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Australia, NZ miss out on World Sevens Series event due to Covid-19
By AAP
Sydney has missed out on hosting a World Rugby Sevens series leg due to logistical challenges associated with the coronavirus.
The 2022 schedule was announced on Tuesday with the series to kick off with a pair of men's and women's rounds in Dubai starting in November.
But while Hong Kong returns as a stop, Sydney and Hamilton (New Zealand) have missed out because of its stringent pandemic protocols.
Instead, Spain will play host for the first time with men's and women's events scheduled in Malaga and Seville from January 21-23 and January 28-30.
Toulouse in France will also welcome teams in May next year.
The series will have 10 men's and seven women's rounds over six months. The first round in Dubai will be behind closed doors from November 26-27 followed by another on December 3-4 with fans in attendance at The Sevens Stadium.
"A lot of hard work has gone on behind the scenes to ensure we can announce a full Series schedule today," World Rugby CEO Alan Gilpin said in a statement.
"We thank HSBC, the host organisations, unions, commercial and broadcast partners for their unwavering support and spirit of collaboration as we navigate the challenges of the global COVID-19 pandemic together."
The men's series will also have a North American round in Vancouver (February 26-27) and Los Angeles (March 5-6) before moving to Asia, where Hong Kong will host a men's and women's event (April 1-3) after a gap of two years.
That will be followed by a men's event in Singapore (April 9-10).
"As ever, the health and welfare of players, fans and wider society continues to be our primary concern and we will work closely with all stakeholders to ensure the safe delivery of the Series," Gilpin said.
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Agree with Wilson B- at best. And that is down to skilled individual players who know how to play the game - not a cohesive squad who know their roles and game plan. For those who claim that takes time to develop, the process is to keep the game plan simple at first and add layers as the squad gels and settles in to the new systems. Lack of progress against the rush D, lack of penetration and innovation in the mid-field, basic skill errors and loose forwards coming second in most big games all still evident in game 14 of the season. Hard to see significant measureable progress.
Go to commentsKeep telling yourself that. The time for a fresh broom is at the beginning - not some "balanced, incremental" (i.e. status quo) transition. All teams establish the way forward at the beginning. This coaching group lacked ideas and courage and the players showed it on the pitch. Backs are only average. Forwards are unbalanced and show good set piece but no domination in traditional AB open play. Unfortunately, Foster - Mark 2. You may be happy with those performances and have some belief in some "cunning plan" but I don't see any evidence of it. Rassie is miles ahead and increasing the gap.
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