Sevens: Ioane makes good on dispensation

Rieko Ioane scores against England in the final of the Wellington Sevens. Photo / Getty Images

Rieko Ioane needed his parents to sign a dispensation form so he could play for New Zealand at Sevens Wellington this weekend.

New Zealand coach Gordon Tietjens was thankful he was allowed to lace up his boots as the hulking Auckland 17-year-old scored two tries in the home side's 27-21 victory over England in last night's final.

The victory was New Zealand's eighth in Wellington since the tournament's debut in 2000 and despite the crowd numbers dropping on previous years, the near-20,000 who did attend the event were treated to a spectacle.

New Zealand went through Pool B undefeated on Friday and then ramped it up in the knockout stages yesterday as they beat Australia 26-7 in the quarter-finals before toppling South Africa 17-7 in the semi, which paved their way to the big stage.

Ioane, who captained the New Zealand schools side last year, was a menace throughout the event with his pace on the flanks. Given he was under 18, a mountain of paperwork was required so he could play.

"Mum and dad had to sign the okay but they were fairly happy to do it," Ioane said.

"I was definitely nervous. I was just lucky enough to get a few balls bouncing my way and a few offloads coming from the boys."

His dispensation, which also takes in to account the opinions of coaches and strength and conditioning experts, will allow him to play in next week's tournament in Las Vegas.

He plays in the midfield in the 15-a-side game and has his eye on an ITM Cup berth with Auckland this year.

Ioane, standing 1.89m and weighing 102kg, turns 18 next month and there's a good chance you will see more of him in the sevens game this season as New Zealand look to run down South Africa and claim top spot in the world series.

Last night's win moved New Zealand to second on the overall standings as they leapfrogged Fiji who slipped to third. South Africa finished third in Wellington after they beat Scotland 40-7 in the third-place playoff.

Finishing inside the top four in the world series this year will punch your ticket to the Olympics in Rio next year. There's five more tournaments to be played this season.

Ioane's older brother Akira played in the Wellington event last year but has been training with the Blues recently.

The younger Ioane said it was inspiring to look up and see his parents in the stands. A nice touch considering he needed their blessing to play.

New Zealand did it tough during their final two games as they were without captain DJ Forbes who had a foot problem.

With Forbes on the sidelines, players such as Scott Curry, Joe Webber and Sherwin Stowers showed their experience, which proved useful in the key moments.

Tietjens expected Forbes to be available for Las Vegas but New Zealand were set to confirm their travelling squad today. Given their success in Wellington, it was unlikely there would be any changes.

In the minor trophy action yesterday, Fiji beat Australia 24-0 to claim the plate, while France took the bowl with a 27-5 win over Argentina. Canada beat Samoa 26-10 for the shield.