Sevens and 15s: Crossover stars challenging for World Cup glory

One of the striking themes of this World Cup has been the impact of players who honed their craft on the sevens circuit.

The semi-finals showed it again over the weekend as the athletes demonstrated the speed, fitness and spatial awareness of sevens to be thriving on the biggest fifteen-a-side stage – and they could decide who lifts the trophy.

For Canada, ranked world number two, the crossover talent between fifteens and sevens has been the heartbeat of their campaign.

Canada captain Alex Tessier on being the dark horse in RWC

Canada captain Alex Tessier on being the dark horse in RWC

Olivia Apps has been a steady rock to Canada’s sevens side and now the fifteens. Apps captained Canada sevens to silver in Paris last summer and has built a reputation as one of the most composed playmakers in the game.

Her journey hasn’t been straightforward: diagnosed with alopecia as a child and sidelined by a serious ACL injury in 2019 she has shown remarkable resilience to not only return but to lead.

That mix of toughness and calm is what now makes her so effective in fifteens. Since making her test debut in 2023 she has carried the tempo and decision-making instincts of a sevens scrum-half into the longer format.

She directs play with a sharp eye for space and a willingness to take risks. Apps brings energy and clarity in knockout stages and that quality can make all the difference, highlighting her as a key SVNS star featuring in the final of the women’s Rugby World Cup.

Fancy Bermudez’s footwork and ability to spot mismatches make her a constant danger. At just 23 years old she has already made a name for herself as one of Canada’s most exciting backs.

Although small in stature but big in presence on the field, she brings a mix of speed and tenacity that makes her a constant threat.

Give her half a gap and she has the acceleration to turn it into something more – the kind of quick thinking that can change the direction of a match.

Bermudez is a familiar face on the SVNS circuit, where she’s crossed the line 14 times in 86 outings. She carried that finishing instinct into the 15s game too, making a dream debut for Canada in March 2023 by running in three tries during a dominant 66-7 victory over South Africa.

Alysha Corrigan has proven she is one of the most versatile backs in Canadian rugby. Today she blends the sharp instincts of a sevens player with the positional awareness needed in fifteens, making her a fascinating pick for big-match scenarios.

She’s featured in two World Cups already and has made the transition between sevens and fifteens multiple times which speaks to her adaptability and solid rugby IQ.

Corrigan was part of Canada’s Olympic campaign in Paris where the team claimed a silver medal – coming back from 0-12 down in the semis to stun Australia before falling to New Zealand in the gold medal match.

That kind of mental resilience and claw back momentum could serve her incredibly well in the Rugby World Cup final. She’s already shown she can make her mark and now she just adds depth and threat to Canada’s backfield.

Asia Hogan-Rochester has the kind of presence that makes them hard to miss on the field. Whether they’re putting on a Canada sevens jersey or lining up in the back three for the fifteens side.

They bring an intense energy that instantly lifts those around them. They’re quick, fearless and ready for the final from what we’ve seen from their performance so far.

Hogan-Rochester has already made success on the Olympic circuit and she has shown when games tighten up and the margin for error is minimal, she doesn’t shrink – she looks for the ball and makes something happen.

What makes them very dangerous is the crossover of her sevens skill set into fifteens. They have the acceleration to exploit a broken field, but also the strength and footwork to hold their own when space runs out.

Taylor Perry and Florence Symonds offer both control and balance to turn that kind of chaos on a rugby field to opportunity.

Taylor Perry for Canada is not just a playmaker; she’s the organiser who can keep things ticking when the stakes are highest.

Florence Symonds is still at the start of her international story, but she already looks built for the big occasion. Athletic and confident with ball in hand she offers Canada both power and pace whether she’s out wide or in midfield.

It’s clear her grounding in sevens has given her the ability to spot space and attack it, while her growing experience in fifteens is rounding out her game.

Caroline Crossley packs a punch in the contact area, she’s been on the Canadian radar for years ever since she broke through as one of the younger faces in the sevens squad.

Her ability to adapt between codes has kept her in the national conversation. Strong on the ball and composed under pressure she’s the type of player who can balance flair with reliability.

Karen Paquin is one of the most experienced figures in Canadian rugby, she’s a player whose career has spanned both sevens and fifteens at the very highest level.

She is well known for her blend of pace and power and has been a fixture in Canada’s squad across four World Cups.

England have a noticeable collection of previous sevens players too. Alex Matthews has been part of England’s set-up for more than a decade and her influence only seems to grow with time.

Matthews played a good game during the semi-finals at number 8 against France and was a crucial part in the flow between the forwards and the backs.

Her background in sevens is still evident in the way she plays and she has the fitness to go the distance, the speed and the instincts to turn fleeting moments of possession into valuable game-changing momentum.

Combine all that with her strength in contact and smart decision-making and you get a player built for the World Cup final.

Ellie Kildunne’s counter-attacking instincts come straight out of the shortened format. As a full-back who also drifts into wing or centre, she’s developed a knack for try-scoring with elegance under pressure.

She carries the many skills of a sevens player with experience and before making her mark in the Red Roses backline, she spent time with England’s sevens programme and more recently with Great Britain and the Olympics.

She has speed and quick decision-making that the sevens format demands. Her experience shows when she chooses her moment to attack or close a gap, bagging two tries during the semi-final match against France.

Helena Rowland is a skilled back who spent time with England sevens and Great Britain at the Tokyo Olympics. It’s clear she’s carried skills of exploiting space, escaping defenders and making quick decisions at speed to the fifteens game.

Holly Aitchison first made waves in the sevens world playing in fast-paced tournaments and learning to think quickly on her feet.

With her sevens roots giving her urgency and her fifteens work giving her structure, she looks like one of those players who can make key plays in a final.

Megan Jones is brilliant at finding and exploiting space in fractured defensive lines. Her background in sevens has given her an extra edge when playing fifteens. You can see those lessons from sevens in the way she operates in midfield now as she draws defenders in and picks her runs with precision.

During the semi-final match against France she made some strong tackles, carries and important turnovers that shaped the game. She even bagged herself a try in the final minutes.

Jade Shekells is one of the most exciting backs to emerge from GB Sevens. She’s someone who isn’t afraid to back herself with a ball in hand. She combines physical presence with an instinct for timing her runs and in a World Cup final her blend of sharpness in the sevens could make all the difference.

If these two sides meet in the final, it’ll be a showcase of how sevens has shaped the modern game – faster, sharper, and more ruthless in transition. The stage is set for the stars of the sevens to have the last word.

The final dance

The semi-final performances showed exactly why this group of crossover talents are so highly rated.

Some stood out with their attacking spark, others with their defensive grit, but together they underlined the value of the instincts of the sevens in the high-pressure moments of fifteens rugby.

As the final looms the only question is less about whether they can handle the stage, as they’ve already proven that, and more about which of them will seize the moment to leave their mark.

Finals are often decided by flashes of brilliance or acts of resilience and players like these feel destined to shape how the story ends in some way or another.