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Huge rivalries and Olympic rematches: Matches you can’t miss at Dubai 7s
By
Finn Morton
For the first time since the Paris Olympic Games, the world’s best men’s and women’s rugby sevens sides will battle it out for glory in top-flight competition. The new HSBC SVNS Series season gets underway at the Emirates Dubai 7s from November 30 to December 1.
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Australia are the defending overall women’s Series champions after beating France in the Championship Final in Madrid earlier this year. As for the men, it’s France who hold that title after getting the better of 2024 Series League Winners Argentina in a thriller.
But it’s a new day.
The opportunity for players to forge their own championship-winning legacies gets underway at Dubai’s Sevens Stadium in a few weeks. It can be important for teams to start the season well as they look to ride a rising wave of confidence throughout the campaign.
This week, organisers of the Emirates Dubai Sevens announced the pools and match schedule for the tournament. There are some blockbuster showdowns that are set to take place, including rematches of both the women’s and men’s Olympic Finals.
Men’s – Fiji vs New Zealand
This might be the most iconic rivalry in men’s rugby sevens.
Fiji and New Zealand have played out some epic encounters over the years, including a fascinating pool stage clash at last season’s Grand Final event in Madrid. The Fijians won that thriller with Iowane Teba slotting a clutch sideline conversion with time up on the clock.
Having been in the stands watching that moment play out about 15 metres away, it was incredible to see Teba look so casual while overcoming any and all nerves. But it was the type of ending that was fitting for a clash between Fiji and New Zealand on the sevens stage.
New Zealand will face Simor Amor’s USA in their opening match of the Dubai Sevens, while Fiji will take on Spain. After their second group stage matches, pivotal places in the three pools could very well come down to who wins late on the opening day.
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Fiji were disappointing for large stretches of the SVNS Series last time out, but there would be no better way for them to make a statement than beating their old foe. As for New Zealand, this result could be key as they look to go a couple better than last year’s bronze in Dubai.
Women’s – Australia vs Ireland
In one of the upsets of last season, Ireland stormed home in January to shock Australia in the SVNS Perth Cup Final 19-14. Eve Higgins was the hero that afternoon at HBF Park by slicing through the Aussie defensive line to score what ended up being the match-winner.
That result hurt the Australians, as captain Charlotte Caslick made clear post-match. Playing at home is a unique experience for players, and not every team gets to do it – after winning in Dubai and Cape Town before that tournament, they really wanted to put on a title-winning show.
But, it wasn’t their day, and sometimes that’s sport. Australia have dominated this rivalry in every match since, which included two meetings at the Paris Olympic Games. They met during the pool stage, and went head-to-head for a second time in the quarter-finals.
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It all seemed to be going to plan for the Australians as they claimed a convincing 40-7 win. But that was as good as it got coach Tim Walsh’s team, with Canada and the USA both recording stunning upsets on the final day as Australia missed out on a medal entirely.
This writer spoke with Faith Nathan and Maddison Levi at the Rugby Australia Awards in Sydney last week, and has previously had a conversion with Charlotte Caslick. Without revealing too much at this stage, to put it simply, those results really hurt.
With the Levi sisters, Nathan, Caslick and more itching for the new season to start, it seems more likely than not that Australia will bounce back to challenge for Cup Final glory in Dubai. But this is a bit of a banana peel game for this Aussies, so they’ll need to get this one right.
Men’s – Argentina vs Ireland
During the regular season on the SVNS Series in 2023/24, the two best teams were consistently Argentina and Ireland. Los Pumas Sevens took out Cup Final glory in Cape Town, Peth and Vancouver, and they also finished as the runners-up in Dubai behind South Africa.
As for Ireland, their second-place finish on the overall League standings was a reflection of their regular trips to the semi-finals. But, making it through to the big dance proved to be their Achilles heel, although they did qualify on one occasion in Singapore.
Argentina were League Winners last season before falling to France in a battle to become the overall Series champion in Madrid. Players were upset, and understandably so, as they fell short of their goal – and the same happened at the Olympics as well.
They’ll be out for revenge.
Los Pumas Sevens won’t be content or satisfied with what happened in 2024.
It’s a similar story for the Irish who fell well short of their own expectations at the Paris Games. Even with 15s superstar Hugo Keenan taking the field, the men in green were knocked out by eventual silver medallists Fiji 19-15 in the quarter-finals.
There’s no doubt Ireland believe they’re better than that.
Terry Kennedy, Jordon Conroy and Harry McNulty were the key figures for Ireland last season, while Marcos Moneta was the main man for Argentina. It’ll be interesting to see how both sides fare this season, as they go head-to-head in their final pool match on November 30.
Women’s – New Zealand vs Canada
Australia, New Zealand and France were considered the favourites to challenge for gold at the Olympic Games earlier this year. Australia and New Zealand had been in a class of their own on the SVNS Series, and France would have the roar of the Parisian crowd cheering them on.
