Samoa will be hoping they can go one better at the Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens, having just missed out in the Cup final for the last two years.
They lost out to England in a thrilling final at last year’s tournament but, having finished fifth overall, the 2010/2011 season wasn’t the greatest for the Samoan side who are one of just four sides to have taken the overall Series title – in 2009/2010.
The Samoans will be hoping the return of Uale Mai will make the difference for them this season, however they will find it tough going without the likes of Ofisa Treviranus and Alafoti Faosiliva who have been contracted to European clubs.
“I think we’ve had a good, solid build up to this year’s circuit. We’re pretty happy with the group of players we have this year and some of the new talent we’ll be rolling out,” said Salesa Seiuli, High Performance Administrator at the Samoan Rugby Union.
“Even though we’ve lost Ofisa Treviranus and Alafoti Faosiliva, we’re pretty confident we have a squad that can go toe to toe with the top teams on the circuit,” he added.
The Samoans will be greatly boosted by their recent victory over Fiji to claim the Oceania Sevens title and will certainly remain one of the teams to watch in Dubai, as they take on the second leg of the HSBC Sevens World Series.
“I think teams will be more battle hardened when they arrive in Dubai after competing on the Gold Coast the weekend before," said Seiuli. “I guess the most important thing with all teams is recovery and the possibility of injuries, not to mention jet lag, but it should be an exciting tournament.”
Tickets to see the Samoans and all the other top-class teams in action at the Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens are still available through www.dubairugby7s.com and from selected Costa and MMI outlets, Virgin Megastores, selected Eppco stations, Emirates headquarters, dnata offices and The Sevens stadium. Children under the age of 12 enter free of charge.
As in previous years, numerous buses will be on duty to transport fans from TheSevens, back to various convenient locations across Dubai, free of charge. These locations include: Dubai Media City, Crowne Plaza Dubai Festival City (family drop-off points), Barasti, Nezesaussi (Old Town), Irish Village, Chi @ The Lodge and more. Buses will start from 5pm on December 1 and 6pm on December 2-3 and will run on a continuous loop until 12 midnight.