From Club Rugby to Rio: Shooting the breeze with Chucky & Cutch
By Pete Fairbairn - RUPA
James 'Chucky' Stannard (33) and Pat 'Cutch' McCutcheon (29) won't mind if I say they're no spring chickens (in Rugby terms).
These two stalwarts of the Australian Rugby scene have been around for as long as I can remember, whether on the Rugby Sevens circuit or playing in the Shute Shield or Super Rugby (where they each boast over 30 caps) competitions.
Last month, they were both named in the Men's Rugby Sevens squad to represent Australia at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. It represents the sport's return to the Olympics for the first time since 1924, when the USA won gold and then had to defend themselves against a pitch invasion from unhappy French supporters.
On October 9, 2009, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced the return of the sport for both men and women in 2016 as Rugby Sevens. Just 131 days before that, on May 31st 2009, Stannard and McCutcheon played alongside each other for the first time at the Edinburgh Rugby Sevens.