London Sevens offered a perfect template for rugby league nines

Let’s hope the people in charge of promoting rugby league were among the crowd of 50,000 at Twickenham on SaturdayBy Gavin Willacy for No Helmets RequiredAround 50,000 people went to a rugby event last Saturday. They all seemed to have a ball, cheering, singing, drinking and eating. It would be a surprise if a thousand knew more than a couple of the players and many would have been hard pushed by the end to tell you any of the scores. Twickenham became London’s biggest pub garden for the London Sevens and it was a startling experience. And not in a bad way. The vast majority of the crowd were in fancy dress, which looked less ridiculous late-afternoon than late morning. There were very few of us outside the 20 to 35 age bracket. These young people were here to have fun and spend serious money. Tickets were relatively cheap, but drinks were £5 and food £10 a plate, and they bought a lot of both. There was a party atmosphere with a fine covers band rocking the concourse into a mosh pit and a funfair for those who wanted to get away from the carnage. The closest I saw to anyone losing their temper was when a bloke accused me of stealing his beer glass (I hadn’t). Related: Wakefield run in five tries to pile on the agony for struggling Wigan Related: What does the future hold for rugby league's weakest pro clubs? Continue readingread full article

Source: TheGuardian

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