For the second time running, Samurai International won the Middlesex Charity 7s, beating the British Army and the Brazilian national 7s team along the way. In the final they beat qualifiers Esher 55-12 to claim the Russell Cargil Cup.
The plate was won by HFW Wailers who beat London Scottish 41 - 12 in the final and Middlesex 7s also hosted a ladies match between a Wooden Spoon XV and the Golden Wasps.
The Draw
Match 1: British Army v Apache
Match 2: HFW Wailers v Esher
Match 3: Wooden Spoon v White Hart Marauders
Match 4: Gilbert Pubs v Barking
Match 5: Brazil v Durham Students
Match 6: London Scottish v Templar
Match 7: London Welsh v Plymouth Albion
Match 8: Olorun Sharks v Samurai
Results Table
Round 1
1. British Army Vs Apache (5 - 5) 31 - 5
2. HFW Wailers Vs Esher (17 - 0) 24 - 26
3. Wooden Spoon Vs White Hart Mauraders (5 - 12) 5 - 24
4. Social Vibe Pups Vs Barking (17 - 0) 34 - 5
5. Brazil Vs Durham University (5 - 7) 17 - 14
6. London Scottish Vs Templars 7 RFC (12 - 14) 19 - 26
7. London Welsh Vs Plymouth Albion (14 - 14) 26 - 28
8. Olorun Sharks Vs Samurai (0 - 17) 0 - 31
Quarter Finals
1. British Army Vs Esher (5 - 14) 15 - 21
2. White Hart Mauraders Vs Social Vibe Pups (7 - 19) 14 - 36
3. Brazil Vs Templars 7 RFC (12 - 12) 26 - 19
4. Plymouth Albion Vs Samurai (7 - 17) 7 - 40
Semi- Finals
1. Esher Vs Social Vibe Pups (12 - 0) 12 - 5
2. Brazil Vs Samurai (0 - 7) 7 - 21
FINAL
Esher Vs Samurai (12 - 19) 12 - 55
PLATE COMPETITION RESULTS
Quarter Finals
1. Apache Vs HFW Wailers 7 - 31
2. Wooden Spoon Vs Barking 31 - 7
3. Durham University Vs London Scottish 5 - 31
4. London Welsh Vs Olorun Sharks 12 - 24
Semi Finals
1. HFW Wailers Vs Wooden Spoon (7 - 19) 26 - 19
2. London Scottish Vs Olorun Sharks (7 - 12) 17 - 17; 22 - 17 sudden death try
Final
1. HFW Wailers Vs London Scottish (12 - 12) 41 - 12
The Fancy Dress theme
Facebook users voted for the fancy dress theme for the 2011 Middlesex Charity 7s.
Their chosen theme was "What I want to be when I grow up", and judging from the costumes on parade, 7s fans have aspirations to be everything from a Samurai warrior to an Oompaloompa.
The Charities
The Middlesex Charity 7s has been dedicated to raising money for charities since the inaugural event in 1926. Currently there are two main charities that benefit from the overall profits of the Middlesex Charity Sevens. This year the children's rugby charity Wooden Spoon joins the RFU Injured Players Foundation and RPA Benevolent Fund as an official Middlesex 7s charity.
Wooden Spoon In the UK, one child in every hundred suffers from a lifelong disability that will profoundly affect his or her ability to lead a full and happy life. More than 3.5 million young people grow up in low income households or live in an environment where they are subjected to poverty of aspiration.
Spoon's objective is to make a positive impact on the lives of disadvantaged children and young people through our commitment to quality charitable work.
The RFU Injured Players Foundation supports people who sustain a catastrophic injury (CI) whilst playing rugby. The charity provides help and support for both players and their families in the early months of these injuries as well as in the long term and incorporates the former SPIRE Rugby Trust charity.
Help for Heroes raises money to support members of the Armed Forces who have been wounded in the service of their country. We ask our supporters to “do their bit” to show these extraordinary young men and women that they are cared for by us. Over a million people have responded to date and millions of pounds have been raised to buy much needed services that will aid their recovery.
If you have a favourite charity, or you are a charity with an appropriate database you can also benefit by registering for Cashback and £10 on every ticket sold through the unique url we will supply you will go your charity.
Middlesex 7s history
The invitation Sevens tournament, first held in 1926, is one of the oldest Sevens competitions in England and the most famous rugby charity event in the world.
The first Sevens competition had 50 clubs competing with the finals being held at Twickenham. The winners that year, Harlequins defeated St Mary's Hospital and raised net proceeds of £1,621.
Since then, it has been staged in unbroken sequence becoming the largest Club Sevens in the world and, until the format was streamlined in 1992, had 300 entries per year.The arrival of the professional game had a huge impact on the Sevens and following discussions with the Premiership Clubs it was decided to relaunch the Middlesex Charity Sevens as a celebration of a new season rather than its traditional role as the finale.With the support of all clubs in the Guinness Premiership the Middlesex Charity Sevens remains one of England's biggest charity events and the major Sevens Tournament in Europe.
Throughout the competition's 83 year history, there have been many notable players to take part in the tournament including, Waisale Sereve, Martin Offiah, Lawrence Dallaglio, JPR Williams, Andy Ripley,Clive Woodward, Will Carling, Va'aiga Tuigamala, Danny Cipriani and David Strettle, amongst others.
The Middlesex Charity Sevens has been extremely successful, and over years has raised well over £3 million in support of the Wavell Wakefield Rugby Union Youth Trust and the Middlesex County Rugby Football Union Memorial Fund. Currently the proceeds are distributed to the PRA benevolent fund and the RFU Injured Player’s Foundation.