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The schools sevens season in the UK is compact and intense, climaxing with a bang at the National Schools Sevens hosted by Rosslyn Park RFC.

Schools began their preparations for the sevens season as early as the beginning of January and tournaments have come thick and fast over the past 5 weeks. UR7s has been there to cover them all.

All the hard work by coaches and players alike has been with this week in mind. One term rugby schools will compete in the Festival competition and two term rugby schools compete in the Open competition.

UR7s have spent many a match on the side of the field this season and are in position to preview the group stages for this year’s tournaments.

We’ll give our views on the schools and players that we believe will see their hard work pay off with some success this week, in what is the world’s largest sevens tournament.

First we will take a look at the Festival and those who will be attempting to wrestle the crown away from Wellington College.

Group A : Epsom College, Ulswater, Gordano, Canford, Kings Canterbury

This is a group that will have some very interesting games in. None more so than Epsom College v Canford. Canford played some great rugby at the South Coast Sevens 3 weeks ago, going down to Colstons in the group stages.

Epsom showed some signs of being a side with some ability last week whilst making the last 16 at Surrey Schools, before losing to the in-form Filton College. This game will surely decide the winner of the group with others fighting out for the remaining positions. The battle between young Tom Harty (Epsom) and James Stephenson (Canford) will be key.

Predictions - Canford's discipline and structure to frustrate Epsom and win the group.

Group B : Loughborough, St Georges Harpenden, Bromsgrove, Harrodian, Birkdale

A battle of the XVs schools here and Bromsgrove will come into the tournament in good morale following a decent season pre-christmas. Loughborough will be looking to halt their run of form with St Georges being the dark horse of the group.

This group will be decided by who has spent the most time on the training field and can win the battle of attrition that will surely ensue in a group with no real 7s stand out.

Coaches quote - “The season so far has been quite good, we have got progressively better and have had some good results. Namely winning the plate at the North of England Sevens, we struggle with our strength in depth, if things go our way we could get close, but hopefully we will do enough to turn some heads” Justin Abrahams Head of Rugby, Bromsgrove

Predictions - Bromsgrove would not be coming from Birmingham unless they smelt a chance for day 2. Loughborough taking the runners-up spot.

Group C : Dean Close, Lord Wandsworth, St Bede’s Manchester, Steyning, Sir Joseph Williamson

Another group with very little between them. Lord Wandsworth are slightly more famous for a certain number 10 being educated at the school than for their 7s prowess though have seen success in the Hampshire Cup this season.

Game of the group should be Dean Close and St Bede’s with the winner looking to move on.

Predictions – St Bede’s to take a group that all have a shout in

Group D : Magdallen College, St Peter’s York, Ibstock Place, Kelly, Sevenoaks

3 sides in with a chance here and its going to be tight. Sevenoaks performed excellently in making the last 16 at Surrey before losing to a talented Brighton College side and will look to build on this form.
St. Peters, York have had a strong season with some flyers in the mix and when you throw in the 7s discipline and structure of Magdallen it has the making for some great games.

Predictions – Too close to call but Sevenoaks to sneak past St Peters.

Group E- King’s Worcester, Worth, Halliford, Rossall, Richard Halle

Worth have always been strong at the shorter form of the game and like Canford can be very hard to break down. It will be interesting to see whether they have enough raw talent to get past two big schools in King’s Worcester and Richard Halle who are coming off excellent 15s seasons.

Predictions – King’s Worcester to have too much for their rivals.

Group F- St Bee’s, Christ’s Hospital, Ryde, Ewell Castle, Shrewsbury

Christ’s Hospital hosted the very successful Sussex Open and under the tuteliage of Referee Sean Davey we hope they have discipline!
Ryde from the Isle of Wight will be looking to enjoy the week but the dark horse for this group is a talented set of lads from Shrewsbury who will look for a shock or two.

Predictions – Shrewsbury to move on if they get past Christ’s Hospital.

Group G; Hereford Cathedral, Barnard Castle, Eton, Kings Rochester, Trinity Devon.

One of the big boys here Barnard Castle are always in the mix for the title. Many will remember their side in 2002 including Matthew Tait which defeated Ben Ryans, St Edwards, Oxford side before losing to the Wellington College all stars of that year (M. Evans, T. Evans, J.Haskell, S. Mackie).

Castle look like they will be there again this year but will face stiff competition from Eton College who performed admirably last week at Surrey, losing to eventual winners Millfield 24-12 in the last 16.

Predictions – Barnard Castle to have too much for Eton with the others making up the numbers.

Group H; The Oratory School, Churcher’s, Cranbrook, Blundell’s, St Clements Danes

Good group, should be some great games in this one. The Oratory School, Reading coming off the back of a huge win against RGS High Wycombe in the final of Windsor should be on good form but will be pushed hard by Blundell’s and Cranbrook.

