May 1994: Atlantis at Benidorm Sevens - and other
notes
Notes of 2013: Looking for original
stuff I wrote on this tournament, I've
found articles on my computer saved on now
non-existent software; they've been tough to
decipher but easier than retyping from the
Rugby Magazine article.
What follows is the following:
1-The Benidorm piece of an article in Rugby
called "Three Weeks on the 1994 Iberian Sevens Circuit," including
2-a prescient
introduction to the article, and
3-a letter I wrote to
the team prior to the tournament;
including a perhaps
interesting - if very dated - coaching
commentary from
the "keep away" days of sevens.
My "prescient"
introduction.
This is how
I began
the Rugby article on the 1994 "Iberian Circuit," which included the Benidorm, Lisbon and
Madrid Sevens. This was in the days when no
rugby, let alone sevens, was
professional. And sevens certainly
wasn't considered serious - nor even a
potentially professional sport - outside a
tiny cult following.
"There are those who refuse to
take sevens seriously. I would ask
them to look at my passport, issued in
1986: 8 stamps to Scotland, 7 to Hong
Kong, 5 to Australia, 3 to Spain, 2 to
Ireland, 2 to Italy, 1 to Fiji, 1 to New Zealand, 1 to Portugal - many with expenses paid ... and
all because I've taken sevens
seriously.
"In fact, I keep thinking, 'if only
sevens were a professional sport ...'
"The sevens circuits are
here - trivialize them
at your own risk."
I then noted a
motley group of sevens
tournaments around the world
that was beginning to take
the shape of a circuit.
Rugby
became professional in
1995. The IRB sevens circuit, and eventually
the emergence of sevens
as a full-time
profession,
came with
the beginning
of what would
soon be called
the World Series
of Sevens a few
years later.
Prescient
indeed ... (of
course I had
already been
writing these
things 15
years earlier).
Atlantis reaches semifinals
of Benidorm Sevens (July
1994 Rugby)
The 1994 Heineken Benidorm Sevens represented the
17th tournament abroad in which the invitational side Atlantis has
participated. As it has done on more than half of those
occasions, it completed the tournament with a winning record,
going out with a semifinal loss to eventual champion Ukraine.
Atlantis
Atlantis is an invitational sevens club with multifaceted
goals. At the domestic level, we are trying to improve the
level of sevens in the US by mixing sides of experienced players
and novices. For top international tournaments, however, we
try to assemble teams representing the best the US has to offer.
This year's squad consisted of forwards
Adrian Scott, Old Blue (NY)
Keith McLean, Philadelphia/Whitemarsh & East
Brian GallagherÑMaryland Exiles
Mark Herbert, NOVA & Canterbury (NZ)
Rich Matiszik, Milwaukee and Midwest
and backs
Dave Priestas, Bethlehem, East and US
Charlie Wilkinson, NOVA, East and US
Marty O'Connor, South Jersey, East and US
Lou Holokaukau, Bethlehem and Pacific Coast
Jeff Damron, Washington
Besides me, non-playing members of our party were Bob Davis, team
manager, and Bill Gardner, who was responsible for all breaches of
diplomacy.
The Benidorm Sevens
History. The Benidorm Sevens began in 1987 as a
one bracket mixture of highly talented invitational sides and
lower division sides from Spain and elsewhere. In 1992, the
year before the first ever Rugby World Cup Sevens, Benidorm took
its level several notches higher, attracting several national
sides including the US, as well as Fiji and Samoa who fought it
out in a brilliant 16 15 (Fiji winners) final.
The 1992 tournament also featured a high level women's bracket,
won by Atlantis over the Saracens.
In the last two years, however, Benidorm's financial resources
have diminished, and this year neither of the island teams were
there. The organizer, Ignacio D†vila has, however, partially
at least due to his own personal efforts and willpower, managed to
keep the level of the tournament high and its character
interesting. The tournament continues to be split into 3
brackets of 12 teams each: international, senior club and junior
club.
