Welcome to Singapore – historic home of sevens surprises

You can take a few things for granted when you visit Singapore. The food will be diverse, the buildings futuristic, the streets super clean, and the weather hot. 

What you can’t be certain of, is who will win the HSBC SVNS. 

After an initial spell between 2002 and 2006, the tournament returned to the world stage in 2016. Kenya’s men’s squad won that year. And Canada’s men lifted the trophy a year later. Neither side had won a title before. It remains both nations’ only win to date.

Last year women’s teams on the HSBC SVNS Series competed in Singapore for the first time, and we again saw some surprises – most notably South Africa beating USA, who would later go on to claim bronze in the Olympic Games in Paris, twice over the weekend.

From a players’ perspective, there is a lot to love about the tournament. The team hotel is one of the best on the circuit, the stadium and pitch are incredible, there’s lots to do during the week and a chance to enjoy a Singapore Sling afterwards. But one of the main draws is the opportunity for a big result. 

Singapore traditionally follows the week after Hong Kong. It feels like the younger sibling, still developing its identity compared to its party-fuelled counterpart. As a player, you felt everyone was watching the rugby in Singapore, as it had a calmer family feel. Being the second tournament in as many weekends offers more opportunities for unpredictability. 

It takes a huge effort to win a tournament. There have been cases of teams winning after losing a group game, but normally, you have to be perfect for five to six games as you build momentum over the weekend. You need the bounce of the ball to go your way as well as avoiding injuries to help spread the workload. 

Firstly, let’s look at Kenya’s run to beating Fiji 30-7 in the 2016 final. They showed some decent form in Hong Kong the week before, losing narrowly (12-10) to eventual winners Fiji in the last eight. 

They didn’t have the strongest group stage on day one in Singapore, but qualified for the cup in second place. They beat Russia (21-7), lost to South Africa (14-0) and had a thrilling draw with Scotland (12-12). 

In the quarter-finals, they played an in-form French side who had gone unbeaten on day one. Kenya won 28-7 – a victory few may have predicted based on the previous day’s action. 

Then, Collins Injera slotted a penalty drop kick from the ten-metre line to beat Argentina 15-12 at the end of a tense semi-final.

The final was one of the most comprehensive wins in history as Kenya blew Fiji out of the water to clinch their first and only cup title. It was an incredible moment for a team that included long-serving legends Injera, Humphrey Kayange, Andrew Amonde and Willy Ambaka. 

The following year, Canada had also performed well in Hong Kong the week prior to Singapore but lost to Fiji (29-12) in the quarters.

They had a decent day one in Singapore and finished second in the group after beating Russia (28-15), and Hong Kong (34-0) before losing to Fiji (35-7). Their momentum picked up in the quarters with a monumental victory over New Zealand (26-14). 

After beating England in the semi-final 17-5, they faced USA, who had been on a barnstorming run and had dismantled Australia 40-7 in their semi-final.  

The final was an intense back-and-forth before Canada eventually claimed victory 26-19. Like Kenya a year earlier, the Canadian team included many iconic stalwarts such as Nathan Hirayama, John Moonlight and Harry Jones. It was a special moment in Canadian rugby history. 

The HSBC SVNS in Singpore will hold even more importance this year as it is the final stop on the regular series before the World Championships in Los Angeles. 

The teams in the bottom four of the men’s and women’s series will be hoping for their own giant-killing stories to hopefully help themselves into the top eight and avoid the relegation battle. 

Look out for the teams who have shown some good form in Hong Kong but maybe didn’t advance too deep into the tournament. They could be looking at an unpredicted run to lifting the Singapore SVNS.