Next Borneo Sevens to be bigger and better, says Vela
Published on: Wednesday, March 21, 2018
Kota Kinabalu: The next edition of the Borneo Sevens will be bigger and better, said organising chairman Vela Tan.Vela who is also Sabah Rugby Union (SRU) and Eagles Rugby Club (ERC) president said next year's event will be held two weeks before the Hong Kong Sevens."The women's competition will be very strong next year," he said when met after the conclusion of the Borneo Sevens 2018 at the Eagles Sports Arena, Sandakan, recently.
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"I was promised that some women ruggers from Auckland will take part next year."Several former All Black women players will also play alongside our local players."And we expect a very strong contention from the women teams next year which will be capitalised to create two tiers of competition."Confident that the event will be well-received among rugby sevens enthusiasts, especially with the support from Asia Rugby, Vela said stronger teams are expected to join the competition next year.
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"Next year, I expect better, stronger teams as everyone knows that Iconz (this year's Cup champion for the men's category) was a first-timer, so they will make a comeback."And for Tribe 7s (last year's first runner-up), it was a last minute notice as they could not fill up the team, but they still came.
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"I am expecting that they will come better prepared next year as you cannot take things for granted in this competition…you better come prepared or else you will get beaten," he said.Overall, Vela said, he was pleased to see the outcome of this year's Borneo Sevens."It was a mixed bag of exceptionally strong teams and they have proven themselves."What I gathered from the whole tournament is, number one; our juniors obtained good exposure and our seniors, especially the top teams have demonstrated a high quality game."Winning and losing is something that you have got to learn when you joined competitions."But more importantly, our local players were exposed to the level of game which will be our next benchmark…they should be playing at that level," he said.During the final, Iconz from Australia defeated last year's winner Borneo Eagles 17-14 in an intense final men's Cup match.The women's Cup was lifted by Hong Kong Dragon after they beat Thailand 24-5 during the finals.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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