All Blacks Sevens' Dubai 7's ratings: Kiwis limp into semi-finals

It was a weekend to forget for the All Black’s Sevens team at the first event of the season in Dubai. It’s a less-than-ideal start to a season full of new and exciting fresh faces after an overhaul of experienced players retired from the sport.

The All Black’s sevens only just scraped through to the cup quarter-finals, finishing as one of the best third-place teams in the group stages. 

The Kiwis opened their Dubai campaign with a convincing 28-12 victory over USA, which would prove to be the All-Black sevens only convincing win over the weekend. Pool play defeats to Fiji and a shocking 26-14 defeat to Spain in only the third-ever victory for Spain against the Kiwis in HSBC SVNS Series history. 

Although overall it was a disappointing weekend for the All Black Sevens in Dubai, there is lots to like about Tomasi Cama’s squad, with debuts on the SVNS Series of up-and-coming talent like Oli Mathis and Joey Taumateine, and emerging Bunnings NPC wingers Jack Gray from Tasman and the impressive North Harbour winger Sofai Maka.

First-phase defence off scrums was a real issue for the All-Black Sevens, conceding tries off the first phase after set pieces. Spain utilised this weakness on multiple occasions, scoring quick tries in transition from an attacking scrum.

Lots to work on for the Kiwis, which they will look to implement this weekend in Cape Town, here’s how the All Black Sevens players rated.

2. Brady Rush – 5 

The 25-year-old started the tournament positively, putting constant pressure on the breakdown of the USA, disrupting clean and quick ball for the Americans. Rush has played 121 games for New Zealand in the SVNS Series, and showed some of that experience throughout the tournament, providing a calming influence for the younger players. Often found in the wide channels as a ball carrier, Rush found his way through the line, where he was able to find teammates on an offload. Although Rush showed signs of brilliance, execution was also an issue this tournament, gifting the ball back to the opposition too many times. Rush was penalised and yellow carded in the first game against USA, but an otherwise respectable tournament performance.

3. Tone Ng Shiu – 5

One of New Zealand’s more experienced SVNS Series players starts another year as one of Tomasi Cama’s key players. Ng Shiu brings his strong frame and physical ability to the SVNS arena where he’s able to win turnover ball constantly and impose himself on the defensive side of the ball. Ng Shiu would have liked to provide more with the ball in hand, but the execution of the Kiwi’s attack as a group wasn’t at a high enough standard to prove a threat in Dubai. Ng Shiu was key in stopping opposition players, especially with the amount of errors Tomasi Cama’s squad had. A mixed bag for the 30-year-old. 

4. Oli Mathis – 7

The most talked about rugby talent in New Zealand, and for good reason too. The 19-year-old immediately stamped his mark on the SVNS Series when thrown into the USA game late on. He has bucketloads of talent, which we have seen throughout his Bunnings NPC campaign with Waikato. Whether he’s on the wing, or at loose forward, it doesn’t seem to matter with Mathis. His electric footwork was on show against Spain in the Cup quarter-final, where Mathis stepped off his left foot and broke a tackle to get through the gap and score a try in the third minute. Mathis was one of the highlights in an underwhelming All Blacks Sevens weekend in Dubai. Not only is it Mathis’s threat with the ball in hand, his defensive ability is second to none, Mathis is often seen chasing back behind the play to stop a try, or holding up an opposition ball carrier to win a penalty. Bright future ahead.

5. Dylan Collier – 4

A tournament to forget defensively for the veteran. Collier is one of the more experienced players around, but this weekend the 33-year-old was caught out on defence multiple times. Sevens is all about how you can utilise the huge pitch with very few players on it. Opposition teams were able to isolate Collier and get him into a one-on-one battle with the player with the opposition’s ball carrier, which on many occasions, saw the All Blacks Sevens team concede a try due to Collier’s defensive woes. Definitely a talking point ahead of the second circuit of the SVNS Series in Cape Town this weekend, where the Kiwis will have to defend at a much higher level if they want to compete for the title. 

