Australia are on course to claim their first HSBC World Rugby Women's Sevens Series title this weekend.

Led by co-captain Sharni Williams, who is returning after a knee injury suffered in the opening round in Dubai last December, Australia hold a 12-point lead over New Zealand in the standings, so sixth place – even if the world champions lift the trophy in the Auvergne region – will be enough to claim the title, and top seeding for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

 

Speaking as captains gathered in Clermont-Ferrand on Thursday, Williams said she can’t wait to get back.

“It’s been a bit of a process but you’ve got to put that behind you. Injuries come and they go and now it’s time for me to be back on the paddock.

“The girls went out there in my absence and delivered what this team is about. It was frustrating watching from home, but I was one of the proudest people back in Australia watching these girls perform like I know that they can.”

Williams insists that, despite the prize on offer for them this weekend, they will take it one game at a time.

“We’re a process driven team and we’re thinking about it day by day so we’re not going to change anything.

“The fact that we can make history for Australian rugby is at the back of our minds and it’s exciting.”

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If Australia lift the series title it will be the first time that New Zealand have not won the series trophy since the competition began in 2012-13. Their captain Sarah Goss says it will be a disappointment but the Olympic Games is a big prize on the horizon.

“It’s obviously a disappointment losing the series as we won it for the three previous years and it would have been nice to win it a fourth year in a row, but that’s the way sevens is,” said Goss.

“Going forward, we’re really focusing on Rio. For us we want to get a good performance out this weekend, hopefully we can win and leave us in good stead for Rio.”

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England, who won the last round with an impressive display in Canada, currently sit third in the standings and captain Emily Scarratt is upbeat about their chances in the Auvergne region on Saturday and Sunday.

“It’s been great since Canada, we went back into camp with a new sense of confidence. This is another opportunity to test ourselves against the best teams in the world,” she insisted.

“We’re in it to win it this weekend. As ever it’s going to be really tough, a lot of the teams will have gone away and worked super hard after Langford and we’re not naïve to that fact. But we’re here to put in some good performances and look at that consistency, as that is what it’s all about right now.

The #Clermont7s gets underway on Saturday when New Zealand kick-off against Russia at 11:00 (BST +1) from the Stade Gabriel-Montpied.

All the action will be broadcast live and fans can click here to see where they can watch the action.