History
The Army has a long history of playing Sevens at club level and annually holds a major tournament culminating in a finals day at Aldershot. The competition used to be the largest sevens competition in the world and still attracts over 80 teams.
The British Army Sevens team was formed on the initiative of three players
sitting in a London hotel having just defeated the RAF to win the
Inter Services Championship at Twickenham in April 1999. Captain
Howard Graham (7 RHA) raised the question with Barbarians Sevens
player Captain Brian Johnston (Royal Signals) and Lt Rob Abernethey
(RGR).
The ARU sanctioned ‘representative sevens’ later that
month with the proviso that there would be no extra ARU funding.
This in effect meant that until the team was established, and attracting
sponsorship, it had to go ‘bounty hunting’.
Sadly through injury Johnston and Abernethey were never to play
British Army Sevens but Graham, rightly deemed the father of British
Army sevens, went on to coach and captain a team that was probably
the best in the UK. In 2000 the ARU agreed to an RFU request to
play a series of ‘trials’ against a resurgent England
Seven—who were soundly beaten over a four match ‘round
robin’ at the Harlequins Stoop. This led to the first invitation
to play at the Middlesex 7s in 2000.
The core of the first teams fielded by the Army were largely made
up by Fijian rugby players, who had been recruited into the British
Army to help stem the shortfall of British recruits in the 1990's.
The Army was fortunate to have new Fijian recruits Alfred Vakacakavanua
(Scots Gds) and Apolosi Satala (R Scots), both Fijian internationals,
plus a number of young players who were later to make their mark
on the international sevens stage.
It is worth noting that the team was titled the 'British Army' sevens team to distinguish it from other local military teams when it played abroad, which it did frequently in the early days.
Author: Col R Thompson
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