7th Heaven .. #248

Staged at Wellington’s Westpac Stadium over two days and nights, the NZI Sevens rugby event involves 16 international teams competing for points that go towards the International Rugby Board (IRB) Sevens series. Eight tournaments make up the IRB series.

BUT rugby is only part of the event !!! ... it isd a carnival of amazing costumes, dress up and full on party. The whole city buzzes. This montage is of some of the opening parade, the costumes and in the centre of the images a delightful family from Fielding (about 2 hrs driving north) who come to the Sevens event every year .. enjoy the weekend.

Some serious stuff
The tournament is played under the laws of the game of rugby with some Sevens variations which are framed by the IRB.
The 16 teams are split into 4 pools. Play on the first day of the tournament consists of pool matches on a round robin basis. Points are awarded for wins, losses and draws and go towards each team's final points tabulation.
Following completion of all the pool matches in day one, the first and second placed teams in each pool progress to the Cup Championship. The third and fourth placed teams of each pool progress to the Bowl Championship. These games are played on day two and all teams are moved into a knockout phase. The winners of each game move into semi finals and then finals. The winner of the Tournament is the team that has moved through all their games on day two with no losses.

Each team is made up of 12 players; seven on the field during the match, with a reserve bench of five. Each game runs for 2 x 7 minute halves with a 2 minute half time; the final game of the tournament is 2 x 10 minute halves.
The winner of the New Zealand leg wins the local tournament trophy. In 2006, Fiji won the tournament. New Zealand had held it for the previous three years.