With invitational teams from the US, Spain, Uruguay, Wales, and
Ireland, full national sides from Latvia, Russia, Ukraine, China
(AKA Taiwan) and Hungary, as well as a West Indies selection
(Bermuda, Trinidad, Martinique, + others), the tournament has
taken on an interesting characteristic all its own. In
addition, 1994's event was seen from the beginning correctly
as being a wide open tournament.
Atmosphere. The Benidorm Sevens is quintessential
Spain: an atmosphere of chaos pervades the entire organization,
and one wonders throughout the week what will really happen
on game day. . . But, based on my 3 experiences there, somehow the
tournament goes on, for the most part on time and without any
tragic consequences. "Spain is different in everything,"
claims a character in a contemporary Spanish play, "and that is
the will of God."
Some are frustrated by Benidorm's somewhat "loosey goosey"
organization; I quite like it (the Spanish in me
understands). Furthermore, sharing accommodations,
practices, etc., with Uruguayans, Chinese, Russians, Latvians,
Trinidadians, etc., as well as playing against them and partying
with them afterwards is something that just doesn't happen too
often in an average lifetime.
Nor does the friendship we made with the Uruguayans, who
accompanied us on a 6 hour bus trip to Madrid and on several
social occasions later in our stay.
The town of Benidorm itself may appeal to those content to party
in English speaking neighborhoods: described as "working class
Yorkshire with sun," it is a tourist town on the Mediterranean
catering to English tourists who can't bear leaving their fish and
chips, bitter ale, etc. Except for Taff's Bar, a Welsh pub
owned by rugby mad Reg Jones, I try to avoid the English speaking
establishments of Benidorm whenever possible. (My father's home
town of Gata, 20 miles away, once again provided an opportunity to
visit the real Spain).
Atlantis
Atlantis was in a bracket with Latvia and the Dublin Wanderers, a
first division Irish side whose home pitch is Lansdowne
Road. Latvia, although an unknown name to most in the rugby
world, had nevertheless qualified for the 1993 World Cup Sevens by
defeating Russia in a tournament to see which nation would
represent the former USSR.
Although falling behind Latvia 12 -0, Atlantis scrapped back in
the second half on tries by Marty O'Connor and Brian Gallagher,
both converted by O'Connor (final = 14 -12).
Dave Priestas joined O'Connor and Gallagher to lead Atlantis to a
17- 7 win over the Wanderers, putting them into the
quarter finals, where its opponent was the Welsh President's VII,
a developmental squad selected by the Welsh RFU. The two man
show continued, as Gallagher (2 tries) and O'Connor (try and 2
conversions) tallied all the points in a 19 -10 victory.
This put Atlantis into the semifinals, where it was the only
representative of the "West" (the other semifinalists being
Russia, Ukraine and China).
Ukraine v Atlantis
After defeating Uruguay and the West Indies in its bracket, the
Ukraine knocked off Arquitectura, a Spanish club side playing
under the name of "Spain" (the real Spain, however, was in the
process of losing 54- 0 to Wales in a 15s World Cup qualifier that
weekend).
Ukraine defeated Atlantis in the key areas of ball winning and
speed, and took a relatively easy 28 -7 victory (Dave Priestas the
only try).
Finals: Ukraine vs Russia
Russia, a semi final victor over China, went ahead of Ukraine
14 -0, but the Ukraine, a close loser to Samoa in the 1993 finals,
was destined to win this tournament and scored three unanswered
tries in the second half to notch a 19- 14 victory.
Plate Championship: Latvia made it an all
former USSR day notching the Plate.
Kickoffs: Kickoffs can be a nightmare if your kicker
can't put the ball regularly where it needs to be (in the air long
enough for both teams to contest), and drop kickoffs have lowered
the number of kickers who can do that. Out of 13 Atlantis
kickoffs, 6 led to opponents' scrums, and only one of the 13 was
positioned to be contested evenly.
