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Ex-All Black Liam Barry named Australia Men's 7s head coach

Then Head Coach Liam Barry of North Harbour looks on prior to the round five ITM Cup match between North Harbour and Tasman at North Harbour Stadium on September 13, 2013 in Auckland, New Zealand. (Photo by Anthony Au-Yeung/Getty Images)

Rugby Australia has confirmed the appointment of Liam Barry as the new head coach for the Australian Men’s Sevens team.

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Barry (53) succeeds John Manenti, who left the role in August. The former All Black brings over three decades of experience in professional rugby – both as a player and coach.

Barry’s career as a player included representing the All Blacks from 1993 to 1995, followed by stints in Japan with NEC and Kubota. Transitioning to coaching in 2016, he served as a coaching director for New Zealand’s Sevens programs before becoming an assistant coach for the All Black Sevens, a role he held from 2017 to 2022.

Most recently he worked in a high-performance leadership role with High Performance Sport New Zealand.

Australian Men’s Sevens coach Liam Barry said: “I’m very excited to take the team into the next cycle off the back of what they’ve done at the Paris Olympics.

“It’s a great base to start from and it’s a credit to John and the management with what they’ve done in the last cycle.

“I’m not looking to reinvent the wheel but rather build on what is already there. The players are fit, fast and skillful and I’m looking forward to working with them.”

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Director of High Performance Peter Horne said of the appointment of Barry: “We are delighted to welcome Liam to Australian Rugby as Head Coach of our Men’s Sevens side,” Horne said.

“Liam’s proven track record in winning environments, combined with his passion for developing young talent perfectly aligns with the direction we are taking.

“Our Men’s Sevens side had their best-ever finish at an Olympic Games in August and are consistently one of the teams to beat on the global stage.

“We believe Liam is the ideal person to build a strong connection and successful playing group in the future.”

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The Australian Men’s and Women’s Sevens teams will begin their 2024/2025 season on November 30 in Dubai, with final squad selections to be announced closer to the HSBC SVNS series opener.

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HSBC SVNS Perth takes place on 24-26 January at HBF Park. Plan your ultimate rugby weekend in Western Australia with the help of flexible travel packages including tickets and accommodation. Buy Now or Find Out More.  

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4 Comments
M
MakeOllieMathisAnAB 2 hours ago

Surprised by this appointment. Liam Barry has been working with NZRs Coaching and Mentor programme for almost 4 years now, focused on ‘improving the New Zealand’s overall dominance in the coaching space’ as Mark Robertson puts it.

We train up up a coach in the highest halls of NZ rugby power and now he’s suddenly employed by Australia?

Why are NZR not upset about this?

O
OJohn 3 hours ago

Another nail in Australian rugby's coffin.

Why bother following the mens 7 team with a kiwi coach ?

T
Tk 7 hours ago

Uh oh, still no fair dinkum Aussie rugby coaches to be found then?

O
OJohn 3 hours ago

They are there but Rugby Australia is determined to strip Australian rugby of any pride and enthusiasm. They seem to have a death wish that will be fulfilled.

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Oh no, not him again? 48 minutes ago
England internationals disagree on final play execution vs All Blacks

Okay, so we blew it big time on Saturday. So rather than repeating what most people have all ready said, what do I want to see from Borthwick going forward?


Let's keep Marcus Smith on the pitch if he's fit and playing well. I was really pleased with his goal kicking. It used to be his weakness. I feel sympathy for George Ford who hadn't kicked all match and then had a kick to win the game. You hear pundits and commentators commend kickers who have come off the bench and pulled that off. Its not easy. If Steve B continues to substitute players with no clear reason then he is going to get criticised.


On paper I thought England would beat NZ if they played to their potential and didn't show NZ too much respect. Okay, the off the ball tackles certainly stopped England scoring tries, but I would have liked to see more smashing over gainlines and less kicking for position. Yes, I also know it's the Springbok endorsed world cup double winning formula but the Kiwi defence isn't the Bok defence, is it. If you have the power to put Smith on the front foot then why muzzle him? I guess what I'm saying is back, yourself. Why give the momentum to a team like NZ? Why feed the beast? Don't give the ball to NZ. Well d'uh.


Our scrum is a long term weakness. If you are going to play Itoje then he needs an ogre next door and a decent front row. Where is our third world class lock? Where are are realible front row bench replacements? The England scrum has been flakey for a while now. It blows hot and cold. Our front five bench is not world class.


On the positive side I love our starting backrow right now. I'd like to see them stick together through to the next world cup.


Anyway, there is always another Saturday.

6 Go to comments
C
CO 1 hour ago
Scott Robertson responds to criticism over All Blacks' handling errors

Robertson is more a manager of coaches than a coach so it comes down to intent of outcomes at a high level. I like his intent, I like the fact his Allblacks are really driving the outcomes however as he's pointed out the high error rates are not test level and their control of the game is driving both wins and losses. England didn't have to play a lot of rugby, they made far fewer mistakes and were extremely unlucky not to win.


In fact the English team were very early in their season and should've been comfortably beaten by an Allblacks team that had played multiple tests together.


Razor has himself recognised that to be the best they'll have to sort out the crisis levels of mistakes that have really increased since the first two tests against England.


Early tackles were a classic example of hyper enthusiasm to not give an inch, that passion that Razor has achieved is going to be formidable once the unforced errors are eliminated.


That's his secret, he's already rebuilt the passion and that's the most important aspect, its inevitable that he'll now eradicate the unforced errors. When that happens a fellow tier one nation is going to get thrashed. I don't think it will be until 2025 though.


The Allblacks will lose both tests against Ireland and France if they play high error rates rugby like they did against England.


To get the unforced errors under control he's going to be needing to handover the number eight role to Sititi and reset expectations of what loose forwards do. Establish a clear distinction with a large, swarthy lineout jumper at six that is a feared runner and dominant tackler and a turnover specialist at seven that is abrasive in contact. He'll then need to build depth behind the three starters and ruthlessly select for that group to be peaking in 2027 in hit Australian conditions on firm, dry grounds.


It's going to help him that Savea is shifting to the worst super rugby franchise where he's going to struggle behind a beaten pack every week.


The under performing loose forward trio is the key driver of the high error rates and unacceptable turn overs due to awol link work. Sititi is looking like he's superman compared to his openside and eight.


At this late stage in the season they shouldn't be operating with just the one outstanding loose forward out of four selected for the English test. That's an abject failure but I think Robertson's sacrificing link quality on purpose to build passion amongst the junior Allblacks as they see the reverential treatment the old warhorses are receiving for their long term hard graft.


It's unfortunately losing test matches and making what should be comfortable wins into nail biters but it's early in the world cup cycle so perhaps it's a sacrifice worth making.


However if this was F1 then Sam Cane would be Riccardo and Ardie would be heading into Perez territory so the loose forwards desperately need revitalisation through a rebuild over the next season to complement the formidable tight five.

26 Go to comments
LONG READ
LONG READ England need to face a few home truths if they are to relearn that winning habit England need to face a few home truths if they are to relearn that winning habit
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