Rugby 7s is in the Olympics in 2016.


If the Australian Olympic team is chosen on basis of form in either code, then Australia will walk it in:

[iGreg Inglis, Israel Folau, Ben Barba, Brett Morris, Jarryd Hayne, Johnathan Thurston, Cameron Smith,
[/i


But which RFL/Super League players would be good candidates for the UK Olympic team?


My choices:

[iSam Tomkins, Kallum Watkins, Kieran Dixon, Danny Brough

Sam Burgess, James Graham, James Roby, Louis McCarthy-Scarsbrook,[/i


I choose LMS because he is very fast in open field running, as well as strong

There's not much genuine pace in that team. I don't rate either of them one bit in the 13 aside game but I would certainly pick Penny and Caro for 7s.

doesn't the england 7's have a direct link with the RFU? i would be surprised to see any league players picked.

I don't believe rugby 7s specifically have links with the rfu (that's touch rugby) but I imagine they will be doing all they can to cosy up to the selectors.

Also given it will be in the middle of our season would there not be compensations needed for rl players that wouldn't for ru players?

And, predicting the players for the 2016 season seems a bit pointless! People struggle to predict whose going to be good this year let alone in 3 years time! There's a whole lot of change between now and then!

If have George North in there all day.

there's dedicated england, wales, scotland squads that just play in sevens tournaments aren't there? i would imagine the team would come from these. i could well see the aussies bolstering their squad with league players though to ensure gold. will be interesting

Seriously touch rugby is backed by the RFU?

In the uk (which is why there participation figures seem significantly higher NOT to turn this into an ru vs rl debate)

In Australia, rl backs touch rugby (there was a big thing about it middle of last season)

I've just been doing some research and it looks like the irb still has a lot of influence over 7s so I'd be surprised if any league players turned out (though I remember in 2002(maybe) Bradford bulls played in a 7s tournament and wiped the floor with everyone didn't they? So it may be a case of swallowing pride, for the sake of taking the Aussies on.

I think its kind of wrong that either of these codes are backed by another. Last time i went to the dubai 7's i am sure i saw a lot of advertising for the IRB.

Atkins strong and very fast

Not much genuine pace? Kieran Dixon is the fastest man in Super League! LMS is one of the fastest forwards ever to pull on a jersey!

George North is the only rugby union player worth picking IMO.

Aren't the RLIF lobbying the Olympic C'mtee to get RL players included??

It's rugby union 7's, a variant on rugby UNION!
Just as touch rugby is a RL variant.

In Australia some prominent personalities are lobbying to have rugby league players selected for the Olympic Rugby Sevens. However the ARU seems to be more concerned with keeping the event to itself than in winning gold. www.theaustralian.com.au/sport/r ... 6812428202

In Australia some prominent personalities are lobbying to have rugby league players selected for the Olympic Rugby Sevens. However the ARU seems to be more concerned with keeping the event to itself than in winning gold. www.theaustralian.com.au/sport/r ... 6812428202

As they should, they have done the hard work and spent resources to establish 7's as a popular variant of RU and succesfully campaigned to get it in the Olympics. Why should they choose RL players? There are probably some sprinters, swimmers, touch footy players etc that could also do a good job at 7's but they aren't RU players and have no right to be picked.

it is up to RL to develop nines if we want to see RL players at international events like C'wealth games and Olympics.

In fact Touch rugby/football is the most poular variant of any rugby code and the RLIF should be following the NRL's lead and bringing it back under RL's governance. As nice is it is for the RU people to be running a part of RL for us it is a variant of RL, developed by RL and plays to RL rules mostly. Touch footy is a bigger sport than RU or RL traditional variants and that is where the path to the Olympics lies for RL imo.

The United Kingdom Rugby 7 team will be filled from the best players from the Rugby 7s Tour from England and Wales. These are players who play it week in week out and are used to the conditions, rules and fitness needed. It will probably be our best option to stick with them regardless of League players who can play.
The England 7s team is pretty good. Making it to finals and semi finals in more a less every tour tournament. Add to that squad the best of the welsh 7s team and we will be pretty strong with players who know how to play the game.

Sam Tomkins
Kieron Dixon
Kallum Watkins
Ryan Hall
Danny Brough
Larne Patrick
Daryl Clark

Dixon is quick off the mark which gets him away from defenders, but he struggles to sustain it over a distance. Jamie Shaul at Hull is the same, lightning over 20 metres but doesn't have a big top speed, as we saw at Wembley.

Over 100 metres Dixon would get left for dead by proper sprinters like Caro, Penny or Lineham.

Tom Lineham is faster than Kieran Dixon? On what basis can you make that call?

Dixon before Charnley?
Anyway it's a Union event not ours.

I know Tom Lineham finished 3rd in the fastest man in league race a couple of years ago (Caro won). Unless they had a race I guess we wouldn't know, but my money would be firmly on Lineham. He's a big man and takes a while to hit too speed, but he can really motor when he gets there.

Tomkins, Ratchford, Broughton, Watkins, Atkins,
Lomax, Brough, S Burgess, J Graham, Farrell

State the bleedin obvious Jason!

In the same way that the USA Field Hockey federation are lobbying to have their players selected for the USA winter olympic Ice Hockey team???