‘It’s pretty special’: The superstar Levi sisters taking the SVNS world by storm
When the full-time whistle sounded at Dubai’s The Sevens Stadium last weekend, two superstar sisters from the Gold Coast took their place in history after a sublime weekend in the desert.
Teagan and Maddison Levi both stole the show during the opening leg of the new-look SVNS Series in their own ways, and it’s an incredibly exciting development for the Australia sevens program.
Maddison was on the field when the ball was kicked out of play on a humid Sunday night in the UAE. The try-scoring phenom hugged teammates as young sister Teagan ran on from the sidelines.
As both Levi’s continued to celebrate Australia’s first cup final triumph since the Dubai SVNS last season, they eventually found their way to one another – and it was a special moment that followed.
Up on the big screen at the Dubai rugby venue, broadcast cameras caught a smiling Teagan Levi turning around and throwing her arms around her older sister to share an iconic embrace.
The two sisters from the Gold Coast – who recently penned a contract extension with Rugby Australia beyond the Paris Olympics in 2024 – had elevated their games to an all-new level.
Maddison, who was nominated for World Rugby’s Player of the Year after a record-breaking 2022/23 season with 57 tries, scored a staggering 11 tries across just six games in Dubai last weekend.
As for Teagan, the 20-year-old took the sevens by storm in the cup final and was rewarded with Player of the Final honours. Two tries against the Black Ferns Sevens is no fluke.
“It’s pretty special to have her on the field, especially right next to me. If I’m not setting them up for her, she’s setting them up for me,” Teagan Levi told RugbyPass after winning the Dubai SVNS.
“She’s an incredible athlete and she’s on the rise. I’m excited to see where her future is going.
“I’m so lucky to have her as a guide to look up to. When we were younger she always said that I was the person to look up to but now it’s vice versa and I’m looking up to her to be like her.
“This weekend she’s proved that she’s ready to top the next record or she’s ready to step up when we need her. In all the games she’s really worked hard and shown that she is an incredible athlete.”
Tegan Levi has come a long way in a short space of time with this Aussie squad. After making some cameos off the bench at the Sydney Sevens in January, Levi is now a frontline starter.
The woman known affectionally within the sevens side as ‘Pitbull’ takes pride in her physicality on both sides of the ball, and rugby fans saw that in spades during a breakout weekend in Dubai.
Levi was scrumming, goal-kicking, taking the kick-offs and leading the way as a playmaker within a world-class Aussie side. The youngster looked like a fetching backrower at times too with Levi constantly putting her body on the line.
“I’m pretty excited, especially about getting Player of the Final. I think it shows that hard work really does pay off and not just me but the whole team, we’ve worked really hard this whole preseason,” Levi said.
“To come out here and get the win is awesome and such a surreal feeling.
“Individually it’s really exciting to see what this year holds for me. I think I’ve worked really hard in preseason but once again I wouldn’t have been able to do it without my coaching staff and the team around me.
“We have some of the best talented athletes in the world in our team and some of the most amazing staff and I think they’ve really put us to the test this preseason.”
After winning the World Sevens Series, the Rugby Sevens World Cup and Commonwealth Games gold during a golden year in 2022, the Aussies took a backwards step last season.
Australia beat New Zealand in the Dubai SVNS final but the Black Ferns Sevens bounced back as they embarked on a 41-game unbeaten run that saw them take out the overall series title.
But after a gruelling preseason – which included trips to Ireland and Fiji – the Aussies have reaped the rewards of their hard work by claiming a famous win over their Trans-Tasman rivals.
“They’re always tough competition but to get the first win over them is awesome,” she said.
“It was a real gutsy team effort… the whole 14 minutes, everyone did their job and role.
“They always put up a big fight and it’s always us against each other – the biggest rivalry. It’s really exciting to start really well against them but they’re gonna come firing next weekend.
“We’re gonna put our best foot forward this week to get ready for Cape Town and hopefully get the win there as well.”
But as is the nature of the SVNS Series, the focus has quickly shifted from Dubai to Cape Town ahead of the season’s second leg this weekend.
Australia have been drawn in a pool along with Japan and Spain, as well as Fiji – the same side who ended their quest for Olympic gold in the quarterfinals two years ago in Tokyo.
Comments on RugbyPass
Can’t see Toulouse beating Leinster at this rate.
7 Go to commentsADP was having a very average game until winning that penalty for Toulouse, sticking his big head in the way. “The head of God”?
7 Go to commentsHarlequins doing their best to do as little damage as possible with all the possession. Looks like they skipped catch and pass drills this week.
7 Go to commentsSeeing pictures of Jacques high-fiving it with Irish players breaks my heart. Too soon. I need more time.
1 Go to commentsquins is all over the place. The minute they get the ball they panic. Quins can still win tho just need to win all rucks otherwise just don't bother.
