As captain of the England Sevens team it is with a wry smile that Tom Mitchell reflects on the news of a Twickenham Saturday sell-out. There is nothing like home pressure and expectation to get the pulse racing.
There are now officially no tickets available for the opening day - Saturday - at the Marriott London Sevens on 10 May, with 75,000 sold.
Seats are still available though for the Sunday and grand climax of the HSBC Sevens World Series.
"The Marriott London Sevens promises to be a huge weekend, as it has been for the last couple of years, and it keeps growing, so it should be a huge event," said Mitchell, in Glasgow for the penultimate round of the Series."There are going to be a lot of people there by all accounts and it's a favourite of ours as a team, but we've got a job to do this weekend in Glasgow first and that's 100% where our focus is at the moment."
London sets sights on another Sevens record
Over 115,000 are expected to get in on the 'Monster' spirit at Twickenham, with England Rugby teaming up with global hit Moshi Monsters.
Sunday’s entertainment also includes a performance from ‘THE ROAR of the Jaguars’, the official cheerleaders of world-renowned NFL team the Jacksonville Jaguars, who will meet and greet fans in 'Monsterville', as well the big stage and screen, live music, interactive games and picnic areas.
“Selling out Saturday with over a week to go until the Marriott London Sevens reflects both the growing profile of Sevens and the popularity of the event," said Rugby Football Union Chief Commercial Officer, Sophie Goldschmidt.
“We are always on the look-out for new ways to take the event experience one step further and are excited to be the first sporting governing body to work with Moshi Monsters. With the huge variety of entertainment and activities available on Sunday, which is both the finals and the family day, this year is set to be a Monster weekend in every way.”
The England team will be hoping to arrive in Twickenham on the back of a strong performance in Glasgow, where they face Canada, France and Japan in pool play on 3 May."We're really looking forward to the tournament. There's less travel so the lead-in is always a bit more relaxed but then in another way it's a challenge to make sure our heads are on come the weekend," added Mitchell.
"We have a pool we're condident we can do well in, and then move on to bigger and better things after that."