Rugby: England sevens squad hit the pub
England has warmed up for next month's Commonwealth Games in Delhi by playing pub sevens
. Coach Ben Ryan has announced his 12-man squad for the competition, with Ben Gollings named as captain for what will be his third appearances at the Games.
Ryan hoped last month's Middlesex Sevens would provide the team with a crucial warm-up for Delhi but their disappointing quarter-final exit left them short of game time.
Looking to make up the shortfall, England played in a low-key tournament in Hertfordshire that caught unsuspecting opponents by surprise.
"It was obvious we needed more so we entered the Harpenden pub sevens and played seven games there.
"We romped through it and that gave us some good game time. It was a nice experience and the boys enjoyed it.
"The reaction to us was positive. Once the other teams had run off their hangover from the night before, they gave us some decent opposition.
"We played the Marauders and Samurai and put 40 points on both, but it was good to practice different things and it enabled us to develop relationships on the pitch."
England's squad is full of sevens regulars and promising young talent but other than Gollings, it is bereft of established names.
Players such as Mathew Tait and Danny Care helped them win silver in Melbourne four years ago and while Ryan accepts England do not possess the same quality as 2002 or 2006, he still expects them to challenge for gold.
"My expectation is the same as any England coach and that's to win every game and win a gold medal," he said.
"We don't go in as favourites as New Zealand have four All Blacks in their squad and have a very settled squad.
"Those two teams are the favourites and we're behind them, but that's not to say we don't expect to do well and get on the podium.
"When you go down this list there are no obvious superstars when you compare it to the teams of 2006 and 2002.
"In Melbourne they sent home David Strettle and Ugo Monye because they hadn't made the squad and that was the depth they had.
"But the climate's changed and we've got 12 guys who will fight for the shirt and do everything they can."
Ryan sympathises with the reluctance of Aviva Premiership clubs to release their top players for sevens.
"In 2006 there were regular Premiership players - guys like Mathew Tait, Tom Varndell and David Strettle," he said.
"The Premiership is a different beast now and the sevens circuit has changed as there are more tournaments.
"Those players just aren't available to us now. If I was a director of rugby in the Premiership then I wouldn't want to lose one of my best players for four months at a time.
"So you look down at the next level, which is either sevens specialists or guys who are young enough to be able to be taken out of the 15 system for a period.
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Ireland V England HospitalityRugby: England sevens squad hit the pubBy: sam pit
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