2022 HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series Comes to a Close for USA Women’s Sevens in France

The USA Women’s Sevens finished their sixth and final HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series stop in France this weekend, defeating Brazil in the seventh-place playoff.

Having faced series champion Australia in back-to-back contests through pool play and the Cup quarterfinal, the USA have a clear checkpoint on the top competition going into the Rugby World Cup Sevens in Cape Town this September. In a shortened and sporadic season due to the lingering effects of COVID-19, the Women’s Sevens faced a number of unique challenges as a program but remain a strong and developing team as we near the halfway point to the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

While disappointing to finish lower than expected and fall out of podium position by series end, the USA squared up with the best of them through this season and showed that competitively, this squad is still a top program. With roster changes, coaching shifts and new blood that typically come at the beginning of a new olympic cycle, there are focused tweaks and improvements the team will focus on through the summer to start finding the win column in these top tier matches. The Rugby World Cup Sevens and 2023 HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series shine a light of promise on the USA.

• Ilona Maher continues to secure her position as one of the top players on the circuit with strong showing in France and DHL Impact Player top honors
• Jazamine Gray leads USA Women’s Sevens in season total points and tries in her debut HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series
• Series rookie Alex Sedrick makes her mark with highlight reel defensive rundown in opening match against Fiji

“While we are disappointed with aspects of our performance in France, and that we weren’t able to do some of the details necessary to put ourselves in a better finishing position, we absolutely took some valuable lessons out of both the France and Langford tournaments. We used this opportunity to trial some different combinations and investigate how we can maximize the strengths of our players in different roles, so that will be very useful to reflect upon in the coming month.

Our goal all season has been to become a more threatening attacking unit, and this competition gave us excellent examples of what we look like when we get it right, and the habits that we need to hone into in the coming months to convert our opportunities to deliver consistently. The same goes on the defensive side of the ball, following Langford we committed as a group to improving our work off the ball to chase back, close down opportunities and find our shape more consistently.

For us, consistency is the big message not just for the France tournament but for the season as a whole, which is clear from the results and ultimately our final position on the series. As always, when you’re evolving as a team, there are times you get it right, and times you don’t. We showed this season that when we get it right we can win a tournament and compete with the best in the World, but when our details aren’t there or we lose the commitment to our philosophies as a unit the series is so competitive now that we find ourselves on the outside looking in.

We are excited for the players that really seized their opportunities this season, seeing Kayla Canett growing and becoming a very dynamic and consistent playmaker, Jaz Gray establishing herself on the series as a dangerous attacking threat and some of our younger players like Spiff Sedrick and Sui A’au getting some valuable experience and making big plays and contributions in key moments.

As we look to the summer we will continue to be pushing our physical ceiling knowing that this is a critical piece to our ability to be a World Class unit. We will be totally focused on how we can bring more consistency into our game, ensuring that we have clarity in what habits unlock our performance and cohesion as a unit so that we are positioned to take a big step forward as a team and program at the Rugby World Cup in Cape Town.”

The USA first kicked off against Fiji, a replication from the last series stop in Langford where the same matchup opened tournament play and the USA walked away with a close win. Small mistakes from the Eagles and Fiji’s early offense kept the USA from repeating this time around, jumping out to a 19-0 lead as Alowesi Nakoci was dangerous in the first half with two tries. Turnovers on attack hurt the USA and kept them from an opportunity to open up passing and find continuity. The first half did end with some momentum, as Ilona Maher paced down the outside but Jaz Gray just missed the offload to take us to break. Sarah Levy and Maher did tally tries in the final minutes, with a heads up tap and go from Levy, but it wouldn’t be enough as Fiji win, 26-12.

Match two and the final of day one paired the USA with invitational side South Africa. The USA were swarming on defense early, backing South Africa against their own try line and forcing them to kick out for relief. Maher would then be waiting with space and find a try on the outside. The Eagles did well to share the wealth with four different players earning tries, the following three from Kayla Canett, Kristi Kirshe and rookie Alex Sedrick notching her third ever series try. The only time South Africa was able to carry the ball into the USA end was off a restart mishap where the ball didn’t go 10 meters, and give them a midfield tap and go. No points would come of it however, as a penalty turned it over and forced the halftime whistle. While not a series regular, South Africa came into the match looking for valuable experience as they look to host the Rugby World Cup Sevens in Cape Town this September.

