Rugby: Olympics-Wallaby Nawaqanitawase, Toole in Australia squad for Paris Sevens

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia named former Wallabies winger Mark Nawaqanitawase and ACT Brumbies flyer Corey Toole in their men’s squad for the rugby sevens tournament at the Paris Olympics on Wednesday.

Tall and quick, Nawaqanitawase was one of Australia’s best performers in a disappointing World Cup campaign last year and will leave for rugby league’s Sydney Roosters after the Paris tournament.

Toole, who is blessed with blistering speed, had a standout season in Super Rugby this year and returns to the seven-man game after spending 2021 and 2022 playing for Australia on the World Sevens Series.

Former Wallabies captain Michael Hooper’s bid to make the switch from the 15-man game was hampered by injury and he announced his retirement from all forms of rugby at the weekend after failing to make the squad.

Nawaqanitawase and Toole played together at the 2022 Commonwealth Games and join a squad hoping to get into the medal rounds for the first time in Paris after a fourth-placed finish in the World Sevens Series standings this year.

Captain Nick Malouf and speedster Henry Hutchison will go to their third Olympics after helping Australia to eighth in Rio in 2016 and seventh in Tokyo three years ago.

“We welcome Corey Toole and Mark Nawaqanitawase back to the squad, both of whom have had seamless transitions and add a X-factor to our well-established combinations,” said coach John Manenti.

“We had a really good two weeks in Fiji and Darwin recently and that along with our solid season has the team really well prepared for Paris.”

Australia’s men will face Argentina, Samoa and Kenya in the pool stage from July 24 at the Stade de France, where Nawaqanitawase scored a try as the Wallabies kicked of last year’s World Cup with a win over Georgia.

(Reporting by Nick Mulvenney, editing by Peter Rutherford)