Atlantis scoring totals:
Name
|
Tries
|
Conv
|
Pts
|
O'Connor
|
3
|
6
|
27
|
Gallagher
|
4
|
0
|
20
|
| Priestaas |
2
|
0
|
10
|
Total
|
9
|
6
|
57
|
1995. For those interested in the 1995 tournament, it
will take place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, May 19- 20- 21,
and is open to all levels of competition.
A Benidorm Masters (35 and over)
tournament (fifteens) will take place on April 22- 23, 1995.
Contact information:
Ignacio Davila
Plaza Castelar, No 6
03570 Villajoyosa, Alicante
SPAIN
Phone: 011 -34- 6 -589- 40 72
FAX: 011- 34- 6- 685- 14 37
Letter to Benidorm Squad Prior to
the Tournament
E M I L S I G N E S
To: Atlantis 1994 -- Benidorm Squad
This is the first of hopefully several notes that will provide you
with some background information as well as some discussions of
team and individual strategy.
1. The squad is finalized! Contact information
is enclosed. I think this is a great team, and I'm really
looking forward to working with you on the practice field, seeing
positive results in the tournament, and having fun on tour.
2. Whom to contact. If you have an issue dealing with money,
call Bill. If you have a kit or logistical issue, contact
Bob. If you have a playing issue, contact me. If you
want to talk to one of your teammates, call them.
3. Background: Atlantis. For those with little or no knowledge of
Atlantis, I've enclosed my "Atlantis advertisement" with this
letter: it explains how it began and where it's gone.
4. Background: Benidorm. Benidorm is a Spanish tourist town
on the Mediterranean. You will hear more English than
Spanish spoken there, as it is a haven for working class British
tourists (I have heard it described as "Yorkshire with
sun"). As tourist towns go, it's not my favorite (one fish
& chips shop after another), but there is the Mediterranean,
lots of sun, sandy beaches, pubs, and a sevens tournament.
My father's home town (my A.K.A. is Emilio Jorge Francisco Xavier
Signes Lagos) is 40 minutes away and one of my first cousins owns
a bar/restaurant there. If we can visit it will be fun: a
town in Spain where not only is English not spoken, but the first
language is Valencian, not Spanish. (The 1988 Atlantis team
made this trip and had a blast.)
5. Background: The Benidorm Sevens. The tournament began in
1987 and during the first couple of years it was a pretty low key
event. In 1992, however, it acquired international status
and drew many national teams preparing for the qualification
rounds of the 1993 World Cup Sevens. Fiji, Samoa, and the
US, already qualified, also participated in the international
bracket, which was won by Fiji 16-15 over Samoa.
This year, Fiji will again be participating in an international
bracket that contains, according to the tournament organizer, 22
nationalities. Atlantis will be in the international (as
opposed to senior club) bracket. So, look out Fiji!
6. Background: US teams at Benidorm. In 1988, Atlantis lost
in the quarterfinals 10-6 to the President's VII, a team comprised
mainly of London Scottish players that eventually won the
tournament (it could easily have been us). For those who
know them, the Atlantis team was Albrittain, Taranto, Schrichte
and Erstich in the forwards, and Hayward, Petrakes, Montgomery,
Bateman and Burnham in the backs.
In 1992, the Eagles participated in Benidorm, defeating the
Ukraine and the Public School Wanderers before losing to Fiji in
the semifinals. 1992 also saw a high powered women's bracket
won by the Atlantis women's team, who didn't have a close game
(Atlantis and Fiji were the tournament champions, a nice
combination). Six of the Atlantis women are representing the
US at the 1994 Women's World Cup in Scotland.
7. Coaching Points: A Preliminary Discussion. The following
pages are the start of what will be a continuing discussion of
sevens and how I hope we'll play. I hope you'll read this
stuff and get something out of it but don't worry: we'll have time
to go over everything after we arrive.
Sevens: Some Preliminary Comments
(Note of 2013: a lot
of very out-of-date stuff
here, but I find it kind
of interesting, in a period-piece kind
of way.)
Sevens vs. Fifteens. Perhaps the most significant thing that
differentiates sevens from fifteens is that the difference in the
number of players changes the probability of success of certain
activities that occur in both games.
