The coach for the Samoa sevens rugby team has recruited a few new names for the Sevens squad to play in Vancouver and Las Vegas in the next two weeks.
Coach Damien McGrath told Loop Samoa he is mixing and matching his choices in the athletes available for Samoa as he warms up in his coaching position.
"The new players are Ed Fidow, Alex Samoa, Savelio Ropati and Alamanda Motuga. We have added more speed to the team. We will look to move the ball around," he said.
The new faces were standouts during the Vailima Marist international sevens tournament that took place a week ago that attracted many young talent from overseas.
Coach McGrath though isn’t feeding off small talk, he’s keeping his focus in the real with how the sevens games has evolved.
"The modern game of 7's is built around big, quick men. We are one of the smallest teams on the series. We have speed but cannot always match the power of the top teams," he added about the addition of more speed to his lineup
"We have added more speed and are trying to play to make use of that. The leading sides are introducing players from Super Rugby and France etc, Highly paid professionals playing in the top teams around the world. It's an amazing feat that we can even compete with these teams given our resources and player base," he remarked.
So how can we counter these types of moves by big name countries? Coach McGrath and the team are pursuing some of Samoa's very best in the sport in the likes of Paul Perez and Tim Nanai-Williams.
"I can confirm that the Samoan Rugby Union is actively pursuing some of our senior stars. It’s a really complex task but everything is being done. We have another tough pool against the same opposition as last time. Again Fiji will be a big test. We let ourselves down against them in Sydney so we aim to show what we can do," he stated.
Aside from Fiji making headlines, the United States have been silently climbing the ranks in sevens rugby competition.
"It was only a matter of time before they came to the fore. They have a huge population to pick from and an abundance of "crossover" athletes like Carlin Isles for example who can make a difference. The US Olympic committee is ploughing resources into 7's. They have a growing Academy system and they are using their local Polynesian talents to good effect. I am not alone in thinking that they will be one of the 7's powerhouses of the future," said McGrath.
"It is not weakness that holds us back it is the growing strength of the other nations. The 7's is big business now and has changed dramatically in the last 3 or 4 years. Countries are pouring resources in. We are a tiny island punching way above its weight, we struggle to match the teams with so much at their disposal," he stated.
"For example Australia are playing one team in Vegas - including Quade Cooper- then flying in a complete new team for Vancouver. That's the level all the teams are operating at. We must manage our expectations with that reality in mind," he concluded.
With all these many changes being brought in to the sevens game, it is starting to look like it’s the quick dominance from Pacific island teams that has led to big countries like these to step their game up a bit more.