Sport

Rugby Sevens experts make predictions for Paris 2024 Olympics

Published

2 years ago

July 19, 2024

THE Paris 2024 Olympics starts in just a matter of days, with the Rugby Sevens kicking off proceedings on July 24th, just before the official opening ceremony on the 26th. Sell-out crowds are already expected for the men’s and women’s events and there’s already a great deal of anticipation around which nations will end up in the medal tables.

Plenty of eyes are said to be on the likes of Australia and New Zealand in the battle for gold in both the men’s and women’s games. However, the men’s Fiji side will be looking to make it three golds in a row, following their iconic successes in Rio in 2016 and Tokyo in 2021. Additionally, the Argentinian men’s team are being touted as dark horses and some believe the French sides could also capitalise on a home advantage.

This is according to the predictions for this year’s Olympic Sevens from a number of experts involved in the sevens game – including current and former players and coaches – in an exclusive feature with rugby website, RugbyPass. Alongside this, several of those interviewed here have touted a selection of players they believe will be standout performers across the tournaments.

Gareth Baber and Mike Friday

Gareth Baber, the coach who famously guided the Fiji men’s side to their second gold medal in Tokyo 2020, and the current USA Men’s Sevens team coach, Mike Friday, have both predicted that the respective sides where they have strong allegiances are the ones who are in with a chance of gold.

Gareth said: “I know people will be worried about Fiji, given their track record. There’s work to be done there, but they certainly can medal. The country is steeped in sevens rugby and they’ve consistently produced some players who can really do something.”

Mike stated: “I think we’re [USA] going to be a bolt out of the blue – we have the capability to cause absolute havoc.”

Both went on to champion the antipodean and French sides too:

Gareth said: “New Zealand will be positioning themselves as real medal contenders too. I’d also back France to do well, but their major challenge is constructing a frame to help their players do their best stuff in front of the home crowd.”

Mike explained: “France in both the men’s and the women’s are contenders. But looking just at the women’s, it’s going to be the likes of Australia and New Zealand that are pushing for gold.”

Mike then singled out several players to watch from the men’s and women’s events: “You’ve got the Levi sisters who are fantastic, Jorja Miller is a real catalyst too for New Zealand, but they’ve also got Michaela Blyde and Portia Woodman – a core of excellent players. On the men’s side, Marcos Moneta for Argentina, Dupont – just because it’s him – Terry Kennedy from Ireland is just a proper baller and will make things happen.”

Katy Daley-McLean MBE and Rachael Burford

Former England and Team GB Women’s Sevens stars, Katy Daley-McLean and Rachael Burford gave these medal predictions for the women’s events:

Katy said: “Australia and New Zealand are big favourites, but with their style of rugby, I think Canada and France will be in the mix there as well.” Rachael commented: “France – although under a lot of pressure – are at their best when they’re at home…Australia and New Zealand are coming into the Olympics very strong and a lot of people are expecting them to battle it out for the gold, but it’ll depend on who stays fit for them.”

Amongst their player recommendations, they also advised to watch out for Ellie Kildunne and Megan Jones of Team GB::

Katy explained: “I reckon if she [Ellie] smashes it in the Olympics and the next Rugby World Cup, she has the potential to become a household name.” While Rachael believes: “Meg will be massive for GB, her presence will transform that team. She alone will increase the ability of the whole squad.”

Tom Mitchell and Luke Treharne

Tom Mitchell, former England and Team GB Sevens captain, and Luke Treharne, former Team GB Sevens player and current Hong Kong 7s skills coach, offered these views:

Tom stated: “Looking at Argentina, Marcos Moneta who has come back from injury to make the squad is an absolute gun when fully firing…it’s also hard to look beyond Australia and New Zealand.”

Luke said: “For the women, I’ve been toying between the two juggernauts of Australia and New Zealand, but I think New Zealand will get the gold. France will get the bronze. As for the men, I think it’s going to go something like Argentina for gold, Fiji silver and Ireland bronze.”