For example, in 15s, unless you are isolated, a tackle normally is
accompanied by a ruck or maul, at which time offside lines are
established that greatly increase the odds in favor of the
offense. In sevens, however, the most common situation is a
simple open-field tackle, which brings with it no offside lines
and allows defenders to remain behind the ball carrier and in the
passing lanes. Rucks are almost never formed, and mauls are
often under less control than in 15s (if two defenders have closed
in on the ball, for example, it's hard to drive that second
defender off it). For that reason, I advocate that, with
specific exceptions, you should avoid being tackled in
sevens. "The game is best played and is most fun," says
Australian coach Bob Dwyer, "when you have the ball and no one
makes contact with you."
Of the exceptions, the main one is "big player takes on little
player": we try to force two defenders to stop our big player,
thus creating an overlap. Specifically, on our team, that
means McLean and Matizsik, and to some extent Gallagher. Beware,
however, of carrying this situation too far: at some point the
only players behind you will be those you have just beaten, and it
may become virtually impossible to recycle the ball.
Another exception: anyone that can get far enough into a gap to be
only subject to a "half tackle" and therefore stay on their feet
with the ball available for recycling, will usually not be at risk
and can often be helpful in creating an overlap. And of
course, we want our wings to take on their opponents and score
tries, and sometimes they'll get caught: as long as it doesn't
happen too often, that goes with the territory.
But remember: don't take a tackle in sevens unless you know why
you're taking it! With the exceptions noted above, we're
probably better off using noncontact varieties of maneuvering to
create space.
If, compared to 15s, taking a tackle in sevens is often a lower
probability option, moving the ball backwards to buy time in the
process of creating space can be, if done under control, a much
higher probability option in sevens than in 15s, which places such
a priority on constant forward motion. To quote Bob Dwyer
again, "Sevens isn't a game for putting opposition defenses under
direct pressure; it's a game for outmaneuvering defenses."
Part of our pattern of play will be to have pocket (area behind
the ball carrier) support at all times, and to get support players
instantly behind the pocket player before the ball gets to the
pocket.
Given our distribution of creators, power forwards and finishers,
we want to force the defenders to cover the entire field and so
when we're on offense, our players must themselves cover the width
of the field. We want to maneuver our players so that we have
creators (usually halfbacks and power props) in the midfield, and
speed on the outside. We create space, therefore, in the
center, with our "jinky" players or our power players (or both),
draw an extra defender to the breakdown, and then get the ball to
speed. In an ideal world, of course.
Defense. There are lots of styles of playing defense in
sevens. For the most part they are based on either a
7-player or a 6-player defensive front.
The two most common patterns are a) 6 -player front plus a sweeper
moving laterally with the ball well behind the front line, and b)
7-player front where the two end players alternate rotating into
kick coverage depending on the location of the ball.
The traditional defense for years was the 6 + sweeper
defense. Ever since New Zealand re-popularized the 7-player
front in the late 1980s, we have generally used this defense,
although the Eagles, since last year's Sicily Sevens, have
reverted to the 6+1 defense.
In 1989 the Eagles (I was coaching at the time, and Charlie was on
the team) added a wrinkle we called "Georgetown": it was designed
for use at the set scrum and specifically intended to double-team
the fly half before he could do anything creative (depending on
various factors, the double-teamers were 2 and 5, 4 and 5, or 2
and 4).
This was a successful ploy and resulted in our beating Wales and
holding a late 2nd-half 10-0 lead against Samoa, a game we
[literally] threw away. Samoa defeated Fiji in the next
match.
I'm still undecided about what I'd like our approach to defense on
this tour to be (I am eager to add a new wrinkle, though), and I'd
like some feedback from the players during the next month.
