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France reign supreme in Rugby Europe Championship 7s
France has claimed the 2024 women’s and men’s Rugby Europe Championship 7s Series, as the competition wrapped up in Hamburg, with a mix of drama and the need for a calculator to find the victor over the men’s division.
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The competition kicked off in the first weekend of June, with the Croatian city of Makarska welcoming twenty-four participants to the fray. In the men’s side, France would go on undefeated to conquer the leg, narrowly defeating Ireland in the final. In the women’s, Poland again showed why they are one of the rising new star teams in the Sevens world, defeating France in a close final (12-10) and finishing in 1st place.
Two weeks later, teams headed for Hamburg to play the 2nd leg of the competition, with all still to be decided. As happened in Croatia, Ireland and France beat every other team to reach the men’s final, with the Irish powered up by World Series superstars Mark Roche, Jordan Conroy and Hugo Keenan. Although Ireland won against France in that last game thanks to a penalty try scored in the dying minutes, Les Bleus were the series victors due to a better point average.
It was an impressive display of class and depth from France, as most of their athletes are yet to make their debut in the World Series.
As for the women’s division, France would reach the final already as series champions, as Poland were unable to qualify for the semi-finals. With Yolaine Yengo and Anne-Cécile Ciofani on fire, Les Bleues survived an energic and dynamic Great Britain and closed out the cup final with a 19-5 score.
Concerning the World Rugby Challenger Series, the teams qualified are unchanged; as Portugal, Germany and Georgia, in the men’s; and Poland, Belgium and Czech Republic, in the women’s; will be back to play for a promotion to the World Series.
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Gaspard Lalli and Grace Crompton were the men’s and women’s series try-scorers of the season, with 15 tries each. Portugal’s Vareiro topped the men’s top scorer with 88 points; and the women’s was Spain’s Ingrid Algar with 101.
As for the relegation battle; Ukraine and Croatia, in the men’s; and Ukraine and Turkey, in the women’s; will have to go back to the Rugby Europe Trophy Series in 2025.
