Rugby Sevens: Aussies breathe easy after favourable Paris Olympic pool draw

Australia’s men’s and women’s sevens teams can breathe a sigh of relief after avoiding the sport’s heavy hitters in rugby sevens pool draws for Paris.

Australia’s men have avoided two-time Olympic champions Fiji and perennial winners New Zealand in a rugby sevens draw for Paris which has bolstered their chances of a first Games medal.

As one of the top seeds, Australia’s women were always going to be relatively safe, guaranteed to sit as atop one of the three pools.

But the draw was much more of a lottery for the men, who have managed to avoid some of the sport’s heaviest hitters.

Drawn in Group B, the men will still have to contend with recently crowned SVNS world series winners Argentina, while they have also drawn Samoa and Kenya - both teams that possess players capable of causing an upset on their day.

The men’s sevens team have avoided Fiji and New Zealand in the Olympic group draw. Picture: Yong Teck Lim/Getty Images

But they have avoided sevens kings Fiji - winners of both gold medals since the sport was introduced to the Olympics in 2016 - perennial series champions New Zealand and home team and recent SVNS grand final winners France.

Group A is shaping as the men’s pool of death, with New Zealand, series runner-up Ireland and Rio bronze medallists and four-time series winners South Africa facing off, alongside Japan.

Australia’s women, winners of the inaugural Olympic sevens title at the Rio Games, face Ireland, Great Britain and debutants South Africa in Group B.

Series winners New Zealand top Group A - like the men’s pool, a dangerous one that also includes Fiji, Canada and China - while France and the USA are in Group C.

Both Aussie teams look well placed to advance to the quarter-finals given the top two in each of the three pools, as well as the two third-placed teams with the best record, will advance.

The women’s sevens team will be looking for Olympic redemption. Picture:: Getty Images

After missing the finals in Tokyo, the Australian women rebounded to win the triple crown - the series title, World Cup and Commonwealth Games gold - in 2022 and showed with their SVNS grand final victory in Madrid earlier this month they remain genuine gold medal hopes.

Captain Charlotte Caslick said after the high of winning the grand final in Madrid, the teams were just looking forward to getting into Montpellier for a final training camp.

“I think everyone’s just really looking forward to it,” Caslick said following a hitout against a Fijian side in Brisbane last week.

“We’ve had a great season and we’ve had a long season but everyone’s just seemed super pumped (to get to the Olympics).

“We’re just really looking forward to getting over there and putting out a performance we’ll be proud of and hopefully that Australia will be proud of and come away with what we deserve.”

Australia will name its sevens teams in Sydney next Wednesday before departing for France.

Originally published as Rugby Sevens: Aussies breathe easy after favourable Paris Olympic pool draw