Olympic hopes at stake as Irish Sevens up for battle in Lisbon

The Irish men’s and women’s Sevens sides will be hoping to keep their Olympic dreams alive this weekend, when both squads travel to Lisbon for the Rugby Europe Olympic Repechage tournament.

In order to ensure their progression into next year’s World Repechage, a top-three finish will be required from both teams in the Portuguese capital.

A series of comprehensive triumphs has helped the men to secure the Rugby Europe Division B & Division C Cups in recent weeks, but as IRFU Director of Rugby Sevens Anthony Eddy explained at the Aviva Stadium yesterday, this weekend’s tournament will be their toughest assignment to date.