Hurricanes’ Luke Chandler makes an acrobatic leap in his attempt to score. Picture by Kris Thon.
PICTURE GALLERY
BEACH RUGBYFIJI has always been a dominant force in sevens’ rugby and at Appley beach last Saturday they showed they can do it on sand as well as on grass.
In an exciting, if bruising, encounter against Sandown and Shanklin RFC’s Triangle Tigers, the predominantly Fijian side, 32 Regiment, dug deep to win the Ryde RFC Beach Sevens Tournament by two tries to one.
The two sides had already met earlier in the tournament, in the pool round, where Tigers won a narrow contest but 23 Regiment had their revenge.
To reach the final, 32 Regiment beat a side from Chineham RFC 4-1, while Tigers beat their Hurricanes’ team-mates 7-2.
The tournament comprised 14 teams from the Island and the mainland, with the teams split into three groups for a round robin contest before the knock-out stages.
Those who did not make it to the latter stages of the cup competitions fought it out for the plate, and the plate final was an all-Island contest Between Ventnor and Ryde A.
Ventnor showed great discipline, skill and superior fitness to beat a determined, if exhausted, Ryde side by a comfortable margin of seven tries to one.
Ryde’s tournament, which is supported by the Rugby Football Union (RFU), is one of only a handful of full-contact beach rugby contests across the UK.
Thankfully, there were no major injuries to report this year, with only one player taken to hospital with a nose injury.
Andy Dalton, of the RFU, was there supporting the event. He said: "This is a great event, with a brilliant turnout, a great venue and excellent weather. It has been a real success."
Paul Roberts, chairman of Ryde RFC, thanked the IW Council, the RFU and all the spectators for supporting the event, and added: "The tournament was excellent, I was very pleased with the way it went this year. There was a superb backdrop with the Round the Island race and the weather was brilliant."
Reporter: sport@iwcpmail.co.uk
• Pictures from our online gallery www.iwcpgallery.co.uk below.
Click on the image for a larger version.