Naya Tapper and Jodie Ounsley

RugbyPass also got the views of former England and Team GB Women’s Sevens wing, Jodie Ounsley, as well as current USA Women’s Sevens captain, Naya Tapper.

Jodie understandably chose her former teammates to go all the way: “I have to back the GB women’s side, but Australia and New Zealand are so strong and are definitely teams to look out for.” Naya – who will be competing this summer – also demonstrated some national pride by backing her country for Olympics success: “For the women’s and men’s side I manifest USA taking the gold. Let’s hope we can come back to this conversation and praise how great I am at predictions.”

Jodie was another expert to express admiration for Team GB’s Ellie Kildunne: “She’s coming back to sevens and she’s going to bring so many fans with her and I know she will make a great impact and be a storm at the Olympics. She will get people talking for sure.” Naya went on to highlight plenty of names for the women’s events: “Ilona Maher, Maddi Levi, Teagan Levi, Michaela Blyde, Portia Woodman, Anne-Cécile Ciofani, Séraphine Okemba – with how much talent we have in the game across all teams I could go on and on.”The schedule for the men’s sevens runs from July 24 – 27th – with a break in the middle for the opening ceremony – and the women’s event begins on July 28th and concludes on July 30th. If these predictions are to be believed, fans and neutrals alike could be set to see a hotly contested series. For further details, you can find the full selection of predictions and ‘ones to watch’ from these experts here: https://www.rugbypass.com/sevens/olympics/mens-and-womens-expert-predictions/

Sport

Pembrokeshire cricket weekend round-up: Week 11 keeps title races alive

Published

11 hours ago

July 9, 2026

Herald Sport

A WEEKEND of tight finishes, big individual performances and important wins kept the promotion races moving across the Thomas Carroll Pembroke County Cricket League.

Saundersfoot remain top of Division One after a dramatic tie with Neyland, while Carew kept up the pressure with victory at St Ishmaels.

Hook continue to lead Division Two, Laugharne are still the team to catch in Division Three, and Lawrenny II remain out in front in Division Four.

Lower down the pyramid, Cresselly III stay top of Division Five despite defeat to Whitland II, while Lamphey II lead Division Six after another strong win.

Division One: Saundersfoot held in Neyland thriller

Saundersfoot remain unbeaten at the top of Division One, but they were made to work hard in a dramatic tied match against Neyland.

Both sides finished on 207-8. Paul Murray made 69 and Ross Hardy added 68 for Neyland, while Tom Mansbridge hit 64 for Saundersfoot and Sam Franklin made 39.

Carew stayed second with a six-wicket win over St Ishmaels. Herbrandston were emphatic winners over Narberth, winning by 157 runs, while Lawrenny picked up a valuable 88-run win over Whitland.

Division One results

Home side	Score	Away side	Score	Result
St Ishmaels	100 all out	Carew	101-4	Carew won by 6 wickets
Burton	148 all out	Cresselly	151-3	Cresselly won by 7 wickets
Herbrandston	249-7	Narberth	92 all out	Herbrandston won by 157 runs
Neyland	207-8	Saundersfoot	207-8	Match tied
Lawrenny	223 all out	Whitland	135 all out	Lawrenny won by 88 runs

Division One table

Team	Played	Points
Saundersfoot	11	181
Carew	11	166
Neyland	11	151
Cresselly	11	141
Herbrandston	11	135
Burton	11	106
Narberth	11	102
St Ishmaels	11	76
Lawrenny	11	73
Whitland	11	58

Division Two: Hook stay top as Johnston keep chase alive

Hook remain top of Division Two after an eight-wicket win over Haverfordwest.

Haverfordwest made 187-8, with Ben Field scoring 64 and James Marchant unbeaten on 57. Hook chased it down on 190-2, Lewis Miller making 61, Mikey Jones 52 and Aled Phelps 50 not out.

