HSBC Wellington sevens

Gordon Tietjens suggests moving Wellington Sevens to Samoa or Fiji

The Suva Sevens has a nice ring to it.

Former New Zealand sevens coach Gordon Tietjens, now in charge of the Samoan sevens team, has suggested taking the Wellington Sevens to the islands following their dire crowd numbers this past weekend.

He told 1News that a country like Samoa or Fiji would love to host a tournament on the World Rugby Sevens Series.

Just 18,000 out of a possible 70,000 are believed to have attended the annual Wellington event.

"Lords of the Sevens" ready for battle

Weta Workshop, which manufactured more than 48,000 props for the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films, hosted the captains as they posed for the media with props and famous statues from the movies.

The trilogy was shot in many locations around New Zealand, including Wellington. 

All Blacks Sevens captain Scott Curry was more than happy to pose for photos with Gandalf, Gollum and others.

"I'm a fan of Lord of the Rings and Peter Jackson (director) has done great work for New Zealand on the world stage," said Curry. 

NZ thrill in Wellington sevens win

The New Zealanders trailed South Africa 21-7 well into the second half of the final in Wellington, before storming home with 3 tries late in the second half to win 24-21.

The All Blacks Sevens were seventh in the overall standings after the first two rounds of the World Series and improved throughout the Wellington tournament as new and returning players got back into their groove.

Pools drawn for HSBC Wellington Sevens

The draw for the HSBC Wellington Sevens was made before the Cup final at the second round of the series in Cape Town, with winners South Africa heading Pool A at the Westpac Stadium after a 29-14 over Los Pumas in their home tournament.

Neil Powell's side will come face to face with New Zealand, Scotland and Russia, while the runners-up Argentina compete against series leaders Fiji, Wales and the only non-core side in Wellington Japan.