Dubai: England Head Coach Simon Amor says his happy memories of the Emirates Dubai Rugby Sevens mean he is looking forward to returning to this year’s event, which takes place between November 28 and 30.
Amor, who only took over from Ben Ryan as head coach in September, was a double Dubai winner as England’s captain in 2004 and 2005. And that is just one of the reasons the competition has a special place in his heart.
“I have always enjoyed Dubai,” he said. “England always have great support there and it undoubtedly gives us a real lift. It’s a great environment to play in, and I’m really looking forward to coming back as England’s head coach. I have many happy memories of playing in Dubai.”
England, who also won in Dubai under Ryan in 2010 and 2011, will arrive in an upbeat mood after taking third place in the opening HSBC Sevens World Series tournament of the season in Australia last month.
After a narrow defeat to eventual tournament winners New Zealand, Amor’s England then thrashed South Africa 47-0 to take third place.
“After making a promising start to the series in Australia, we’ll be doing everything in our power to take another step forward at The Sevens,” said Amor, the World Series player of the year in 2004.
“This is a period of change for us as we ingrain new ways of playing, but there are several names our fans in the UAE will be familiar with, and hopefully they’ll give us the same fantastic support that we’ve had in previous years.”
There will be 16 teams, including England, in the second round of the HSBC Sevens World Series in Dubai, as well as 12 teams in the IRB Women’s Sevens World Series competition. This year’s invitation tournament has a record 213 teams, with more than 3,000 players set to take part.
For more information go to www.dubairugby7s.com.
