Preview: Wellington Sevens
In the opening rounds in Dubai and Cape Town eight different teams made the semi-finals and Fiji and South Africa won the Cup tournaments.
South Africa are the form team heading into the tournament, having won the second round of the series on home soil in Cape Town.
New Zealand, the defending champions and hosts, have named a strong squad, Fiji are ahead of the BlitzBoks in the standing by points difference and the likes of the United States, Kenya, Australia, England, France and Argentina are all snapping at the heels.
No doubt more thrills and spills are expected.
However, all eyes are now on the debut of serial code-hopper Sonny Bill Williams in the abbreviated version of the game.
Francois Hougaard, himself a recent convert from the 15-a-side version to Sevens, said there is a danger of focusing too much on the game's superstar and ignoring the many other threats.
"No doubt Sonny Bill [Williams] is a great athlete and an amazing talent," Hougaard said, adding: "Everybody in the world knows that.
"Sevens is a totally different game.
"If people are going to focus too much on him, it will take the focus off what the team goal is.
"No doubt he will be a threat and he will be great at the game of Sevens – he is a big game, great speed, great step and he is also known for his off-load."
The Springbok utility said Williams will look to create the crucial line-breaks that will set up New Zealand for crucial scores.
"A team like the All Blacks will score pretty much every time they break the line," Hougaard said, adding: "However, there are other threats – a team like Fiji has 12 Sonny Bills."
BlitzBok speedster Cheslin Kolbe also said there is a risk of focusing too much on just one player, Williams.
South Africa will come face-to-face with Williams when they meet New Zealand in the main game on Day One.
Pools:
Pool A: South Africa, New Zealand, Scotland, Russia
Pool B: Argentina, Fiji, Wales, Japan
Pool C: France, United States, England, Samoa
Pool D: Kenya, Australia, Canada, Portugal
Schedule – Saturday, January 30:
(Kick-off is local time – GMT plus 12 hours)
France v England – 11.30
United States v Samoa – 11.52
Argentina v Wales – 12.14
Fiji v Japan – 12.36
Kenya v Canada – 12.58
Australia v Portugal – 13.20
South Africa v Scotland – 13.42
New Zealand v Russia – 14.04
France v Samoa – 14.32
United States v England – 14.54
Argentina v Japan – 15.16
Fiji v Wales – 15.38
Kenya v Portugal – 16.00
Australia v Canada – 16.22
South Africa v Russia – 16.44
New Zealand v Scotland – 17.06
England v Samoa – 17.28
France v United States – 17.54
Wales v Japan – 18.20
Argentina v Fiji – 18.46
Canada v Portugal – 19.12
Kenya v Australia – 19.38
Scotland v Russia – 20.04
South Africa v New Zealand
Sources: @WorldRugby7s & @rugby365com
