2009 Sevens Rugby World Cup

It's that time of the year again, when the best teams in World Rugby go head-to-head to claim the most lucrative prize in Sevens, The Melrose Cup.

For those not familiar with sevens rugby, it is an abbreviated form of the full game. There are seven players on each team, allowing for more gaps and a faster paced game.

There will be 24 teams trying to wrestle the Melrose Cup from defending team, Fiji.

Fiji won the cup in 2005 by beating New Zealand in a grand epic final. This was no mean feat. The Kiwis are recognised as not only the best team in the world in the full game, but also the best Sevens team.

This was the second time Fiji had won the cup, with their first victory coming after a 24-21 win against South Africa in Hong Kong. The World Cup has been played five times, with Fiji winning twice in 1997 and 2005 and England (1993) and New Zealand (2001) winning it once.

The main contenders this time around will be Fiji, New Zealand, England, and Samoa.

Fiji will include some of their best Sevens exponents. The South Sea Islanders can boast France-based wingers, Vilimoni Delasau and Napolioni Nalaga, along with Semisi Naevo, their lanky flanker from Japan and Apolosi Satala from Gloucester in England.

Fiji will need to make history, if they are to claim a third victory, as no team has ever been able to successfully defend the Melrose cup in its 16-year history.

New Zealand will have the services of their top playmaker, Tomasi Cama Junior, whose father played for the Fiji sevens team in the late '80s. The Kiwis will also have the services of their Hurricane-based flanker, Victor Vito, while the crux of the team will be made up of those that played on the Sevens circuit throughout the season.

England will have the services of their playmaker and top point scorer in Sevens history, Ben Gollings. The nippy fly-half has been part of the England team since the inception of the IRB Sevens series and has been their most potent attacker.

England will also have the likes of Tom Varndell, the Leicester Tigers winger, who was part of the Sevens team before he got picked for the full England side.

Varndell has not played for England Sevens since the Commonwealth Games in 2006, so his return will boost the team, who are on a high after winning the Wellington Sevens a few weeks ago.

Samoa, who has had a rough season, will be banking on the experience of Uale Mai and Lolo Lui over the weekend, as they hope to become the first Pacific team to win a Sevens tournament this season.

Two of the underdogs of the tournament will be Kenya and Argentina.

Kenya shocked the sevens rugby fraternity this year by beating the high flying South African team in pool-play during the Wellington Sevens.

Kenya made it through to the cup semi-final, before losing to eventual champions, England but again shocked the world a week later. The Kenyans overcame a fearsome New Zealand team in pool play and reached the Plate final in San Diego, falling at the last hurdle.

Argentina also created history by winning a cup final for the second time since the series began, ironically on the same ground a few years back in San Diego.

There hasn't been a team that has stood out so far this year and every side will enter the World Cup with an equal chance of winning the prestigious Melrose Cup.