Johnston remain close behind after an eight-wicket win over Llangwm, while Fishguard edged one of the closest games of the weekend, beating Llanrhian by just two runs.

Division Two results

Home side	Score	Away side	Score	Result
Haverfordwest	187-8	Hook	190-2	Hook won by 8 wickets
Johnston	114-2	Llangwm	111 all out	Johnston won by 8 wickets
Fishguard	217-6	Llanrhian	215-9	Fishguard won by 2 runs
Cresselly II	151 all out	Llechryd	155-2	Llechryd won by 8 wickets
Pembroke	56 all out	Pembroke Dock	141-8	Pembroke Dock won by 85 runs

Division Two table

Team	Played	Points
Hook	11	177
Johnston	11	170
Haverfordwest	11	159
Pembroke	11	155
Cresselly II	11	140
Fishguard	11	132
Pembroke Dock	11	101
Llechryd	11	92
Llanrhian	11	85
Llangwm	11	80

Division Three: Laugharne remain out in front

Laugharne continue to lead Division Three after an eight-wicket win over Haverfordwest II.

Haverfordwest II reached 152-6, with David Haynes making 45, Jac Peters 47 and Doug Johnson 28. Laugharne replied with 155-2, Matt Tait finishing unbeaten on 76 and Harry Clapperton making 49.

Lamphey beat Burton II by six wickets, Saundersfoot II were convincing nine-wicket winners over Pembroke II, and Kilgetty kept their promotion push alive with a seven-wicket win over Stackpole.

Division Three results

Home side	Score	Away side	Score	Result
Lamphey	74-4	Burton II	73 all out	Lamphey won by 6 wickets
Laugharne	155-2	Haverfordwest II	152-6	Laugharne won by 8 wickets
Carew II	153-4	Hundleton	152-8	Carew II won by 6 wickets
Saundersfoot II	77-1	Pembroke II	75 all out	Saundersfoot II won by 9 wickets
Kilgetty	179-3	Stackpole	175-7	Kilgetty won by 7 wickets

Division Three table

Team	Played	Points
Laugharne	11	181
Carew II	11	152
Lamphey	11	150
Kilgetty	11	138
Pembroke II	11	119
Saundersfoot II	11	114
Hundleton	11	104
Haverfordwest II	11	102
Burton II	10	94
Stackpole	10	46

Division Four: Lawrenny II lead after Daley display

Lawrenny II remain top of Division Four after a 26-run win over Llechryd II.

Rhys Daley was the key man, making 75 before taking 4-32. Narberth II stayed in touch with a 63-run win over Neyland II, while Hook II were seven-wicket winners against St Ishmaels II.

Division Four results

Home side	Score	Away side	Score	Result
Carew III	115 all out	Haverfordwest III	116-5	Haverfordwest III won by 5 wickets
Crymych	183-7	Herbrandston II	186-8	Herbrandston II won by 2 wickets
Llechryd II	162-8	Lawrenny II	188-7	Lawrenny II won by 26 runs
Narberth II	217-6	Neyland II	154-9	Narberth II won by 63 runs
Hook II	56-3	St Ishmaels II	54 all out	Hook II won by 7 wickets

Division Four table

Team	Played	Points
Lawrenny II	10	156
Narberth II	11	150
Hook II	11	138
Herbrandston II	11	129
Neyland II	11	129
St Ishmaels II	11	128
Crymych	11	121
Haverfordwest III	11	109
Llechryd II	11	102
Carew III	10	71

Division Five: Cresselly III beaten but stay top

Cresselly III remain top of Division Five despite a 35-run defeat to Whitland II.

Whitland II made 162-6 before bowling Cresselly III out for 127. Connor Beynon produced one of the performances of the weekend, hitting an unbeaten 110 as Hundleton II beat Llangwm II by 36 runs.

Pembroke III also enjoyed a strong chase, beating Pembroke Dock II by six wickets.

