Straight away, I’ll be honest; I don’t watch sevens that much. Over the years I have never found myself in front of my TV waiting for the Wellington sevens to start.
On Saturday, waiting for the Wellington sevens to start, I had one reason to watch. I understand and appreciate how much of a amazing athlete Sonny Bill Williams is, and over the last few years I became a Williams supporter from reading how he conducts himself off the field with his many gestures of good will. I have found myself genuinely interested on how he might perform in the sevens game.
NZ were placed in Pool A.
Here is how he went in his pool games:
Vs Russia 38-7
Sonny Bill was subbed in around the fourth minute into the second half, much to the approval of the crowd. He had some good touches, he was gifted a try when Augustine Pulu broke the line and gave the try to Sonny.
Vs Scotland 27-7
Sonny Bill had some good spots defensively, the highlight of which was shortly after second half. He pounced into a ruck to win the turnover, which led to a Sam Dickson try.
Vs South Africa 14-19
This game reminded me how awesome sevens can be. Sevens is sometimes seen as a fast-paced, try-infested games. But this game was just as exciting and intense because at the dying stages I actually thought New Zealand lost.
SBW was the culprit when he threw an offload that led to a South African try, but a minute later he shot from zero to hero and threw an amazing offload that led to the match-winning try.
When nothing was on, Sonny Bill ran straight towards three opponents, but before he would hit the ground, he threw a signature offload to Joe Webber that sent New Zealand to the quarter-finals undefeated.
Quarter-finals:
Vs Kenya 36-0
During the demolition, one note of significance is when SBW came off second best in a collision with Oscar Ouma.
Semi-finals:
Vs England 25-5
The Kiwis outmuscled the England side to head to the finals against South Africa. SBW benefited from an Akira Ioane burst to go and score his second try of the tournament.
Finals:
Vs South Africa 24-21
Although helping New Zealand to another Wellington victory, SBW had two mistakes that he’s probably not that proud of. One was when he dropped a kickoff from South Arica, and second was a wayward offload that led to a South Africa try.
Overall:
Taking into account everything, speed, fitness, defence etc, I’ll give SBW’s first sevens debut a B-.
He has a lot to work on, and he said himself he has a lot to prove. He’s an awesome athlete that influences his teammates in a good way. Reiko Ioane said that “at training SBW’s probably the fittest dude.”
His defence has been good. There were glimpses of what he’s capable of, his offload to Joe Webber, his turnover work and his overall attitude on and off the field.
Zero Gain
Guest
Doesn't really matter how he went. What is more important is the fact that my kids want to watch if he is playing ( and same goes for Quade).
Dan Fan
Guest
Quite a few people actually. He is very well known in France for a start.
CUW
Guest
well to be fair, SBW is known where ever people play rugger. for example he wa the main attraction in DUBAI, where he was on holiday with his family and also supporting his sister who played for NZ women's 7s team. people and media were flocking around him. it was the same in USA. the rugger loving public know him. mind u , he is more recognizable than say Johnny Wilco for example. maybe becoz he is a really big man. also blame it on the internet /social media age. with twitter and facebook and whatnot, he has a more known face than Karl Te Nana or Josh Kronfeld (who were both in Dubai but atracted little crowd attention :) )
CUW
Guest
agree and disagree. in fact ur proving my point when u say u expect SBW to perform the unexpected BUT all he has been doing is the expected - go to tackle and offload. what he has to learn is to be a 2-3 trick pony - go to ground and set it up or try a normal spin-pass. i saw one match (4get which ) where the ball goes from front of posts to the corner in two long passes , one from Pulu and the other maybe Baker (not sure). the issue with SBW is those things are lacking. also remember there is a learning curve for both SBW and the opposition. as much as SBW learns , the opposition will watch a tape and understand his plays and target him the next time they see him. so he needs new tricks and not just one play in his armory. one issue for him is as a forward he needs to learn to jump at kickoff and lineouts to claim the ball. as a league forward and as a union back these are things he did not learn much. that is where Akira Ioane has the edge over SBW. if the call came between SBW and Akira for the 12th spot, i would pick Akira. we got to wait and see what SGT does :D cheers
puff
Guest
In most sports B is more than a pass mark and if you consider all the trials & tribulations associated with his unexpected Wellington inclusion, Tietjens is probably mildly satisfied. To be fair he did display a degree of agility but struggled to stamp much authority in mid-field. Without been critical, from a standing start he was perhaps a meter or two off the pace, with the lively young SA’s testing his alertness. Sydney is the acid test, with an aroused sellout crowd making creative opportunity a much more complex exchange for players with L plates. If SBW receives a B+ which can’t be disqualified, all the doubters will be mumbling in their beer and the skeptics will switch over to the SR trial replay.
R2D2
Guest
B- is a fair call. SBW does offer plenty of options to NZ, but this NZ team has a deep bench as it proved in the final in Wellington. SBW just adds nicely to the mix and with T as the coach the cocktails he can come up with will be interesting.
Harry
Guest
Outside NZ and Australia and parts of England how really in the world knows who is SBW?
cashead
Roar Rookie
Not without some mistakes, particularly in the final, but I think he has enough goodwill to have the benefit of the doubt when he says he will get better. His track record states that this is highly likely.
