Duo’s Olympic dream shattered
FIJIAN-NZ 7s stars Vilimoni Koroi and Akuila Rokolisoa have been named as non-travelling reserves after falling short to make the final cut in New Zealand’s final 13 to the Tokyo Olympic Games.
New Zealand coach Clark Laidlaw has named one Fijian, Amanaki Nicole as a travelling reserve alongside All Black winger Caleb Clarke, to Tokyo in what he labels as the toughest team selection he has been involved in.
“Going to the Olympics is the pinnacle of four or five years’ work,” Laidlaw said.
“We were conscious of that as coaches and selectors, so we made sure we were really clear on how we want to play the game, where the players were at and picked the best team to go forward.”
Tim Mikkelson and Scott Curry lead the side’s campaign in Tokyo, will the likes of Sam Dickson and Chiefs centre Etene NanaiSeturo.
Laidlaw highlighted the need for a multi-talented squad.
“When you’ve only got 12 players for one tournament, and it could be 40 degrees with high humidity, having players who can rotate and share the load throughout a weekend and still nail their core role is important.
“We’ve selected backs who can change positions, and that is genuinely important.”
The NZ Olympics 7s squad are Tim Mikkelson (co-captain), Scott Curry (co-captain), Dylan Collier, Tone Ng Shiu, Sam Dickson, Andrew Knewstubb, Ngarohi McGarvey-Black, Sione Molia, Kurt Baker, Joe Webber, Etene Nanai-Seturo, Regan Ware. Travelling reserves: William Warbrick, Caleb Clarke, Amanaki Nicole.