Low prices at HSBC Singapore Rugby Sevens to attract young fans

Singapore: For just S$ 2, children under 12 years old will be able to catch two days of world-class rugby action at the National Stadium when the HSBC Singapore Rugby Sevens comes to town in April.

Event organisers Rugby Singapore have kept prices for children and youth affordable — those aged 12 to 18 pay S$25 for a category 3 season pass — in a bid to attract more young fans to the 16 and 17 April event.

“We have made it (prices for children) as low as possible to allow kids to come and enjoy the event,” said Jonathan Leow, vice-president of the Singapore Rugby Union (SRU).

“We also want to make sure that parents are not penalised for bringing their kids along to the event. We are also doing outreach to schools…we are hoping to attract more youngsters to the event.”

The initiatives are part of the SRU’s plan to get more young people to play the sport. Last November, the national sports association partnered law firm Quahe Woo and Palmer LLC to launch the ‘Pass It On’ program, which aims to hand out a rugby ball to every school student who is playing the sport in Singapore. The initial target is to give out 1,500 rugby balls to primary and secondary school children by March, and each student will also receive a complimentary ticket to the Singapore Rugby Sevens.

Event organisers are targeting approximately 25,000 spectators a day, and Leow said ticket sales — which started in October — have been “positive”.

With more than three months left to the Singapore Sevens, organisers announced that reigning Asian Games champions Japan had been officially named as the wildcard pick for the 16-nation tournament. They will join Sevens giants such as New Zealand, South Africa and Fiji on the 10-leg World Rugby Sevens circuit, which began in Dubai last month, and ends in London in May.