Having avenged their defeat in last season’s final with a 19-14 win over Gloucester, the Dragons went into a final shoot-out with a Wasps side boasting one of the fastest men in world rugby, British & Irish Lions wing Christian Wade, and other former England Under 20 stars in Elliot Daly and Dan Robson.
But the Dragons, who had beaten the Scarlets in the Welsh regional tournament to successfully qualify for the finals, were still too good for their English rivals and emerged triumphant 17-12 in the final.
“We’re all really proud to have won this title for the Dragons and, hopefully, this will kick us on really well into the season. Winning lifts the entire team, and we want to carry this momentum into the start of the season,” said Dragons skipper Rhys Jones.
“A lot of us came into the tournament hoping to show we’re good enough to play in opening game of the Guinness PRO12 season next week. Some of the performances will have shown Lyn Jones and the rest of the coaching team that we are ready to play.
“This is such a confidence booster for our team. There were a lot of young boys who had never played in front of a crowd like this before, and they really stepped up against some big players to show that they’re just as good.
“We were so disappointed when we lost out in the final last year and we wanted to go one step further this time. Everyone really stepped up, dug deep and got us the win in the end.
“It was a very tight finish to a very tough match in the final. We knew Wasps were a very strong team and that if we were going to win we had to keep the ball away from them.
“We did so well in those final few minutes to keep hold of the ball and keep them away from it. And then we finished up with that last minute try.”
There were tries from Luke Crocker, James Benjamin, Elliot Frewen and Angus O’Brien in the opening win over
Sale Sharks, 26-10, and then Wales Under 20 back row man Benjamin opening the scoring against reigning champions Gloucester in the semi-final. Ashton Hewitt grabbed another, but Gloucester hit back with two tries of their own to take the lead.
The match finally turned in the Welsh region’s favour when substitute Harri Keddi crossed in the corner to break the deadlock and clinch a 19-14 triumph.
In the final, man of the tournament Frewen gave the Dragons an early lead, but Wade dashed away to level the scores at the break, 7-7. Benjamin crossed for another clever try early in the second half before a second try from Wade, this time converted, made it 14-12 to Wasps.
The honour of scoring the match winning try fell to Keddi once more as he raced clear to score in the closing moments and ensure a Welsh name goes on the trophy for the first time.
Newport Gwent Dragons Singha 7s Squad: Rhys Jones (captain), Harri Keddie, James Benjamin, Angus O’Brien, Elliot Frewen, Luke Crocker, George Gasson, Ashton Hewitt, Arwel Robson, Matthew Pewtner, Luc Jones, Jonathan Lewis.
Singa Sevens Results
Cup Quarter-Final: Newport Gwent Dragons 26 Sale Sharks 10
Cup Quarter-Final: Gloucester Rugby 31 Harlequins 26
Cup Quarter-Final: Wasps 33 Exeter Chiefs 5
Cup Quarter-Final: Newcastle Falcons 26 Scarlets 31
Plate Semi-Final: Sale Sharks 45 Harlequins 24
Cup Semi-Final: Newport Gwent Dragons 19 Gloucester Rugby 14
Plate Semi-Final: Exeter Chiefs 14 Newcastle Falcons 12
Cup Semi-Final: Scarlets 12 Wasps 33
Plate Final: Sale Sharks 19 Chiefs 26
Cup Final: Newport Gwent Dragons 17 Wasps 12
