What a tournament we’ve just had in Dubai, records were made, history was created and Australia were crowned the champions after sparkling performances throughout the two days.
But even though the Aussies took out the competition, arguably the story of the tournament was Russia, who kicked off proceedings on day one with their first ever win over New Zealand.
The Dubai Sevens began with three upsets in the first three games. Fiji beat an injury-affected Canada, new core team Ireland took out the United States and Russia dealt New Zealand their largest ever defeat 33-7 – the Kiwis could hardly fire a shot. And this time it wasn’t just Nadezda Kudinova who was good, Elena Mikhaltsova was a livewire on the wing and ended up making the tournament dream team as the number one wing.
It’s crazy to think that Russia, who also beat France, Brazil, Spain and England to get to the final, still haven’t qualified for the Olympics. Surely after their form in Dubai they’ll be red hot favourites to take out that the final qualifying tournament next year.
Fiji were also a great talking point, new coach Chris Cracknell has really made some inroads with this team. He’s been training the girls alongside the men, got them fitter, and has really perfected the offloading style that entertains the crowds and makes Fijiana so difficult to defend. They tripped up in the Cup quarter-finals by losing to France, but they’re definitely the team to watch in terms of causing ripples in the 2015-16 season.
The @Dubai7s women's dream team. Who was your favourite player over the last two days? #HSBC7s pic.twitter.com/wyHBn9AJDq
— World Rugby Sevens (@WorldRugby7s)
December 4, 2015
A couple of the usual big hitters struggled in Dubai – New Zealand and Canada were certainly affected by injury, but both sides put up great performances on day two. The Cup quarter-final between New Zealand and Australia was of such high quality that it could have easily been another final between the two and Canada only just lost their quarter-final against England. Emily Scarratt was a commanding presence for England too – one of the standout props over the two days for sure.
France, the other Cup semi-finalist, continues to surprise – edging wins through sheer determination more than style. They’ll be a threat if they keep their squad fit.
This was Australia’s tournament for sure though. Down two players by the final – captain Sharni Williams (knee) and kicker Chloe Dalton (arm) – the side showed they had plenty of depth.
Amy Turner stepped up to take Williams’ prop role and stood up big time, her timely hit ups and fancy footwork worked wonders. Of course, on the other wing Australia had either Emma Tonegato or Ellia Green to finish up. Green ended up the top try-scorer of the weekend, pace like hers coming off the bench was unstoppable.
But perhaps even more significant in Australia’s 31-12 win over Russia in the final is that the Aussies rolled out a completely different attack pattern from the wide pattern we saw during the pool play. This time super coach Tim Walsh got them to attack through the middle before going wide – it was very effective with five tries in that victory.
So what did we learn from Dubai Sevens? Well Australia remain one of the powerhouses in the women’s game, Russia have totally bridged the gap between them and the traditional rugby nations, and Fiji are probably the most difficult team to play thanks to the fantastic style they bring to the game.
For the other sides, well New Zealand may have to go back to the selection pool and re-think the players they take to these tournaments. Sure injuries played a part but they played a winger, Michaela Blyde, in the forwards because their defence was poor at times and they need more pace there. She played well but is probably out of position. They need to find a Karen Paquin type prop to complement Sarah Goss.
The United States too had some issues. They had their worst results in Dubai and perhaps that has something to do with being under new structures with a new coach, plus some players’ positions have been changed around and that takes some time to adjust. We’ll wait until Brazil to find out if they can spring back to the great form we saw in London and Amsterdam last year.
One thing’s for sure, however, you can no longer predict who will beat who in the HSBC World Rugby Women’s Sevens Series – and that is just how we like it!
Melodie Robinson is a commentator with SKY NZ, a Women's Rugby World Cup winner with New Zealand and goes by @anicemelodie on Twitter.
