The 26-year-old, who had a spell in rugby league last year, was named World Rugby women’s sevens player of the year in 2016 after helping Australia to gold in Rio and she will be key to her country’s hopes of retaining the title in Tokyo. Portia Woodman (New Zealand)Woodman, World Rugby’s women’s sevens player for the decade just past, was reduced to tears after the ‘Black Ferns’ lost the final at the Rio Olympics and has frequently spoken of her desire to make amends. His breakthrough season came about only after he was freed from the sevens programme when the World Series was cut short by the Covid-19 pandemic. He elected to return in May for a tilt at Tokyo and impressed in trial matches against Australia. World Rugby men’s sevens player of the year in 2017 and 2018, Baker took up rugby after a knee injury robbed him of the chance of following his uncle Wes Chandler and brother Dallas into the National Football League (NFL).

Source: Standard Digital June 25, 2021 09:22 UTC