Passion for Sevens is obvious as Vickerman eyes glory

They are his destinations in the run up to Christmas as England begin their quest for a World Series title in the shortened, livelier and arguably more exciting version of rugby union.

The Leeds-born former Carnegie and Newcastle back could have been hunkering down for a winter of discontent on Premiership battlegrounds, but instead opted to follow his heart and his instinct by signing a two-year deal to become a full-time Sevens player in the summer.

The 26-year-old is one of just 12 men contracted to represent England in a sport that is growing as quickly as it is played.

Olympic recognition from 2016 onwards will help usher it closer to the mainstream, but even now Vickerman and his not-so dirty dozen have the nine-leg annual World Series to look forward to, a World Cup in 2013 and the Commonwealth Games the following year to drive them.

And although he may have sacrificed the bread and butter of weekly action in the traditional format, Vickerman believes the growing popularity of Sevens will see more following his path.

“It’s getting to the point where players are going to have to choose between the two versions,” says Vickerman, who made his Sevens debut in Paris in 2004.

“England went full-time last season, pending the Commonwealth Games, when I was with Newcastle. That was tough, I really wanted to go to Delhi.

“But Ben Ryan (head coach) was keen to get me on board and I was eager to take up the opportunity.

“Until you actually see it in a full-time environment people are going to be sceptical. But being full-time allows us to work on things that previously we’d never be able to do, enabling us to fine-tune our performance and I can’t wait to see how it bears fruit throughout the season.

“When I played part-time for the Sevens I was always dashing back up to Leeds or Newcastle to play for them.

“But I’ve always had that association with Sevens and it’s something I’ve always had a passion for.

“And it’s crazy the way it’s developing. The IRB are seeing the same template as what Twenty20 did for cricket; that went from strength to strength and there’s no reason why Sevens is not going to do the same.”

The IRB World Series encompasses nine stops around the world and culminates in the finale at Twickenham in May.

Sevens rugby is played over two seven-minute halves and teams can play up to six games in a day.

England, along with New Zealand and Fiji, are the traditional powerhouses but the game is doing more to reach out to other nations than the 15-man version.

Fifteen-man minnows Portugal and Kenya are regulars at tournaments and the three-day event in Hong Kong regularly attracts 50,000 fans.

“It’s incredible, it’s like a World Cup and it’s every year,” says Vickerman. “It’s a pretty unique position for me to be in, with there being only 12 full-time players.

“You play getting on 90 minutes of rugby over the weekend but it’s at an intense level all the time.

“They are starting to GPS players and the results have found that players are covering as much in 14 minutes as what Wayne Rooney is going to cover in 60 minutes of a football match.

“When you speak to Joe Public at a normal rugby game the things they want to see is an exciting winger with ball in hand, incredible touches of skill, side-steps, people beating each other and also some hits.

“You get that in Sevens. You’ve got guys throwing the ball behind their backs, and basically the kind of stuff you don’t see in the Premiership because there’s so much at stake. Sevens removes the highlights of a game and puts them into 14 minutes.

“It’s such a good package. The crowd are much more involved, they’re seeing more flowing rugby and for me it’s a winner on every level.”

Former Leeds and Doncaster player Christian Lewis-Pratt and Dinnington-born Tom Powell are also contracted to the Sevens.

The dozen meet at Twickenham every Monday for a three-day training block before they are sent home to work to their own programme.

Vickerman trains from Thursday to Sunday at Edge Gyms on the Ring Road West Park in Leeds, an environment that enables him to stay on top of his fitness.

“In terms of a professional environment, it’s spot on,” says a player who made 53 appearances for Leeds, having graduated from their academy.

“I won’t put myself in a position where I say I’m never going to play 15s again, because situations may change and I’ve still got a lot with 15s that I feel I haven’t accomplished.

“Every year I’d been involved in the Premiership I was in a dogfight.

“I loved it and it was an achievement for me to get to 50 games but part of me thinks ‘how many of those have I won?’ and it’s not many.

“Winning drives me. And this new challenge is an inspiration.

“Short-term the Olympics isn’t a factor. First of all I want to win a series with England. That’s achievable.

“In some ways I wish I was 20-21 but I’ve only just turned 26, so I’ll be 30 when the Olympics in Rio come around, which by some Sevens standards is not old at all.

“And 15s can get quite repetitive week on week, whereas now I can say I’m in Australia this week, Las Vegas the next – it’s a unique situation to be in and really exciting just talking about it.”

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