RUGBY SEVENS: Nick Malouf could be forgiven if he felt someone, somewhere just didn’t want him to represent the Australian rugby sevens team at the Rio 2016 Olympics.
A serious ACL injury last September not only ruled the Queenslander out of the winner-takes-all Oceania Regional Qualifier in Auckland but brought an abrupt end to his remarkable run of 20 consecutive Sevens World Series tournaments stretching back to April 2013.
However, in one his first full sessions back with the squad after extensive rehab in May, the under-rated ball-carrying forward went down again, fearing a repeat of the injury that had kept him off the paddock for nine months. His teammates were shattered for the 23-year-old. Thankfully, the injury wasn’t as bad as first feared and Malouf took to the field against a development team before facing off against Japan in mid-July.
Incredibly, that wasn’t the final chapter of the Nick Malouf story. By now, it was fast becoming a novel.
In the fourth match of the six-match series against the Japanese at Knox in Sydney, Malouf picked up another knee injury to put Olympic selection in huge doubt. He subsequently missed the Rio 2016 team announcement event on July 14 to have minor surgery on his knee. Again, he bounced back and Andy Friend rated Malouf’s abilities to the extent that he had no hesitation in selecting him for the Games.
“The knee is feeling better every day,” Malouf revealed. “Obviously we’re pushing things a bit but I’m comfortable with where it is at the moment and as long I keep progressing each day. It’s feeling good at training each day and I’m performing with the boys then I’ll definitely be taking my place out there.
“My folks, brother and girlfriend are coming out here – it’ll be so good to have them watching and have them share the experience as well with me.
“I wouldn’t miss this opportunity for the world. ”
That opportunity at Deodoro Stadium kicks off against France in the very first game of the men’s rugby sevens competition at midnight on August 10 (AEST) and Malouf is relishing the prospect to come up against a side that can beat anyone on their day, but can also flatter to deceive.
“In general play they do have a go-to man [Virimi Vakatawa], but they also have some good guys who they turn to in different aspects of the game such as the set-piece. Julien Candelon is a very clever sevens player who has seen everything there is to see on the sevens circuit.
“We certainly haven’t been solely focusing on Vakatawa – it’s been a comprehensive analysis of the team and we’ll map out our tactics accordingly.”
On their second opponents, underdogs Spain, Malouf continues: “Everyone would have imagined that Samoa would have knocked Spain off in the final qualifier in Monaco and they knocked us off a few years ago in Las Vegas so we’re certainly not going to be taking this game lightly. It’s going to take us putting in a really good performance to get the win in that one.”
Australia’s final opponents in Pool B are Commonwealth Games gold medallists South Africa, and Malouf is expecting nothing short of another titanic battle between two great rugby nations.
“They’re great competitors. I think everyone always comments on how aggressive and physical the games are between us and we love that sort of game. It’s healthy to have such a good rivalry with them but when we get on the field we’ll be smacking them as hard as we can and I’m sure they’ll do the same!”
“Our hopes and expectations during the three days of competition? It gives us a real buzz that millions, perhaps billions of people will be watching. It’s the kind of thing we’ll all look back on in a few years’ time and reminisce. At the moment, we’re just trying to put our best foot forward and do everything we can to bring home that gold medal.”
Steve Stammers
olympics.com.au