Old Bugger
Guest
cuw I dunno.....SBWs selection has been predicated upon the fact that he can perform the unexpected and extraordinary feat with ball in hand. Both Henry and Hansen have acknowledged that fact as being the main reason why he first gained their attention so long ago. To learn to go to ground is what your opposition always expects and in that respect, they will provide the necessary 1 on 1 defence screen, to cut SBW down accordingly. But, I don't believe and I'd suggest neither do you, that he was really selected to run, get tackled and then, go to ground to reset, for the next play. That's not SBW and if you concur with this, then it is surprising to see you advocate he plays according to established rules of the 15s game. His job IMO, will be to continuously and consistently challenge the opposition defence by attracting more than just 1 defender. He will be tasked with attracting 2 or more defenders before looking to release a pass that is unexpected.....but, you knew that, didn't you....?? He just needs to do that once maybe twice in a match for a positive result each time but, the outcome means the opposition have to try harder, to pull back that deficit. The onus is on his team-mates to position themselves to expect and catch his offload and not for SBW to find the runner. This is just a hiccup within everyone's timing but I would expect improvements within the team as they spend more time together for training and of course playing. Folks tarred his brush before the RWC and IMO, he came out of that comp with his head held high......let's not get into a similar exercise before he's had time to show-case himself.
taylorman
Roar Guru
No its just a way of getting a little rise in temperature from you NB given the way you dismiss others opinions so easily, and often callously. I don't care whether SBW is good at either 7's or XV's or whatever, but I do enjoy your efforts to defend him. I raised the initial point that SBW needs to do more than look to offload as his seemingly core reason for being on the field, calling two examples- one successful, one not a '50/50' outcome, saying thats not the AB way to determine outcomes of matches. You jumped on it in your usual way then what happens? he does it again and the team spent the rest of the match making up for the stupid pass by cutting the 50/50's out, playing to their strengths. Then you just kind of sailed off...funny that.
Not Bothered
Guest
So SBW didnt play half the WC final? That core player was only preferred for 50% of the most important game NZ had played in since 2011. SBW was preferred for the other 50%. Thats a bit, a big bit huh? What I described was a player that has been capped 33 times for the All Blacks, you describe him as a bit player to take away from what SBW has done. Its your backhanded way of putting SBW down. "hes only a bit player". Have Nonu and Smith been preferred most of the time? yes. Does that make SBW a bit player? no. A bit player for the ABs is a guy like T.Taylor, perhaps R.Crotty if you want to be harsh. Not a guy whos played a major role in the last 19 games hes been eligible for, starting 13 of those games and playing an ave of 30 mins in the other 6. I have no doubt in my mind that you say "a bit player" for one reason only and that is to take away from SBW.
Taylorman
Guest
What you've just described is a bit part rather than key central player. Many of the starts were due to injury to Smith or Nonu, or, weren't considered critical. In the World Cup he didn't start in any of the knockouts. Barrett, Mealamu were similar. Not first choice, but important to the side.
Not Bothered
Guest
He started about half of the ABs tests last year and played in most other games for an ave of about 25 mins. In 2014 he started about 4 from 5. In 2012 he started 5 from 5. In 2011 he started about 4 from 11. In 2010 he started about 2 from 4. So from the 36 games hes been eligible for hes played 33 and started about 20. Just a bit part though huh? I get it, you are a bit miffed at SBW but dont make up stuff.
Not Bothered
Guest
He needs to improve. He probably will but we shall see, he may not. No time for people that have definate opinions one way or the other. If I was forced to bet I would say that he will prolly make Rio but if he doesnt the ABs could use him. Its win, win tbh.
cuw
Guest
it looks like for a chnge NZ 7s have come out of a tournament leg without any nasty injuries this year. even better for them - Lewis Ormond and Dylan Collier are back from injury. now if SBW can stop those silly passes and learn to go to ground - that would be a miracle :D
cuw
Guest
MIKE : if the whole team is available to gel then SBW will be watching the matches from the executive box. !!!! :P :D guys out injured and will probably be back before RIO include legend DJ Forbes, Sherwin Stowers, Beudien Wakka Declan O'donnel. however Scott Curry is unlikely to be ready before the olympics. already returning Lewis Ormond and Dylan Collier for Sydney. Sbw will be warming the bench a lot. these are 7s veterans. SBW is a rookie in this game. this is not an offensive post. its just that SBW as good as he is , is still learning the game and he will not be educated by August :D
Scrum
Guest
I have to disagree on two main counts. 1. He looked one paced & lacking the explosive power to be an X Factor player. Just seemed a bit cumbersome at times. 2. Defensively he struggled. Slow to adjust his position & anticipate play. To be fair this aspect will improve with more experience. He did a few good things but compared to the stars of the tournament he was way off the pace
In brief
Guest
Biggest issue in 7s is the use of the yellow card for minor indiscretions. In a game with so few players on the pitch, the yellow card should be reserved for foul play, not timing issues.
Pat Malone
Guest
Any update on the other 15 NZ players?
taylorman
Roar Guru
He'll do what he thinks is best for club SBW and so he should. But if he has even one or two outings like that in Sydney, which is going to be way harder pressure wise, or beyond, I think he'll jump ship. He's not the type to be a bit player, though he accepted that role with the AB's ok.