7 Go to commentsGreat wins for the male & female kiwi sides. Ireland not far away..
1 Go to commentsWhy is this dude getting so much coverage? Usually knobs like this get cancelled.
2 Go to commentsWow. What was that? A 3 million word meandering article about what exactly?
1 Go to commentsNice piece of writing. And yes the Sharks pulled a rabbit from the hat and were a little lucky with that penalty try that wasn’t given… however the Sharks (with their resources) should be way more consistent and should be putting teams like Claremont away for breakfast. I expect more from them and hope they kick on now.
8 Go to commentsJust what the Sharks needed to get things going in the right direction Defence on the outside really creates havoc for the whole team and needs to be addressed.
8 Go to commentsWell done guys both teams will be ready to play knockout rugby.
1 Go to commentsSurprised that Ramos isn't starting at 15. But what a squad of galacticos!
2 Go to commentsWhy is it a snub? What journalistic garbage is that? Sure the guy is a great player, but there are plenty of loose forwards and not all of them can be Springboks. Also, I know of no-one who doubts Rassie’s judgment. South Africa has a conveyor belt of loose forwards that just keeps producing, so the competition is intense. I certainly wish him well, but there is no entitlement and there is no snub.
17 Go to commentsSkelton may be brought back for the Wallabies so that would be the only reason that may hinder Wilson. Easily the form, most skilful and game IQ of any Oz 8. Valentini’s best and favourite position is 6, but lineouts may be an issue with Skelton, Valentini and Wilson. Will be interesting what Schmidt goes for but for me Wilson should be picked on form. Schmidt rewards work rate, skill and consistency. All that glitters every so often won’t be in contention. Greely is one of those players that has a knack of making the right decision. A coach is going to love him because he knows week in week out he’s going to get the job done. The second try Greely wasn’t the guy who made the initial break it was Flook, Greely was at the bottom of the ruck when Flook was off along the sideline. Greely got up and made the effort to catch up with play but also read the play nicely and hit the pass from Campbell at pace and then held the pass beautifully to Ryan.
6 Go to commentsSpot on Ben. Dead right. Havili looked great at 10. Easily the highest rugby IQ of any NZ player these days. Getting a kick charged down is a result of getting used to adjusting your depth to the line at 10, which he will sort out with time. But other than that it was an outstanding first effort in that position this year. I think the NZ media has misunderstood this directive from Razor. Havili might rank behind B Barrett this year, but Beuden is 33 this month and won't last much longer. DMaC is great but flaky and not really a test match animal (his efforts in Dunedin versus Aus last year for example). If Razor can't have Mounga, DMaC is too unstructured for Razor (and is just too small for test rugby). Havili will end up our first choice first five, and in partnership with Jodie will be excellent. Two triple threat operators in tandem, and big bodies and tough tacklers to boot. Jordoe will be the ABs goal kicker. I am an Aucklander and Blues (and Warriors) fan, but Havili at 10 is going to be sensational in time… he can be the best first five in the world by the end of this year. No question.
6 Go to commentsSharks deserved to be far further back by the last quarter. Their tackling was awful, their set pieces were disappointing, their defensive organization was poor (especially on the Kok side of the D line), they kept making unnecessary errors, and they never looked like cracking the Clermont defense during those first 60m. Masuku kept them in touch, with some help from the Clermont generosity on penalty opportunities. Agree with the writer of this article. It was belligerence, and ability to raise their pressure game just enough, that turned the last quarter into a Bok-style shutout. Clermont have a reputation of not playing the full 80m, and there was a bit of that for sure. But, quite often when the intensity of a team drops off in the last quarter credit is due to the opponent for tiring them out. At 60m, with the Kok try, you thought that just maybe the game was on. At 70m, with the Mapimpi contribution, one felt that Clermont were fading, while facing a team that would maintain the pressure game through the final whistle. Good win in the end, but the Sharks are still playing way below their potential. And with their resources, and a coach that has had enough time to figure things out, they are running out of excuses.
8 Go to commentsGood riddance
1 Go to commentswel the crusaders were beaten by a queensland reds side that hadnt beaten them at home since 1999 and queensland reds partied like it was 1999
6 Go to commentsHard to disagree with the 5 points - with the exception that Wilson should be a squad member but, depending on the other loose forward selections, is not yet a shoo-in. McReight is. Aussie is looking a lot better this year and JS has some selection options. Also, Havili’s tendency to get caught, charged down is also a liability at times but he seemed focused (mostly) and is definitely a consideration for utility back-up. Still feel Reihana is a better prospect at 1st five for Saders.
6 Go to commentsYeah nah, still not sure on Havili tbh. Even though I’m a Crusaders fan through and through I’d be stunned if Razor considers him after seeing some of the stunning talent coming through up North.
6 Go to comments