World Sevens Series
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The World Sevens Series is an international rugby union series of tournaments run by the International Rugby Board. The tournaments span the globe, with the following events included in the 2004-05 tour:
- Dubai (Dubai Exiles Rugby Ground): December 2-3, 2004
- South Africa (George Rugby Ground, George): December 10-11, 2004
- Wellington, New Zealand (Westpac Stadium): February 4-5, 2005
- Los Angeles, United States (Home Depot Center): February 12-13, 2005
- Singapore (National Stadium): April 16-17, 2005
- England (Twickenham, London): June 4-5, 2005
- Paris (Stade Jean Bouin): June 11-12, 2005
The most famous Sevens event, the Hong Kong Sevens, was not a part of the World Sevens Series this season. That event was replaced by the IRB Rugby World Cup Sevens, which was held in Hong Kong in March 2005 and won by Fiji. The Hong Kong Sevens will resume in 2006.
Sevens is a stripped-down version of rugby union, with seven players on each side rather than fifteen. Games are much shorter, seven or ten minutes each half, and tend to be very fast-paced, open affairs. Sevens is traditionally played in a two-day tournament format, with the Hong Kong Sevens being the most famous.
New Zealand and Fiji are traditionally the strongest teams, although recently Australia, Samoa, England, South Africa, Argentina and France have all won tournaments. England and South Africa won tournaments in both the 2003-04 and 2004-05 seasons; France won an event in 2004-05, and Argentina won an event in 2003-04.
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2004-05 results (finals)
- Dubai - England defeated Fiji
- South Africa - New Zealand defeated Fiji
- Wellington - New Zealand defeated Argentina
- Los Angeles - New Zealand defeated Argentina
- Singapore - New Zealand defeated England
- England - South Africa defeated England
- Paris - France defeated Fiji
Previous Series Winners
- 2000 - New Zealand
- 2001 - New Zealand
- 2002 - New Zealand
- 2003 - New Zealand
- 2004 - New Zealand
- 2005 - New Zealand
See also
External links
- The official tournament homepage (http://www.irbsevens.com)
- US-based sevens website (http://www.rugby7.com)