8. Andrew Knewstubb – 5

A key playmaker for Tomasi Cama’s team, had a relatively quiet tournament for his high standards. Due to the error-ridden performances of his team, Knewstubb was unable to gain any sort of hold of the games with the ball in hand. For the All Blacks Sevens team to improve, Tomasi Cama must find a way to get control of the game again and let his key playmaker set the tone from the get-go. 

11. Joe Weber – 5

You know what you’re gonna get from Joe Weber week in and week out. Flair with ball in hand, and elite work rate around the park, and this weekend was no different, except without the finishing touches. The 31-year-old knows his way to the line in the HSBC SVNS Series tournaments, scoring 109 over a decorated career in the black jersey, but was unable to add more than one to the tally in Dubai. Weber was at fault in a last-gasp attempt against Fiji in the last pool match, where Weber threw a long pass to the ground which was intercepted by Fiji’s Filipe Sauturaga to end New Zealand’s hopes of finishing top two in the group. 

13. Lewis Ormond – 5

Another New Zealand player on the bad end of the game this weekend in Dubai was a constant threat in the air but was unable to gain any sort of momentum throughout the weekend on either side of the ball. The 30-year-old was used as a ball-carrying winger during the Dubai tournament and often broke the first tackle looking for support from his teammates. Another player is on the wrong end of some sloppy errors for the All-Black Sevens team.

17. Jack Gray – 5

The quick young winger from Tasman was called into the All Black Sevens Dubai squad due to a hamstring injury to Jayden Keelan. Gray was a positive light in his first appearance on the SVNS Series but didn’t make too much of an impact apart from one breakaway where he threw a pass to Dylan Collier to score late on during the semi-final loss against Spain. 

24. Ngarohi McGarvey-Black – 7.5

The All-Black Men’s Seven’s best player this weekend in Dubai created many opportunities for teammates with the ball in hand and always threatened the defensive line. McGarvey-Black was able to score five tries this weekend in Dubai, the most of the All-Black sevens squad. Not only was McGarvey-Black able to set up tries and break through the defence, but his overall calmness, game management and elite work rate around the field were one of the reasons the Kiwis made it to the semi-final. The 28-year-old showed his pace, class, and importance to this team in Dubai, showcasing what this team is capable of if they limit the unforced errors with the ball in hand. 

25. Cody Vai – 6.5

Cody Vai was a constant threat every time he got the ball in Dubai, whether it was off a late cut on the wing, or just his stepping ability to beat defenders. When Vai burst onto the SVNS Series, his ability on attack was clear to everyone, but now his experience in the black jersey and playing for Bay of Plenty in the NPC has meant he can lead from the front in Dubai. The more the Kiwis give Cody Vai time and space, the higher the chance they have to win tournaments.

27. Sione Molia – 5

One of the All-Black seven’s most experienced veterans was another player who didn’t exactly have a groundbreaking tournament. Molia had a couple of frustrating performances in Dubai, highlighted by throwing the ball out of play close to their own line on Day two. Will need a bounceback tournament this weekend in Cape Town.

55. Joey Taumateine 5

A whirlwind couple of days for the debutant for the All Black Sevens in Dubai. Taumateine was thrown on with two minutes to go in the first pool play game against Spain, and introduced himself onto the SVNS Series circuit with a blockbusting try, cutting in off his wing to dot down for his first try of his Sevens career. He then went to zero from hero, receiving a yellow card for a high tackle against Argentina in the third and fourth playoff. Nevertheless, the 19-year-old will have proven to head coach Tomasi Cama that he is well suited to this level of sevens, and should be trusted in the lineup going forward.

81. Sofai Maka – 6

Sofai Maka was a standout player in this year’s Bunnings NPC season with North Harbour, scoring seven tries for the Auckland side. Maka showcased his try-scoring ability in the big moments, scoring the all-important double in the cup quarter-final against South Africa. An impressive match-winning performance that sent the Kiwis to an arguably undeserving semi-final place against Spain.