A week after they reached the Cup semi-finals of the final round of the IRB Sevens World Series in Edinburgh last weekend, Wales head to Georgia knowing that a second victory in the European qualifying rounds will be good enough to send them to the final tournament in Hanover next month.
The top five teams from that 10 strong competition will earn their ticket to Dubai and Wales Coach Baber is firmly focussed on leading his side into next year’s World Cup.
Having beaten Ireland in the final of the first European qualifying competition in Odense, Denmark, last month, Wales head to Georgia minus three key players. Neath skipper Lee Beach has a broken hand and Aled Thomas and Nick MacLeod are also ruled out. That means a return to action for the Scarlets’ Martin Thomas and the Blues’ Andrew Powell.
“We need to finish as high as we possibly can in order to guarantee ourselves a place in the final event in Hanover. Having won in Odense, a top four finish should be good enough, although the aim is to make it two wins out of two,” said Baber.
“We had a great weekend in Edinburgh, just missing out on a place in the final by a single try against England. We had a great Saturday, winning three games and toppling Samoa at the end of the day, and it was only when the rain came on the Sunday that we started to struggle.
“We play a more expansive, rather than power game, and I’m hoping we get some decent weather this weekend to help us show off our footballing skills. Everything is focussed on reaching the World Cup next year and it is vital for Welsh rugby that we qualify for Dubai.”
Wales kick-off against Cyprus on Saturday and then face Israel, Georgia and Bulgaria in Pool 2. Azerbaijan, Moldova, the Ukraine, Latvia and Greece compete in Pool 1, with the top two teams moving into the main semi-finals on Sunday.
Wales Sevens: Lee Williams (Scarlets), Rhodri McAtee (Cornish Pirates), Martin Roberts (Scarlets), Will Harries (Northampton Saints), James Lewis (Dragons), Tal Selley (Dragons), Nick Wakely (Newport), James Merriman (Neath), Dafydd Hewitt (Blues), Andrew Powell (Blues)
