Samoa win honoured with national holiday
6 APRIL 2007 - IRB

The Samoan government has announced a half day holiday to honour its Sevens team's achievement in winning the Hong Kong Sevens title.

In taking the Hong Kong crown Dicky Tafua's men became the only side this year to win two Cup titles in the IRB Sevens World Series, a feat not lost on New Zealand coach Gordon Tietjens.

"Samoa were quite outstanding in Hong Kong," Tietjens said. "They weren't really pushed, even in the final. They had a game plan to go and beat Fiji and they certainly did that in the first half.

"I think it's because of the island-based players they're picking now. They're a pretty tight-knit group, they play for each other, they've got the passion that's needed to play in a good sevens team and they'll be tough to beat here in Adelaide."

The Prime Minister of Samoa, also Chairman of the national rugby union, Tuila’epa Sa’ilele Malielegaoi, told the team before they left for Hong Kong that it would receive half of the prize money if they won.

The victory therefore means that the team, including officials, will receive $50,000 of the US$100,000 Hong Kong winner's purse.

The Prime Minister has further credited the country’s High Performance Unit, set up with the aid of the IRB, for enhancing the players' fitness and competitiveness.