But, it didn’t play out that way. Giant-slayers Canada knocked off France 19-14 in a hotly-tensed quarter-final clash, and a sold-out crowd at Stade de France later watched as the Canadians once again came out on top against SVNS Series champions Australia in the semis.
New Zealand survived a bit of a scare to win the gold medal match 19-12, but what Canada achieved at the Games didn’t go unnoticed. It came as a surprise to some, sure, but the women themselves truly believed they were capable of achieving something special at those Games.
Those Olympic Games were more than three months ago now, and it remains to be seen whether the Canadians can repeat their heroics on the SVNS Series. They’ll get their chance in Dubai at the end of the month, which includes a blockbuster pool stage clash against the Kiwis.
In a rematch of the Olympic gold medal match, fans at The Sevens Stadium will see New Zealand take on Canada at about 4:07 pm local time. While Brazil and Japan are also in the same pool, this match will likely decide who finishes first and second before the quarters.
It’s a great opportunity for the Black Ferns Sevens to carry some momentum from the Olympics into the new SVNS Series season, but the same can be said for Canada. The silver medallists have an opportunity to prove to the world once again that they are not to be underestimated.
Men’s – South Africa vs Australia
South Africa have consistently risen to the occasion at the Dubai Sevens. The Blitzboks have finished in the top four on 17 occasions, made the semi-finals and progressed no further five times, and have incredibly taken out the title on a record 11 occasions.
In the last four events since the COVID-19 pandemic, South Africa have won all of those titles which has included Cup Final wins over the USA and Australia in 2021, Ireland the following year, and then Argentina 12-7 in last year’s thrilling decider.
The South Africans have actually hoisted the Dubai Sevens trophy in triumph in seven of the last eight times the tournament has been held. New Zealand are the only other men’s side to have won the event during that period, and that was a 21-5 win over the USA in 2018.
History alone points towards South Africa being strong favourites for this leg in Dubai. While the Blitzboks were consistently inconsistent on the SVNS Series last season, they did manage to win bronze at the Olympics, and they’ll want to keep the good times going from that.
South Africa have three really hard pool matches ahead of them, which starts against an Australian side that is now coached by former All Black Liam Barry. The Aussies have X-factor players including Nathan Lawson, Henry Hutchison, Henry Paterson and Dietrich Roache.
Australia came agonisingly close to beating South Africa in the bronze medal match in Paris, but a late runaway try to Selvyn Davids saw the underdogs secure their place on the Olympic podium. But, that highlights how there wasn’t a whole lot between the sides.
The Blitzboks must start their tournament in Dubai well, and the same can be said for Australia, before taking on newly-promoted Kenya and Olympic champions France. With all four teams boasting genuine star power, this certainly appears to be a pool of death.
Women’s – France vs United States of America
You could see the disappointment on the faces of the French after their heartbreaking quarter-final loss to Canada in late July. With a full house of supporters watching on from the stands at the iconic rugby venue, France had fallen well short of their Olympic medal dreams.
France had shown on the 2023/24 SVNS Series that they could match it with the best, having beaten New Zealand in the SVNS Cape Town semi-finals, and they also got the better of Australia 21-19 in the semi-finals of February’s Vancouver Sevens.
That’s what made the Olympics so tough. France didn’t just consider themselves a contender to challenge for a medal, they would’ve believed that they were certainly good enough to take one home, and likely a gold or silver one at that.
But, France will soon have an opportunity to well and truly put that hurt behind them. They’ll take on the United States of America in their final pool match in Dubai – pitting them up against the Olympic bronze medallists, which is a title that certainly could’ve been theirs.
Men’s – France vs South Africa
This list wouldn’t be complete without touching on the men’s Olympic champions. Antoine Dupont was the hero for Les Bleus Sevens in front of a sold-out Stade de France, but they won’t have the incredible athlete with them in Dubai.
With Dupont last season, France were almost immediately transformed into world-beaters. They finished third in Vancouver during Dupont’s debut event, before snapping an almost 20-year Cup Final drought the following weekend in Los Angeles.
In Dupont’s third and final SVNS Series event, France were crowned overall champions after beating Argentina at Madrid’s Civitas Metropolitano. They also went on to claim one of the sport’s greatest honours at their home Olympic Games.
While the 15s and sevens superstar is no longer competing in this format, the confidence that those successes had on this team is huge. They looked like a completely different outfit at times, with the likes of Aaron Grandidier-Nkanang and Stephen Parez Edo Martin standing out.
There’s no reason they can’t repeat their heroics on the SVNS Series in 2024/25, but this match against South Africa is key. They’ll also face Australia and Kenya in a pool which could very well see any of the teams miss the quarters if they don’t bring their A-game.
WOMEN’S POOLS
POOL A: Australia, Ireland, Fiji, China
POOL B: France, USA, Great Britain, Spain
POOL C: New Zealand, Canada, Japan, Brazil
MEN’S POOLS
POOL A: France, South Africa, Australia, Kenya
Pool B: Argentina, Ireland, Great Britain, Uruguay
POOL C: Fiji, New Zealand, USA, Spain
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