Bay of Plenty men's and women's sides have qualified for the TECT National Sevens to be held for the first time at the Tauranga Domain on December 15-16.

Both teams finished third at the Northern Region Sevens qualification tournament held in driving rain in Cambridge on Saturday.

The men's team, under new head coach and former Black Ferns Sevens mentor Sean Horan, showed some innovative tactics as they clinched the third qualifying place behind winners Counties Manukau and Waikato.

It was a mixed bag of results overall for the Bay men, with wins over Northland and Auckland balanced against losses to Counties Manukau and Waikato, plus a thrilling 19-19 draw against North Harbour.

Te Puna's Will Ngatai played the most minutes of any Bay player.

It was a similar story for the women's team, also under a new head coach in Rodney Gibbs.

With captain Rebecca Kersten leading from the front, in an impressive show of the form that has seen her in the Black Ferns Development squad, the Bay women's team won three and lost two of their five games.

Wins were chalked up against Northland, Counties Manukau and Northland with narrow losses to Auckland and Waikato.

Bay of Plenty finished third behind winners Auckland and second-placed Waikato.

Northern Region Sevens, Cambridge

Bay of Plenty Men
Bay of Plenty 36 v Northland 14
Bay of Plenty 24 v Auckland 19
Bay of Plenty 19 v North Harbour 19
Bay of Plenty 10 v Counties Manukau 19
Bay of Plenty 7 v Waikato 47

Bay of Plenty Women:
Bay of Plenty 21 v Auckland 24
Bay of Plenty 27 v North Harbour 5
Bay of Plenty 28 v Counties Manukau 19
Bay of Plenty 19 v Waikato 21
Bay of Plenty 39 v Northland 0

TECT National Sevens, Tauranga, December 15-16

Confirmed qualifiers

Southern Regional Sevens:
Men:
1. Tasman
2. Canterbury
3. Otago
4. South Canterbury
5. Southland

Women:
1. Canterbury
2. Otago
3. Tasman

Central Regional Sevens:
Men:
1. Wellington
2. Hawke's Bay
3. Manawatu
4. Taranaki
5. Wairarapa Bush

Women:
1. Wellington
2. Hawke's Bay
3. Manawatu
4. Taranaki

Northern Regional Sevens:
Men:
1. Counties Manukau
2. Waikato
3. Bay of Plenty
4. Auckland
5. North Harbour
6. Northland

Women:
1. Auckland
2. Waikato
3. Bay of Plenty
4. Counties Manukau
5. North Harbour