The USA Women’s Sevens finished their sixth and final HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series stop in France this weekend, defeating Brazil in the seventh-place playoff.

Day two saw a pair of fixtures against series champion Australia, having them in Pool A and subsequently paired up just after in the Cup quarterfinal. The Aussie defense would be the story in both matches, with the first resulting in a 31-0 win over the USA. The Eagles just weren’t able to form an attack as Australia was relentless at the breakdown and drew three of their five tries off grab and go turnovers. The second match would be the Cup quarterfinal as the USA advanced on point differential, with a near seven-hour intermission between the two games.

The USA came out for the second round with visible energy, playing intently physical and looking to push against that Aussie defense early. Lauren Doyle got things started with a line break towards the line, but Maddison Levi would tangle her up and keep the ball from grounding. Levi committed a high tackle in doing so, where the USA was able to reset at five meters and find Maher for the first try of the game. Australia would hit back immediately as the Eagle defense was caught off guard during the restart. Handling errors on both sides of the half continued to give Australia prime real estate in the American end resulting in another two tries, but the USA showed zero intention of letting this match get away from them by physically counter rucking and pressuring the Aussie breakdown with only a 10-point deficit and nearly a full half to play. The door opened a little for the USA when Sariah Paki earned a yellow card and Jaz Gray was finally able to find speed into space, but the Australia lead was too far to chase, and the USA fell out of cup contention with the 24-14 loss.

Seeing their northern rival for a second straight tournament, the USA began the final day of the 2022 season matched up with Canada in the fifth-place semifinal. Phases were clean in the early going as the Eagles cleanly went through their progression and scored first with a Kristi Kirshe try up the middle. They looked to be repeating on the restart until a slight Kirshe knock on gave the ball back and Canada equalized. With time expiring, the USA were backed up against their own try line where Nicole Heavirland did well to force two turnovers at the breakdown, but team penalties kept the ball in striking distance for Canada. Olivia Apps then came up with the creative play, kicking through the line for Olivia De Couvreur to tap it down for a try. Both teams did well to move the ball and go through progressions, the USA just had trouble closing out with possession as pace picked up towards the line. With two minutes left, Kayla Canett was pulled down in an awkward tackle but after some short attention from medical staff was able to get back to her feet for a tap and go. Penalties would drain the remaining time as Canada wins, 19-7.

For the final match of the 2022 season, the USA took on an improving Brazil who were ready to lay everything on the line as this match would be a decider for the South American team’s core status relegation on the series next year. While an underdog, Brazil do have one win over the United States, and that came this year in the opening round in Dubai. Until about five minutes left, the USA did well to control the match, keeping the Brazilians off the scoreboard until Thalia Costa was able to break free up the middle. Following up two unconverted tries from Heavirland and Kirshe. The 10-7 score was a bit closer than the USA was comfortable with, particularly with Brazil forcing two turnovers that gave them opportunities to jump ahead, but Jaz Gray would seal it with a try as the defense left her unattended on the right flank. When all said and done in France, the USA would finish in seventh place.

The USA Women’s Sevens will now break from competition for the summer as preparations for the Rugby World Cup Sevens in Cape Town begin. A special event occurring every four years and brought to millions of new fans each year presents an exciting opportunity for the squad and USA Rugby to compete at the highest level.

Head Coach | Emilie Bydwell (she/her)

Assistant Coach | Zack Test

Athletic Trainer | Nicole Titmas (she/her)

Strength & Conditioning | Trey Ford

Sports Psychologist | Peter Haberl

vs Fiji | (L) 12-26

vs South Africa | (W) 22-0

vs Australia | (L) 31-0

vs Australia | (L) 14-24

vs Canada | (L) 7-19

vs Brazil | (W) 15-7