Rugby has been front and centre in the seaside suburb of Kiama on the last Saturday in February for the past 50 years.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
It will be no different this year when 44 teams from around Australia converge on the seaside town for the 51st running of the annual Kiama Sevens tournament.
Tournament organiser Mark Bryant promised this year's showcase on Saturday, February 25, would be bigger and better than ever.
"For a small rugby community, we definitely do it better than all the others out there," he said.
"This tournament is very important on the Australian rugby calendar. This is especially the case since 2012 when we made the decision not to have international sides, representative sides or composite sides.
"They have to be Rugby Australia sides so all the money goes back to the clubs.
"When we had the Fijian sides come over, they're great but they took the prize money all the time.
"We can't choose any of those players to play for the Australian Sevens side. The Aussie men's and women's [Sevens] coaches John Manenti and Tim Walsh wanted to look at players playing in the Kiama Sevens that they could pick for their respective teams.
"In that respect the Kiama Sevens is a real pathway to the Olympics."
Twenty-eight men's teams and 16 women's sides will converge on Kiama Showground and Chittick Oval from 8am on Saturday.
Host club Kiama will kick-off proceedings at Chittick Oval with a clash against Grenfell Rugby, while Molong will play Albury Wodonga at the nearby Kiama Showground.
The Kiama Sevens Cup will be presented to the Champion Club with Plate presentation for the runners-up.
There will be seven trophies and nearly $40,000 in prize money up for grabs on Saturday..
For a small rugby community, we definitely do it better than all the others out there.
- Kiama Sevens organiser Mark Bryant
Last season's Kiama Sevens champions Sydney's UTS Gordon, and Shoalhaven who flew the flag for South Coast teams by taking out the reserve grade Bowl final, are back to defend their titles.
The defending women's champions Burraneer are also slated to return, as are Victorian sides Footscray and Box Hill, as well as Gungahlin and Uni Norths from the ACT.
Bryant added Sydney big guns Randwick, Manly and the West Sydney Two Blues were also playing.
"It's an exciting time of the year. The Kiama Sevens always draws quality teams and the crowd come out in their numbers to support the event," he said.
"It's played at a great venue overlooking the ocean.
"We are doing $38,000 prize money plus trophies. Rugby Australia provides the referees but we fund all the prize money ourselves."
Our news app has had a makeover, making it faster and giving you access to even more great content. Download The Illawarra Mercury news app in the Apple Store and Google Play.
Agron Latifi
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
