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All Blacks star Caleb Clarke misses Tokyo Olympics selection
All Blacks star Caleb Clarke has missed out on the 12-man All Blacks Sevens squad to compete at the Tokyo Olympics later this month.
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Clarke was the highest-profile figure in the running to make the New Zealand men’s squad after switching over from the XV-man game in May following his Super Rugby Aotearoa campaign with the Blues.
However, the 22-year-old, who starred in his debut season with the All Blacks last year, has only been named as one of three travelling reserves by All Blacks Sevens head coach Clark Laidlaw.
Clarke’s non-selection in the main squad comes as a surprise given his commitment to the Olympics which has forced him to miss the Blues’ title-winning Super Rugby Trans-Tasman season and the upcoming All Blacks tests against Tonga and Fiji.
There is still hope that the five-test international could take to the field at the Games should should any injury concerns arise, but, at this stage, he remains on the outer.
The omission of Clarke isn’t the only contentious point of selection, as Laidlaw has opted to omit veteran All Blacks Sevens playmaker and Highlanders utility back Vilimoni Koroi from the squad entirely.
Koroi, one of three players who switched from Super Rugby to sevens with the aim of competing at the Olympics, has been with the All Blacks Sevens since 2017 and has won World Sevens Series and Commonwealth Games titles with the side.
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The 23-year-old, who has been back in the sevens set-up following the completion of last year’s Mitre 10 Cup, won’t go to the Japanese capital at all, though, as he has been named as one of eight non-travelling reserves.
The other Super Rugby player to have switched to sevens ahead of the Olympics is Chiefs wing Etene Nanai-Seturo, who has made the full squad, which will be co-captained by Tim Mikkelson and Scott Curry.
Laidlaw described the selection of the squad as the toughest he has had to make since taking over as All Blacks Sevens head coach at the end of 2016.
“Going to Olympics is the pinnacle of four or five years work. We were conscious of that as coaches and selectors, so we made sure we were really clear on how we want to play the game, where the players were at, and picked the best team to go forward,” he said.
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“When you’ve only got 12 players for one tournament, and it could be 40 degrees with high humidity, having players who can rotate and share the load throughout a weekend and still nail their core role is important. We’ve selected backs who can change positions and that is genuinely important.”
You can tell the young midfielder thought this one through very carefully ? #AllBlacks #NZLvTONhttps://t.co/Pru5bZXW3T
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) July 1, 2021
The Black Ferns Sevens squad, meanwhile, features a raft of experience, with more than half the side – Gayle Broughton, Tyla Nathan-Wong, Kelly Brazier, Theresa Fitzpatrick, Portia Woodman, Ruby Tui and captain Sarah Hirini – having competed at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
With neither the All Blacks Sevens, who finished fifth, and the Black Ferns Sevens, who won the silver medal, claiming gold in Brazil five years ago, both sides will be chasing their first-ever Olympic gold medal in three-to-four weeks’ time.
The men’s Olympic competition is scheduled to kick-off on July 26 and run until July 28, while the women’s competition is scheduled to run between July 29 and July 31.
All Blacks Sevens Olympics squad:
Tim Mikkelson (c) – Waikato
Scott Curry (c) – Bay of Plenty
Dylan Collier – Waikato
Tone Ng Shiu – Auckland
Sam Dickson – Bay of Plenty
Andrew Knewstubb – Horowhenua Kapiti
Ngarohi McGarvey-Black – Bay of Plenty
Sione Molia – Counties Manukau
Kurt Baker – Hawke’s Bay
Joe Webber – Bay of Plenty
Etene Nanai-Seturo – Waikato
Regan Ware – Bay of Plenty
Travelling reserves: William Warbrick, Caleb Clarke, Amanaki Nicole
Non-travelling reserves: Akuila Rokolisoa, Trael Joass, Kitiona Vai, Vilimoni Koroi, Brady Rush, Oliver Sapsford, Moses Leo and Leroy Carter
Black Ferns Sevens Olympics squad:
Portia Woodman – Northland
Sarah Hirini (c) – Manawatu
Ruby Tui – Counties Manukau
Tyla Nathan Wong – Northland
Theresa Fitzpatrick – Auckland
Stacey Fluhler – Waikato
Michaela Blyde – Bay of Plenty
Alena Saili – Bay of Plenty
Risaleaana Pouri-Lane – Bay of Plenty
Kelly Brazier – Bay of Plenty
Gayle Broughton – Taranaki
Shiray Kaka – Waikato
Travelling reserves: Tenika Willison, Jazmin Hotham, Terina Te Tamaki
Non-travelling reserves: Dhys Faleafaga, Shakira Baker, Cheyelle Robins-Reti, Manaia Nuku & Mahina Paul
Comments on RugbyPass
Lets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
10 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
10 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
34 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
34 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
6 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
22 Go to comments