(One hint: think basketball!) I would like to come up with
some sort of expansion of the Georgetown concept so that we could
selectively double team any player we choose (the opponent's
"danger man," perhaps, but also possibly an attacker not
comfortable with decision making, etc.) (E.g. if, from a
scrum at our defensive right, the hooker can cover the fly half,
then the fly half is free not just to double his opposite, but to
cover the offensive center (similar to a drift defense in 15s, but
not necessarily identical). He could do this to help the
center double the attacking center or to allow the center to push
out to the inside of the wing. We'd need, of course, ways to
cover the forwards' side of the ball, and defend against the
kick. Furthermore, I think the recent success of the Eagles
with their 6-player front is in the angles they're defending with,
and I think we can incorporate that kind of defensive alignment
without necessarily dedicating a player to a full-time sweeping
role.
More pressure defenses! Suggestions welcome. Even mandatory.
Tackling. The island nations of Fiji, Samoa and Tonga have
made an art out of the upper body tackle -- tackle player and
ball, take them both to ground, push off and get up while the
tackled player is still absorbing the shock of hitting the ground,
take ball from tackled player, continue with game. This
works excellently, but only if the tackler has a strength and/or
situational advantage on the ball carrier. We don't want
small players trying to go high on power players and run the risk
of being blown over -- better just to get them to ground and force
them to play the ball. Furthermore, if we have more players
in support of a break than the offense, or players that can get in
the lane behind the ball carrier, putting the ball carrier on the
floor will force the ball to be played and allow us to be in a
good position to come away with it.
We should be aware of when which tackle is preferable, but missing
a tackle in the name of going for a "better" type of tackle is
never acceptable. A missed tackle is usually a try.
Transition game. As in basketball, the transition from
offense to defense and vice versa is often the key to a sevens
match (it's important in 15s, too, although that tends to be a
more forgiving variety of the game). It seems almost
magical, sometimes, watching Fiji immediately after they've forced
a turnover: they seem to instantly get a player directly behind
the ball carrier so that the sequence is: ball picked off, moved
directly behind and across -- thus, in two passes and less than 2
seconds the ball is away from a crowd and Fiji is on the
attack.
There are many things attributable to Fiji's athleticism, but this
is one example where tremendous game awareness is the main
ingredient. It's something we will try to develop.
Kicking game. If there is one area in which American teams
seem to be always at a disadvantage it is the kicking game.
We kick in sevens far less often than teams in most other
countries and so have much less opportunity to play against teams
that kick. We need not only to be able to effectively cover
opponents' kicks, but also to get a sense of when we need to kick,
either to exploit the defense or to get ourselves out of trouble.
Perhaps the most advantageous time for an attacking kick is when
we're going forward and the opponents are running at us,
especially if they've got no sweeper or a sweeper that's
ill-positioned. By the time we make them turn around and
run, we should have gotten by the primary defense and then it
becomes a foot race. Note that if both teams are stagnant
and the defense is "soft," the defense can usually recover a kick
past its line even without a sweeper.
When we have chased down an opponent's kick and find ourselves
outnumbered, it means that we outnumber the opponents downfield,
and a return kick can often be profitable.
Whenever we're in trouble, especially deep in our own territory, a
clearing kick will often spare us the pain of a turnover and
opposition try. I have always advocated, in this situation,
a kick that finds touch so that we can regroup defensively.
There are teams (the Harlequins of London, for one) that would
rather kick the ball up the middle of the field and pressure the
receivers. The only way this works, however, is if all
members of the kicking team come up in a line under control
(i.e. relatively slowly) and not individually at full speed.
I wouldn't advocate this unless we get a chance to practice and
become comfortable with it in Spain.
More to follow. The above are some general comments that
crossed my mind as I began thinking about sevens for the first
time this year. I'll get more information to you as the next
few weeks progress, and as I get feedback from you: eventually you
may even have a coherent document in your hands.
Managerial items:
You'll hear more about these in the near future, but be aware of
the following . . .
1. You will need a valid passport. If you are not an American
citizen, you may also need a visa: check with the Spanish embassy
. . .
2. Bill Gardner is graciously contributing the lion's share of the
cost of kit, but there will be a small kit assessment levied on
each of us. More on this shortly.
Atlantis squad, Benidorm 1994, letter 1. Page {PAGE|1}