Tonga Rugby Union on the brink of scrapping their national sevens teams

Two years ago Tonga won the men’s World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series and came within touching distance of joining their Pacific neighbours Fiji, among the elite.

But now the team is on the verge of extinction, and so is Tonga’s national women’s sevens side.

As is so often the case in Pacific sport, it all comes down to money, and for the Tonga Rugby Union funds are in very short supply.

The union’s focus is on the men’s and women’s fifteens, and for the sevens teams to continue, a new source of income has to be found.

The TRU’s Chief Executive, Aisea ‘Aholelei, says a final decision has yet to be taken, but he’s frustrated that his organisation has been left in the dark about World Rugby’s future plans for the sevens set-up.