Cranbrook have had their best season in a while winning all but one of their games and Blundell’s will cause trouble for both.

Predictions – Oratory to squeeze through with Cranbrook not far behind.

Group I- King’s Taunton, Ellesmere, Pangbourne, Woodbridge, Oundle

Pangbourne College have had a great year at all age-groups and will be tough to stop here behind the skill of Jamie Anderson but with West Country 7s hosts Kings Taunton bringing strength and determination and Oundle a classic approach to 7s this will be a close one.

Predictions – King’s power too much for the others.

Group J- Colfe’s, Perse, Torquay, St Paul’s Catholic, Trent College

Another group with no real standout side. The Perse will approach the game in the same way they have for the past decade and will be efficient if not spectacular. Trent College and Torquay both offer a lot of power and will make things interesting.

Predictions – Trent College out lasting the Perse in a tense group.

Group K- Latymer Upper, Cheltnham, Queen’s Taunton, Uppingham, Saffron Walden

A must watch group this one, with some great games. Uppingham are a schools powerhouse and will be bringing a well drilled side. Saffron Walden had their first outing at the St. Josephs festival in 2007 and since then have gone from strength to strength.

Cheltenham are perennial challengers at this level and are often overlooked due to the weak 15s circuit they play on. Latymer are the local school so will surely have some friends and family on the sidelines which makes for an all encompassing group of games.

Predictions – Cheltenham to suffer the same fate as in the XVs with Uppingham taking the group.

Group L- Melton Abbey, St Columba’s, Austin Friars, Greshams, Plymouth

This group is a two horse race - Greshams and Plymouth will battle it out for top honours. Greshams are inconsistent at this level and not the force they once were though and this is one for the more modern approach.

Predictions – Plymouth College

Group M- Marlborough, Wellington College, Eltham, New Hall, Monkton Combe

This is the group that the reigning champions needed to find some form, Wellington College have struggled a little this season by their own exceptional standards and will be disappointed to be a step behind great rivals Millfield at the South Coast and Surrey.

Marlborough and Wellington have had a long time rivalry but this won’t be enough to make it close. 5 of the 7 players that started last year’s tournament return and will look to go out with a bang.

Coaches quote “We want to win every tournament, but we are aware of some very good teams, there seems to be more strength in depth out there this year. Winning the tournament will be a very tough task and we will have to be at our very best.” - Wellington College ADS Kevin Brennan

Predictions – Armitage, Edgeley & Gordon have far too much for this company but will need to improve from recent outings to take the title on Day 2 for Wellington.

Group N – Christ Brecon, King’s Ely, Sutton Valence, Hurtwood House, Skinners

Christ Brecon had a great start to the season when beating form side Millfield behind the skill of link man Will Burton and will look to progress smoothly through this group.

The hurdle will be Skinners who after an excellent 15s season will coming into the tournament with strong morale. Kings Ely is an interesting one, in that they can surprise people on their day.

Predictions – Christ Brecon to take the group comfortably.

GROUP O – BERKHAMSTED, CLIFTON, WELLINGTON SCHOOL, PARK HOUSE, WINDSOR

Windsor v Park House will be an interesting all Berkshire match with Windsor probably coming out on top. With Wellington and Clifton travelling from the South West they will need to get the trip out of their legs early if they are to compete with Berkhamstead.

Predictions – ‘Berko’ to move on with relative ease.

GROUP P - KING’S BRUTON, MONMOUTH, SIR WILLIAM BORLASE, CATERHAM, BEDFORD MODERN

Monmouth have challenged here in the past and should be in a position to do so again in this group after a decent performance in Portsmouth. Marlow side Sir William Borlase have trained hard for the tournament but might lack the match practice.

King’s are an interesting one and have some real pace but the question remains whether they can counter the power of the welsh school.

Predictions – Monmouth power to defeat Kings fleet of foot in what should be a good game

GROUP Q – STOWE, CLAYESMORE, HAMPSHIRE COLLEGIATE, PRIOR PARK, HABERDASHERS ASKES’ ELSTREE

Surprise Daily Mail Semi-finalists Stowe very much showed a return to form with their 15s season this year and have deserved the plaudits. This group looks a little one sided on paper but as with most 7s tournaments anything can happen on the day.

Haberdashers will look to upset the form book. Hampshire Collegiate have had a great season beating Portsmouth GS and Lord Wandsworth on the 15s circuit which is a huge step forward.

