation has helped to raise awareness both for the event and the charity.”

Last year Tom Rees, Joe Worsley, Danny Care and Shane Geraghty were some of the coaches available and this year they are joined by British and Irish Lions Lee Mears and Ugo Monye, and among others, the Armitage brothers who, with London Irish, recently won the Middlesex Sevens.

City big hitters including last year’s Bowl finalists PVM and ACM Shipping, Tullett Prebon, Reed Smith and new boys BMP Paribas will not only be able to bid for the coaching expertise of the Premiership boys, but they will also be able to bid for up to three Sevens specialist players to play in their side.

The selected professionals have all been given an RCUK ranking so teams can gauge how much to bid, and although it is all in aid of charity, try telling that to the teams bidding for Matt Humphries or the likes of top ranked, and the only four-star rated player, Adam Craddock.

Trafigura Cup

RCUK Sevens would love to be able to be spoken about alongside the Middlesex Sevens or even the Bath Charity Sevens which is run in aid of the Help for Heroes for charity but this event offers something different and has already proved to be a success.

The tournament will be run in two pools beginning at 10.30 on Thursday, with the top two sides from each going through to the semi-finals in search of the coveted Trafigura Cup.

International commodities giantTrafigura, one of the largest independent companies trading today, has a continued commitment to RCUK Charity Sevens and this follows their recent sponsorship of the British and Irish Lions and the Canadian national side.

As with any good Sevens tournament there is also a Bowl competition, and this year’s Plate will be fought for via a mixed Touch tournament, which Haskell believes will further improve the tournament due to the rapid growth of this sport and the inclusion of women too.

“This year we also have a touch tournament, which is mixed. There are also a lot of women who work in the oil industry and they are just as important as the men. It reflects how important they are and how much they enjoy the sport and they may even show the men up,” said the former Wasps star.

“The teams are competing for the coveted Trafigura Cup and as the tournament builds hopefully this will become more coveted. Last year some of the Sevens played would rival some of the professional circuit so it was pretty impressive.”

Charity Demelza

Of course the event is raising money for charity and Haskell will be hoping to match, or better, last year’s fundraising total of £100,000 which will all go towards Demelza.

“It is similar to a charity I have worked with on a personal basis for a number of years. Because of that link I like to focus on things I have a personal interest in,” added the flanker.

“I have been very privileged in my career to use my body and to have health on my side, but some people aren’t as fortunate. If there is any opportunity that I can give or any money I can raise then I try my best to do that.”

Demelza Hospice Care for Children is the only children’s residential hospice in Kent, East Sussex and South London providing a range of services to life-limited children.

Every year they need to raise over £7million just to keep its services running and they rely almost entirely on voluntary donations and fundraising events such as the RCUK Sevens. Raising the money enables Demelza to provide hospice care to over 570 children every year.

James Hanaway, Director of Fundraising at Demelza said: “We are so grateful to RCUK and Trafigura for their support. During these difficult economic times, Demelza is relying on the generosity of others now more than ever so that we can continue our important work caring for children with life-limiting diseases”.

Last year £100,000 was raised and it is hoped to that the amount this year will increase with the help of players, fans and sponsors.

Despite the economic doom and gloom there are 12 teams entering the Sevens tournament and 12 entering the touch tournament. You can show your support by heading to the Athletic Ground in Richmond where the gates will open at 09:15.