Aussie prodigy commits to Sevens
The young quick stepping speedster has continued to be a revelation for the Aussie Sevens squad, having joined this year after being spotted by Head Coach Andy Friend at the 2016 National Sevens Championship in Adelaide where he was representing the Lloyd McDermott Rugby Development Team.
Hailing from La Perouse in Sydney’s South, Longbottom was a Junior representative of the South Sydney Rabbitohs and has played Oztag for Australia and Touch Football at an elite level before coming to Rugby Sevens.
Longbottom in for the longhaul. READ: https://t.co/oovUnUYzsS pic.twitter.com/MHDomiOqIJ
— RUGBYcomau (@rugbycomau) November 21, 2017
Australian Sevens Head Coach Andy Friend said: "Maurice is an exciting young player and an admirable young man, and it is great news for our squad that he has committed to Rugby Australia and to the team until after the Tokyo Olympic Games.
"People saw a glimpse of what he can do at the Munich and Silicon Valley Sevens, and I know he will deliver a lot of great things for this team in the coming seasons.
"His different sporting backgrounds shows what a diverse and capable athlete Maurice is, and he is perfectly suited for the pressures of elite Sevens Rugby.
"Maurice’s long-term commitment to the Australian Sevens program is a testament to the strong team culture we are building as we prepare for the 2018 Commonwealth Games and the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games,"
Australian Sevens player, Maurice Longbottom said: "I’m really happy to be contracted with the Australian Sevens Squad and I’m looking forward to what the future holds.
"The prospect of representing my country at the Commonwealth and Olympic Games was a really exciting one for me and is one of the many drawcards of Sevens.
"The environment around the team and the staff is exceptional and we’re building a really good squad heading into the HSBC Sevens World Series. I’m just looking forward to getting stuck in and enjoying the ride ahead,"