Predictions – Stowe to continue dominance but Hampshire to make an impact

GROUP R - ST. EDWARD’S OXFORD, DENSTONE, EASTBOURNE, LEYS, SHERBORNE

In years gone by this group would be dominated by the Oxfordshire school but since the departure of Ben Ryan to greater things, the school has somewhat slipped from its perch. Sherborne and Eastbourne will be looking to take advantage. Sherborne were unfortunate losers to Wellington College 12-10 at Surrey last week and could take another step here.

An interesting game here will also be Eastbourne v St. Edwards. Former St. Edwards pupil Robin Giles is now coaching at Eastbourne, I am sure he will look for one over his old school and fire the boys up.

Predictions – Changing of the guard, Sherborne to go on to do some damage on Day 2.

GROUP S - BISHOPS STORTFORD, RUGBY, YARM, WYCLIFFE, KCS WIMBLEDON

Don’t let the name trick the eye here, Rugby School are not what they once were and their struggles were evident at Windsor 7s recently. The talented Chris Coombes will be leading KCS into the group and their encounter with Bishops makes for an intense game. Tom Banks at sweeper controls the game well for Bishops and will need to to top the group.

Predictions – KCS win through.

GROUP T – OAKHAM, HILLS ROAD, BRYANSTON, LICENSED VICTUALLERS, RGS COLCHESTER

Another must watch group with Oakham, Bryanston and RGS fighting it out for top honours. Bryanston have had a good season so far making the semi-finals in Portsmouth and the final in Taunton.

Oakham will be bristling after a return to form this season and Colchester always perform at this level. Oakham however could be without a number of internationals which could see them struggle. Bryanston have struggled against swift opposition and RGS could surprise them both. It’s wide open.

Predictions – Oakham (International availability dependant) if not outsiders RGS to surprise a few.

GROUP U - KING EDWARD’S – BATH, ARDINGLY, REED’S, ST JOHN’S – LEATHERHEAD, ST GEORGE’S- WEYBRIDGE

An evenly matched group but not a great amount of quality rugby will be on show. Kings will be consistent and efficient with the same being said of St Georges. The result of their game will surely be the group winner

Predictions – St. Georges to win through to Day 2 before struggling.

GROUP V - RGS GUILDFORD, AUDENSHAW, KINGSWOOD, ST. BEDE’S – SUSSEX, TAUNTON

The 2nd of the competing Royal Grammar Schools are perhaps the most efficient of their type at the 7s game and will look to progress easily with one eye on day 2. As long as they negotiate the matches v St. Bedes and Taunton they should be in good shape for day 2.

Predictions – RGS Guildford.

GROUP W – MANNIN ISLE OF MAN, AYLESBURY, ABINGDON, BRISTOL, DUKE OF YORK’S

In the past 5 years Aylesbury have become a real force in the South East and if it wasn’t for the powerhouse RGS High Wycombe down the road we would have seen them in latter stages of the Daily Mail. Having said that, their form lends itself to 7s and they should dominate the breakdown in this company with Sam Jones having an exemplary season. Quick ball in 7s means try time. Abingdon struggled at the South Coast Sevens though will have learnt from the experience and alongside Bristol will fight it out for the runners-up spot.

Predictions – Aylesbury power themselves through to Day 2

GROUP X – TONBRIDGE, DURHAM, ST JOHN’S HAMPSHIRE, HURSTPIERPOINT, QUEEN ELIZABETH DEVON

This is a 2 team group and the game between Tonbridge and Durham will be a great one. Tonbridge took some real scalps last week in Surrey, beating Filton and Colstons en route to the final, and both sides will expect to do well in the Open.

Durham themselves are on good form following the North of England Schools tournament in Birkenhead. Two very different styles of rugby to be played though which will make for a tense game.

Predictions – Tonbridge form to continue…..just.

GROUP Y – RADLEY, BEDFORD, FOREST, WEST BUCKLAND, HINCHINGBROOKE

In the past Radley would enter this company and expect to come out victorious. Bedford will expect that result this year. The Forest school from Reading have some very good years but will find themselves out of their depth at the top end of the group.

Predictions – Bedford talent to defeat Radley heritage.

GROUP Z – BLOXHAM, JOHN HAMPDEN, HYMERS, CRANLEIGH, TRURO SCHOOL

Tough group to call, 5 good sides with different styles. John Hampden will bring some of Bucks best to the group and Bloxham will expect to improve upon their XVs season.

The game of the group should be Cranleigh vs Truro. Truro will bring grit and power whilst looking to off-load, and Cranleigh will be disciplined in their approach and wait for mistakes. Hymers will be waiting to pounce if either slip up.

Predictions – Cranleigh to top the group but not unbeaten.

With so many strong teams competing for the title, the trophy could be heading anywhere come Wednesday evening. Stay tuned on UR7s.com for all the reports from the action and which players have been selected to the UR7s Team of the Tournament