George Gregan’s sledge appears to ring true for the Australian ladies’s Sevens after lacking a medal within the Olympic closing.
All I can say as a fan I really like watching the ladies play, the talent pleasure and journey makes me smile. Preserve your heads up, girls, and use the frustration as gasoline. Congratulations on the consequence, we’re nonetheless happy with you.
This from Pravda
A tearful Charlotte Caslick has been left to ponder what went fallacious as Australia’s rugby Sevens golden ambition evaporated inside three lengthy hours within the Parisian solar. The latest world collection champions and Rio gold medallists had cantered into Tuesday’s semi-finals and regarded on monitor for a blockbuster showdown with Tokyo title-winners New Zealand.
However, on a day the place temperatures reached the excessive 30s, a second of inattention swung their whole marketing campaign. Canadian Charity Williams performed villain, catching the Australian defence off guard to dash away for a shock strive that sparked one of many Video games’ largest upsets. Main 12-0, Australia by no means recovered and the 21-12 loss relegated the shell-shocked facet to a battle for bronze with USA lower than three hours later.
Once more Australia scored first earlier than conceding and, at 7-7 had been left hammering the USA line within the closing 90 seconds earlier than a strive – Maddison Levi’s second and an Olympic document 14th for the event – appeared to have sealed a comfort medal. However, from nothing, Alex Sedrick shrugged a deal with and ran 85 metres, changing her personal attempt to spark wild scenes and mount extra distress on Tim Walsh’s facet.
USA had overwhelmed Australia within the Tokyo pool stage, Caslick’s facet additionally lacking the medals there when shocked by Fiji within the quarter-final stage. However this one, after such a dominant event and sensible lead-in kind, notably stung.
“I’m fairly gutted,” Caslick mentioned. “It’s the great thing about sevens and sport; that’s why we play it. It’s a sport of moments and there’s in all probability a number of issues we’d have liked to do in a different way, however we are able to’t take that again. It sucks, clearly; we need to come residence with a medal, we’re those that practice day-after-day to have this sense.”
Their marketing campaign theme was “no regrets” and coach Tim Walsh insisted there remained none, describing it as “merciless” to label fourth place a failure. “Triumph and catastrophe; they’re each impostors and it’s a must to deal with them the identical method,” mentioned Walsh, paraphrasing Rudyard Kipling’s poem “If”.
Walsh, who’s off contract and pondering whether or not he’ll proceed within the function, agreed that the strive at halftime in opposition to Canada had been a pivotal second of their marketing campaign. “Profitable and studying … a little bit of successful and a little bit of studying,” he mused. “I want we did a bit extra successful and it might have been a greater finish to the season.”
Moana Pacific signing Ardie Savea – Opinion
The signing od Ardie Savea is improbable information for the beleaguered membership in isolation however does present the actual drawback with Tremendous Rugby.
I’ve lengthy mentioned that for Tremendous Rugby to achieve success gamers must be free to journey between golf equipment. That is what engages followers throughout all the competitors. I used to be pointed to the What A Lad pod the place Timoti Tavatavanawai was interviewed; he identified that if he had been to play for Fiji it might have an effect on his means to carry a contract with the Highlanders. That is sub optimum for the competitors as a product.
For Tremendous Rugby to succeed from a business perspective it must create a greater narrative alongside the traces of the NFL the place followers are engaged by means of the off season. Think about a narrative of Beauden Barrett to the Pressure or Fraser McReight to the Blues.
The issue as I see it in the intervening time there are too many individuals who need the opposite groups to fail in order that they are often the ruler over the ashes.
Who replaces Fraser McReight?
The Wallabies have suffered one other blow to their unfastened forwards with Fraser McReight struggling a thumb damage in the course of the Welsh collection. He joins Lian Wright additionally out with a shoulder difficulty.
I’d give Carlo Tizzano the chance. Throughout the course of the Tremendous Rugby season he topped the deal with rely with 32 greater than Dalton Papaili. He’s additionally a canine over the ball and would convey the correct quantity of loopy to the contact zone.