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Brothers to take on SVNS world as New Zealand squads named for Singapore
By Finn Morton
After confidently proclaiming in Hong Kong China that New Zealand’s Cup final triumph “is not it” on the SVNS Series, Cody Vai will look to help the All Blacks Sevens win more silverware alongside his brother Kitiona.
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For the first time ever on the SVNS Series, the Vai brothers will wear the black jersey alongside one another when the All Blacks Sevens take the field at Singapore’s National Stadium early next month on May 3 to 5.
The Vai brothers, who are the sixth pair of brothers to represent the All Blacks Sevens, were both selected to play at the Fiji Bitter Marist 7s in Suva towards the end of March but Kitiona was not picked in the Hong Kong Sevens squad about one week later.
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“It means a lot to us,” Cody Vai told RugbyPass after winning the Hong Kong Sevens Cup final.
“Hong Kong is one of the ones that we want to turn around and (we’ll) probably go up from there until the Olympics.
“This is not it. This is part of the journey and the end journey is obviously the Olympics.”
With the SVNS Series’ regular season set to come to an end in Singapore, both Vai brothers will look to contribute to New Zealand taking some momentum in the Madrid Grand Final after being selected in the latest travelling squad.
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New Zealand Sevens have confirmed the men’s and women’s squads for the HSBC Singapore SVNS, with veteran Lewis Ormond and 2023 World Rugby Sevens Player of the Year Leroy Carter also being named to return.
Ngarohi McGarvey-Black, who is an extremely talented playmaker with a wealth of experience on the international sevens circuit, is also back in the mix for the All Blacks Sevens.
After leading the team to Hong Kong Sevens glory earlier this month, Dylan Collier will captain the New Zealanders for the second event on the bounce.
The New Zealand men will take on arch-rivals Australia – who have included 2023 Junior Wallabies captain Teddy Wilson in their squad to debut – SVNS Series leaders Argentina and Canada.
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As for the Black Ferns Sevens, they’re looking to clinch their fourth Cup title in a row. Following a slow start to the season, which was dominated by arch-rivals Australia, the Kiwis have recovered to win finals in Vancouver, Los Angeles and Hong Kong China.
“We obviously weren’t impressed or happy with how we performed at the start of the season. We had a lot of things that we needed to work on,” Michaela Blyde told this outlet at Hong Kong Stadium.
“There are a lot of teams that are starting to develop their skillset very quickly so for us, we just wanted to stay on top of the game by being the best versions of ourselves.”
The return of Alena Saili headlines a star-studded New Zealand travelling squad that includes the likes of Blyde, Jazmin Felix-Hotham, captain Risaleaana Pouri-Lane, Stacey Waaka and Portia Woodman-Wickliffe.
Canada, Ireland and Spain will look to derail the Black Ferns Sevens’ recent dominance in pool play. The Irish are the only side other than Australia to have won a Cup final this season (Perth).
Catch up on SVNS Series highlights and exclusive original shows on RugbyPass TV HERE.
All Blacks Sevens
Leroy Carter, Dylan Collier (c), Tepaea Cook-Savage, Fehi Fineanganofo, Andrew Knewstubb, Moses Leo, Ngarohi McGarvey-Black, Tone Ng Shiu, Lewis Ormond, Brady Rush, Codemeru Vai, Kitiona Vai, Regan Ware
Black Ferns Sevens
Michaela Blyde, Jazmin Felix-Hotham, Tysha Ikenasio, Shiray Kaka, Tyla King, Jorja Miller, Manaia Nuku, Mahina Paul, Risaleaana Pouri-Lane (c), Alena Saili, Theresa Setefano, Stacey Waaka, Portia Woodman-Wickliffe
