Three new players have been named in the New Zealand Sevens squad for the upcoming IRB Sevens World Series.
 Hawke’s Bay’s 19-year-old fullback Israel Dagg, 22-year-old Waikato wing / fullback James Kamana and 20-year-old Wellington loose forward Victor Vito were today named in the squad of 13 for the opening two tournaments to be held in Dubai from 30 November–1 December and George, South Africa, from 7–8 December.
The side will be captained by Hawke’s Bay’s Tafai Ioasa, who missed most of the 2006/2007 campaign due to a knee injury.
Dagg and Vito have represented New Zealand at age-grade level while Kamana made his Air New Zealand Cup debut for Waikato this year.
Dagg was a member of the 2007 New Zealand Under 19 team that won gold at the IRB World Championship in Ireland earlier this year while Vito is a former New Zealand Under 19 captain and New Zealand Under 21 representative.
New Zealand Sevens Coach Gordon Tietjens said he was impressed with the performance of the newcomers at the trial camp.
“They bring a mix of pace and bulk to our team, and although they are new to this environment they have convinced me that they are ready for international Sevens rugby.
“All three come out of a fifteens set up so the key for them is to adapt quickly to the pace of the game, and they showed that at our trial,” Tietjens said.
George in South Africa has been lucky for the New Zealand Sevens team, with their seventh IRB World Sevens Series win last season anchored on tournament wins there as well as in London and Edinburgh.
“One of the keys to success is consistency because there is very little between the countries; any team can win the Series and we need to be on top of our game to give ourselves a chance of winning,” Tietjens said.
New Zealand has won the Dubai tournament three times since 2000 and was in the final last year. The team has won the George tournament four times: in 2000, 2001, 2004 and 2006.
New Zealand Sevens squad is:
Tomasi Cama (Manawatu), Edwin Cocker Auckland), Israel Dagg (Hawke’s Bay), DJ Forbes (Auckland), * Nigel Hunt (Wellington), Tafai Ioasa (Hawke’s Bay, captain), * James Kamana (Waikato), Solomon King (Bay of Plenty), Zar Lawrence (North Harbour), Rene Ranger (Northland), Lote Raikabula (Hawke’s Bay), Victor Vito (Wellington), Steven Yates (Canterbury).
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