Scotland Sevens eyeing gold run

SCOTLAND kick off a new-look HSBC Sevens World Series campaign today in the unusual venue of Australia’s Gold Coast with clear backing for the future from Scottish rugby.

The squad might feel quite remote competing on the other side of the world when the main focus here remains on XVs and the RaboDirect Pro12, but statements by the SRU’s new chief executive and chairman have underlined a fresh commitment to sevens rugby and desire within Murrayfield to trumpet Scotland as the home of the game.

That support has been well received by the members of the first full-time dedicated squad to represent Scotland. It does not make their task of qualifying for the cup quarter-finals any easier but there is a sense that they can develop a real consistency through the first three tournaments – with Dubai and South Africa coming in successive weekends – without worrying about whether they will even be playing sevens next month.

Scotland coach Graham Shiel said: “Preparations have been very positive for us this season with the new strategy towards sevens in Scottish Rugby [the SRU]. We’ve had regular access to our squad which has allowed us to spend more time together in advance of travelling. As ever we are looking to perform well on day one with a view to qualifying for the cup competition on day two. We have a tough group containing England, Wales and Tonga, so we’ll have to perform to our potential to achieve it.”

The 12-man squad is one of the most experienced ever to represent Scotland with professionals Colin Gregor, James Eddie, Andrew Turnbull and Peter Horne all proven sevens exponents.

They first face England today (3.19am UK time) before taking on Wales (6.47am) and Tonga (9.14am), in Pool D, the results determining who goes through to the cup quarter-finals tomorrow and who drops into the subsidiary events.