Canada Sevens burned up the pitch this weekend bringing in nearly 80,000 fans to BC Place. In its second year the HCBS Canada Sevens tournament, Vancouverites have really taken to the the exciting sevens rugby game. Excitement on and off the pitch creates a buzz like no other sporting event in town.
Packing 45 high-scoring, fast-paced matches into the 2-day tournament keep the field in play morning to night. In the on-field action, a battered Team Canada’s gutsy performance saw them improving 2 places from last year to finish 7th overall. The excitement of North Vancouver’s Adam Zaruba scoring a hat trick on day one to push the team into the Quarterfinal round was dampened by injury and losses on day two, leaving the players disappointed but the fans stood firming behind the hosts.
No matter what happens on the field, nothing seems to interrupt the cheering, for every team, and the festival-like atmosphere of the Sevens tournament in the stands, concourse and streets brought electricity to downtown Vancouver throughout the weekend. Coordinated costumes bring flashes of colour to the stands; lively Fijian fans drumming and singing around the stadium, the bagpiping Scottish fans, mixed with Bananas, Lumberjacks, Minions, Mounties and the other brightly coloured suited and booted. The breaks between rounds throughout the 10 hour days allowed for much socializing and this year the in and out privileges from BC Place were extended spreading the colour and excitement into downtown throughout the day.
In the final match, England triumphed over top-ranked South Africa to and exciting Cup win. Plans are already underway for Canada Sevens 2018 and with the increased interest this year, year three is bound to be even bigger.
If you don’t want to wait until 2018 for more Sevens Rugby, get your tickets for HSBC Canada Women’s Sevens coming to Langford, BC in May