Pulu could be Kiwis' ace against BlitzBoks

The 12-time Sevens World Series champions and hosts of the Wellington leg, New Zealand, are grouped with South Africa (joint leaders with Fiji after two rounds),  Scotland and Russia in Pool One of their home tournament.

However, with the return of Sevens to the Olympics at the Rio games in August this year, the introduction of a host of players from the 15-a-side code, like Williams, have been the focus of the World Series.

And with Williams named to make his debut in the abbreviated version of the game, there has been a clamour for soundbites from the serial code-hopper.

Most pundits believe Williams will be the key to winning gold for New Zealand at the Olympics, but this weekend's Wellington tournament may just be too early in his transition for him to be as effective as he could be, according Kiwi coach Gordon Tietjens.

"The biggest challenge for us is around the guys that are coming in from 15-a-side programmes, to getting involved in Sevens and how our game's changed," Tietjens told the New Zealand media.

"He's really nervous but that's exciting for him," the coach said of Williams' debut.

"It's not going to happen in the first tournament that he plays in. You'll see some lovely qualities and you'll see some areas where he may get exposed and we all understand that, but I'm confident he has what it takes to be a fine Sevens player."

While Williams may not be the finished product yet, there are plenty of other players who could take the New Zealand all the way on home soil.

Augustine Pulu, one of several Super Rugby stars to make the cut for this week, may well be one of the big surprise packages as Tietjens continue to build his team with an eye on the Olympic Games.

Along with Pulu there are four other players with Super Rugby experience that are returning to the Sevens game – Ardie Savea, Ben Lam, as well as Rieko and Akira Ioane.

Tietjens believe they will have a far bigger impact in Wellington.

"They can make those adjustments to the game because they've always been passionate about Sevens and are coming back into it," the Kiwi coach said.

"With Sonny it's about learning what makes a good Sevens player, getting an understanding of the rules, the patterns of play, the lines he needs to run and the defensive areas, because to be good at Sevens you need to be a good defender," Tietjens added.

Source: @nz7s