FIERCE breakdown battles will steel Gloucester's JP Morgan Premiership Sevens stars for the full season ahead.
That's the view of Kingsholm analyst and sevens coach Rob Thirlby, above, as Gloucester gear up to host the competition's South West group stage tonight (kick-off 7.15pm).
Gloucester first team men Akapusi Qera, Matt Cox, Koree Britton, Martyn Thomas and Gareth Evans will provide the experience and ballast to support a host of young talent on show this evening.
The quartet could reasonably have expected to travel to Gloucester's eight-day pre-season training camp in Tignes, that started on Tuesday.
Rugby director Davies has deployed them in sevens action instead – but Thirlby believes the challenges tonight will be just as useful in their preparations for the new campaign.
Thirlby expects a severe sevens skirmish: revolving directly around the tackle area.
Nigel Davies outlined the breakdown as the match-turning element at the top level when he arrived at Kingsholm last summer.
Gloucester's first-team stars compete for the monthly prize of most prolific turnover hunter, with the likes of centre Billy Twelvetrees often to the fore.
The huge stall placed on that area will not change as Davies enters his second campaign as rugby director with the Cherry and Whites then.
And Thirlby has tipped his sevens squad to reap the benefits of Gloucester's first competitive action tonight, when they take on Bath, Exeter Chiefs and Worcester Warriors.
Billy Burns will lead the playmaking duties, with academy newcomers Reece Boughton and Lewis Ludlow keen to impress, while former Wales Sevens cap Rhodri McAtee has been drafted into the squad.
Thirlby explained: "The contact area is becoming more and more crucial in sevens.
"At Gloucester we pride ourselves on our ability to control that area in 15s, and these days sevens is little different.
"The fundamentals of the two versions of the sport are effectively the same, so if you are good at sevens then you'll always have a chance in 15s.
"Traditionally teams would look to keep possession and avoid contact in Sevens, but defences are getting so good now that you have to get them back onside, so the contact area is key.
"And if you're good at that skill then you can actually produce a strong sevens team now, it's a fast-changing environment really.
"Nigel was pretty clear when he started at the club last year that the contact area would be one of our biggest focuses.
"It's something we spend a lot of time working on, to hone right in our skills there.
"He had identified that as one of the most important battle grounds of any match, and that hasn't changed.
"So this tournament will be a great opportunity for a number of players to sharpen their skills in that area once again, with the pre-season starting to take shape."
Former England Sevens stalwart Thirlby has coached with invitational side Samurai Sevens in recent times, and relishes his short-format role with Gloucester.
Sevens is one of the world's fastest-growing sports, boosted by its inclusion in the 2016 Olympics and increasing interest in the World Sevens series international competition.
Thirlby believes the sport fully merits its quick growth.
He continued: "The circuit seems to get more and more popular.
"Maybe that's because the small nations can compete with the more established teams, because of the lack of set-piece.
"That's only good for the game.
"The popularity off the back of the game joining the Olympics, it gives a chance for people who might not otherwise have a career in rugby.
"But it also offers another route into the top level of 15s too, as you have seen people like Alex Cuthbert use sevens as a stepping stone and proving ground."
GLOUCESTER: T Ailes, K Britton, R Boughton, B Burns, D Cheshire, M Cox, G Evans, L Ludlow, R McAtee, A Qera, S Reynolds, M Thomas.
