2017 Aon Uni 7s Series silver-medallist, Bond University has announced its squad for the opening round of the 2018 series, which kicks off in just three weeks in Tasmania.
In its second year, the newly-expanded tournament will feature 10 universities from around Australia in a five-leg series. Bond is very proud to be hosting Round 4 at its Gold Coast campus on 6-7 October.
Bond University’s Director of Rugby Strategy and Planning, Luca Liussi said the Bond squad had been training hard since the beginning of 2018 and was looking strong.
“Bond’s opening line-up offers an awesome mix of Australian champions, seasoned local performers, professional imports and exciting new talent from across the Gold Coast and northern New South Wales,” Liussi said.
“Winning rounds and ranking highly in the series is important to us, but what is just as important is integrating young girls into the competition and giving them experience at an incredibly high level, so they go on to become even better footballers the following year.
“This is what our Head Coach Ben Gollings did really well last year - he put a good range of girls on the field, and as a result some of those younger players have improved out-of-sight in the past 12 months.”
Bond University’s squad for Uni7s 2018 is:
- Kathy Baker
- Emily Bass
- Tyler Birch
- Millie Boyle
- Lauren Brown
- Hayley Butterworth
- Charlotte Caslick
- Jessica Elliston
- Taylor FentonÂ
- Katelyn Grimmett
- Even Higgins
- Sophie Holyman
- Trinity Mamoe
- Bailey Marshall
- Georgina Page
- Tarni Peep
- Amber Pilley
- Keri-Jade Robertson
- Stephanie Rutherford
- Madison Schuck
- Gabby Senft
- Gemma Walker
- Chloe Watt
For Stephanie Rutherford, this is her second year in the Aon Uni 7s series and she’s pretty excited to be returning in 2018.
“We’ve been in pre-season training since January. With two rugby sessions a week, two gym sessions plus running and speed work on top of that - most days we’re training,” Rutherford said.
“After such a big pre-season, I’m really looking forward to finally getting out there, playing some games and getting some wins.”
2018 Aon University Sevens Series
Round 1
August 25-26, University of Tasmania, Hobart
Round 2
September 8-9, University of Canberra, Canberra
Round 3
September 22-23, University of Queensland, Brisbane
Round 4
October 6-7, Bond University, Gold Coast
Round 5
October 20-21, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide