Rugby World Cup Sevens 2013 qualifying continues at the Confédération Africane de Rugby (CAR) Sevens in Morocco this weekend with eight African nations hoping to secure a place in the men’s competition at the showpiece event.
In what promises to be a closely fought affair in Rabat over the two days, hosts Morocco, Ivory Coast, Madagascar, Namibia, Nigeria, Tunisia, Zambia and Zimbabwe will be looking to claim one of the two available Africa qualification slots.
Africa is guaranteed four teams in the 24-nation men’s competition at Rugby World Cup Sevens 2013 with Kenya and South Africa having automatically qualified after reaching the quarter-finals at the record-breaking event in Dubai.
Morocco line up in Pool A and face Madagascar, Nigeria and Zambia on Saturday, while Zimbabwe face Tunisia, Namibia and Ivory Coast in Pool B.
IRB Chairman Bernard Lapassset said: “The race to secure a place at Rugby World Cup Sevens 2013 is really gathering pace. Kenya’s exceptional performance at Dubai 2009 in reaching the semi-finals demonstrated the strong competitiveness and potential of African nations in Rugby Sevens and I am sure that the tournament in Rabat will deliver compelling entertainment.”
Confédération Africane de Rugby President Abdelaziz Bougja said: “Rugby in Africa continues to go from strength to strength and with the prize of places at Rugby World Cup Sevens 2013 at stake, the qualifier in Rabat is expected to be a highly-competitive event.”
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Eight teams have automatically qualified for Moscow 2013: Champions Wales; runners-up Argentina; England; Fiji; Kenya; New Zealand; Samoa and South Africa – and with Russia qualifying automatically as hosts, there were 15 places available via regional qualifiers around the world.
So far nine countries have booked their places in Moscow through three regional qualifiers: Portugal, Spain, France, Georgia and Scotland (Europe); Australia and Tonga (Oceania) and Canada and USA (North America/Caribbean.
Ticket and travel package information details for Rugby World Cup Sevens can be found at the official tournament website www.rwcsevens.com
Men’s competition, RWC Sevens qualifying, Africa
Pool matches – September 29
Morocco v Zambia
Zimbabwe v Ivory Coast
Madagascar v Nigeria
Tunisia v Namibia
Madagascar v Zambia
Tunisia v Ivory Coast
Morocco v Nigeria
Zimbabwe Namibia
Nigeria v Zambia
Namibie v Ivory Coast
Morocco v Madagascar
Zimbabwe v Tunisia
Knock-out matches – 30 September
27 3rd A v 4th B 1/2 Final Bowl
28 3rd B v 4th A 1/2 Final Bowl
31 1st A v 2nd B 1/2 Final Cup v Plate
32 1st B v 2nd A 1/2 Final Cup v Plate
34 Loser M 27 v Loser M 28 Ranking 7th/8th Place
36 Winner M27 v Winner M 28 Final Bowl
38 Loser M 31 v Loser M 32 Final Plate
39 Winner M 31 v Winner M 32 Final Cup
The tournament website can be found at www.rwcsevens.com.
