Sevens team hopefuls get up to speed

New Zealand sevens captain DJ Forbes. Photo / Mark Mitchell

They've never lost a match at the Commonwealth Games, they're boosted by some serious All Blacks firepower and arch rivals Fiji are nowhere to be seen.

Yet the New Zealand sevens rugby team are taking nothing for granted as they chase a fourth successive gold medal at New Delhi.

The kings of the abbreviated game for more than a decade, sevens coaching guru Gordon Tietjens will hope a short buildup has his New Zealand players fit enough for the demands of playing in oppressive heat.

Tietjens has named eight of his specialist sevens squad in the 12-man group, topping them up with four fringe All Blacks -- wingers Hosea Gear, Zac Guildford and Ben Smith, along with flanker Liam Messam.

A late replacement for the injured Adam Thomson, snaffling Messam for a couple of weeks is a coup.

Arguably the best sevens forward to play under Tietjens since Eric Rush retired, Messam brings leadership and power to the middle of the park, joining Lote Raikabula as the two players who have survived from the gold medal-winning group of four years ago in Melbourne.

Messam's successor as captain, DJ Forbes, reckons he has never been part of a quicker team, pointing out that Counties-Manukau teammate Sherwin Stowers is probably faster than anyone in New Zealand rugby.

And Stowers had an advantage in that he was part of New Zealand's 2009-10 world series campaign which ended with a second placing behind Samoa.

"The game is made for guys like Hosea, Zac and Ben but the first thing 15s players assume is that there's a lot more space. It's not as easy as that," Forbes told NZPA.

"There's a lot of work to be done and a lot of skill sets that evolve through playing a lot of sevens.

"The key is going to be for the sevens specialists to nurture the boys who haven't had a lot of sevens (Guildford and Smith).

"We've got a good mix. Tietj will have a job picking his starting seven and that's good for us."

Fiji's exclusion from the Games on political grounds leaves Samoa as the obvious team to beat although England and South Africa bristle with quality.

A short camp this week is a rare chance for the New Zealand players to get together, something that left tough forward Forbes concerned.

"It's a little bit scary when you think about some of the other countries having tournaments and games together for two-three months," he said.

"After a bit of a disappointing season, the Commonwealth Games have been at the back of our minds for a lot of us and the aim has been to peak at the right time."

Forbes will do well to reach his peak, having battled a painful groin injury for several months.

The respected skipper has only just returned to the playing field and hoped to pass one of Tietjens' infamous fitness tests this week to prove his readiness for Delhi.

Missing a second Games would sting for Forbes, who was shut out when several Super 14 forwards were added to the 2006 team in Melbourne.

"Winning a gold medal would definitely be the highlight of my career," he said.

New Zealand team: DJ Forbes (captain), Toby Arnold, Kurt Baker, Tomasi Cama, Hosea Gear, Zac Guildford, Liam Messam, Tim Mikkelson, Lote Raikabula, Ben Smith, Ben Souness, Sherwin Stowers