Thrilling Villager Sevens
The Trophy semifinals and Final were all thrillers, and for the first time Paarl Gim beat Bishops in the Final and won the Trophy.
Bishops did remarkably well as they were reduced to six players for most of the match after one of their number was deemed worthy of a red card for a dangerous tackle. In fact Bishops led 19-12 with moments remaining but a late try drew the Final and then, in extra time, Gimmies scored the sudden-death try that won the title.
The Road to the Final
Paarl Gim: beat Milnerton 54-5, Sisizmele winning 33-0 and Malibu 29-12 in pool matches; then Hoërskool Tygerberg 24-14 in the quarterfinal and Paul Roos 22-10 in the semifinal.
Bishops: beat Primrose RFC 52-0, SACS B 28-12 and Wynberg B 52-7 in pool matches; then Rondebosch A 24-22 in the quarterfinal and the Wynberg A 33-14 in the semifinal.
The format was different this year – 24 teams instead of 32. The teams were divided into Northern and Southern Suburbs and then into pools of four teams each, which ensured an extra pool match, which meant that each team would play at least one match more than in the past.
SACS B won the Plate beating Langa 19-5 in the Final.
Prizes and medals were presented by Dave Stewart, the former Springbok whose idea in 1968 produced the Villager Sevens, and Scarra Ntubeni, the Western Province and Stormers hooker.
Winners Down the Years
Villager Sevens Trophy
1969: Wynberg
1970: Rondebosch
1971: Plumstead
1972: Rondebosch
1973: SACS
1974: Wynberg
1975: Rondebosch
1976: Bishops
1977: Rondebosch
1978: Bishops
1979: Bishops
1980: Plumstead
1981: Bishops
1982: Bishops B
1983: Bishops
1984: Rondebosch
1985: Bishops
1986: Bishops
1987: Bishops
1988: Bishops
1989: Bishops
1990: Wynberg
1991: Rondebosch
1992: Bishops
1993: Bishops
1994: Wynberg
1995: Kings College, New Zealand
1996: Bishops
1997: Northerns
1998: SACS
1999: Bishops
2000: Rondebosch
2001: Rondebosch
2002: Bishops
2003: Bishops
2004: Tygerberg RFC
2005: Bishops
2006: Bishops
2007: SACS
2008: Wynberg
2009: Bishops
2010: Tygerberg Hoërskool
2011: Wynberg
2012: Tygerberg Hoërskool
2013: Tygerberg Hoërskool
2014: Tygerberg Hoërskool
2015: Paarl Gim
Plate Competition
1975: Westerford A
1976: Lansdowne
1977: Fish Hoek
1978: Pinelands
1979: Westerford A
1980: Bergvliet
1981: Rondebosch B
1982: Camps Bay
1983: Voortrekker
1984: Northerns B
1985: St George’s
1986: Voortrekker
1987: Rondebosch B
1988: Plumstead A
1989: St George’s
1990: SACS B
1991: Lagunya
1992: Windsor
1993: Fish Hoek A
1994: Primrose
1995: Primrose
1996: Lagunya
1997: Bishops B
1998: Voortrekker
1999: Fish Hoek A
2000: Groote Schuur
2001: Lagunya
2002: Jan van Riebeeck
2003: SACS B
2004: Fish Hoek
2005: Reddam
2006: Tygerberg B
2007: No Plate Competition
2008: Zwaanswyk
2009: Excelsior
2010: Temperance
2011: Bishops C
2012: Tygerberg Hoërskool B
2013: Wynberg
2014: Milnerton
2015: SACS B
