Lion Rugby 7s and Lionesse Rugby 7s will be concluding their first year of elite 7s rugby by heading to the 2022 Rugby World 7s held in Grenada (1st & 2nd December 2022). They will be competing against leading sides from North America and Europe.
The tournament, the oldest running rugby 7s event in the Caribbean, has been curtailed the last two seasons due to covid-19. It returns this year with a new venue at the national cricket stadium in Grenada, after having been based in Barbados for a few years prior.
Both the men’s and women’s sides will retain the nucleus of the squads that for Lion Rugby 7s, saw them come away with the bowl at the massive world event at Glendale, Colorado’s Rugby Town in August, and for the Lionesses saw them win the cup in Edinburgh in the same month. See images and video highlights https://youtu.be/oBfjZv01uAk. The sides will see some exciting additions to their squads in terms of fast players, further enhancing the club’s aim to play with pace and freedom.
The club has recent announced a new head coach for the tournament with Paul Tietjens taking charge, not to be confused with his dad, Sir Gordon Tietjens, the All Black 7s coaching maestro. Paul is currently head coach of the Nagato Blue Angles in Japan’s 7s competition, as well as having previously been with Samoa, Bay of Plenty & Manuwatu.
“I am very much looking forward to the opportunity to coach the Lion & Lionesse 7’s squads at the World Rugby 7’s in Grenada. It will be a great challenge for the club to travel to the Caribbean for such a competitive tournament & I am excited to test ourselves against some of the strongest invitational sides from around the globe.”
Club Founder and Captain, Arun Watkins (21) added, “we are building quickly and steadily, our aim is to become the best global sevens club, as such we need to go to these competitions, learn quickly and compete well. We are all excited to attend the RW7s fulfilling our promise to position our men’s and women’s sides with equal importance”.
About Lion Rugby 7s
Lion Rugby 7s was founded in 2018 by then 16-year-old Arun Watkins, as an option for young 7s minded players to have an outlet for their talent. In 2022 the club expanded to include a women’s side, and has played more than 10 countries, winning more of those match-ups than they have lost. Now part of an international elite circuit, with many internationals as part of its squads, the future is exciting for the Lions brand.