Division Five results

Home side	Score	Away side	Score	Result
Llangwm II	172-4	Hundleton II	208-8	Hundleton II won by 36 runs
Llanrhian II	112-4	Llechryd III	111-9	Llanrhian II won by 6 wickets
Pembroke Dock II	195-4	Pembroke III	196-4	Pembroke III won by 6 wickets
Whitland II	162-6	Cresselly III	127 all out	Whitland II won by 35 runs

Division Five table

Team	Played	Points
Cresselly III	10	174
Whitland II	11	146
Llangwm II	9	142
Llanrhian II	9	127
Pembroke III	10	100
Pembroke Dock II	10	70
Llechryd III	9	69
Hundleton II	8	45

Division Six: Lamphey II lead after eight-wicket win

Lamphey II remain top of Division Six after beating Haverfordwest IV by eight wickets.

Haverfordwest IV were bowled out for 191, with Tom Baker making 47 not out, Stef Ateyo 43 and Brandon Dewstowe 30. Lamphey II replied with 193-2, John Sture finishing unbeaten on 82 and James White also making 82.

Kilgetty II picked up a 48-run win over Haverfordwest/Cresselly, with Iwan Godwaltz making 101 and taking 2-39.

Division Six results

Home side	Score	Away side	Score	Result
Bye		Laugharne II		No match
Haverfordwest IV	191 all out	Lamphey II	193-2	Lamphey II won by 8 wickets
Haverfordwest/Cresselly	156 all out	Kilgetty II	204 all out	Kilgetty II won by 48 runs
Neyland III	110 all out	Whitland III	113-7	Whitland III won by 3 wickets

Division Six table

Team	Played	Points
Lamphey II	9	140
Haverfordwest IV	10	123
Whitland III	10	116
Neyland III	10	109
Haverfordwest/Cresselly	8	80
Laugharne II	9	69
Kilgetty II	10	53

Weekend stars

Player	Club	Performance
Harry Nicholas	Herbrandston	74 and 4-16
Charlie Arthur	Lawrenny	81 and 4-33
Connor Beynon	Hundleton II	110 not out
Iwan Godwaltz	Kilgetty II	101 and 2-39
Rhys Daley	Lawrenny II	75 and 4-32
Matt Tait	Laugharne	76 not out
John Sture	Lamphey II	82 not out
James White	Lamphey II	82
Josh Samuel	Saundersfoot II	5-10
Tom Murphy	Cresselly	5-26 and 25
Lewis Miller	Hook	61 and 3-32
Sam Kurtz	Fishguard	79
Nitai Durey	Crymych	83
Jac Davies	Llechryd	81 not out

Sport

Rising rally star claims maiden Mini Rally Challenge victory

Published

11 hours ago

July 9, 2026

Herald Sport

Newcastle Emlyn’s Henri Cynwyl secures first outright R53 Mini Rally Challenge win at Greystoke Stages Rally in Cumbria

RISING rally star Henri Cynwyl has claimed his first outright victory in the R53 Mini Rally Challenge after an impressive performance at the Greystoke Stages Rally in Cumbria.

The young driver from Newcastle Emlyn, who recently made his gravel debut at the Plains Rally, wasted no time in showing his potential on one of the toughest events of the season.

In only his second gravel rally, Henri delivered a composed and determined drive over rough and demanding terrain. Despite difficult conditions and damage to the car during the event, he secured victory in the R53 Mini Rally Challenge, finished an outstanding 15th overall, and took second in Class 3 in the over 2000cc category.

The result further strengthens Henri’s reputation as one of rallying’s brightest young prospects and marks another major step forward in his developing career.

Speaking after the event, 18-year-old Henri said: “This was my second outing at a gravel event and I’m absolutely delighted with the win, especially on very rough and challenging terrain.

“It was my first time at Greystoke and although it was rough, I really enjoyed it. I knew I just had to get back to service for the win with a one minute 30 second lead.”

For the apprentice electrician, finishing inside the top 15 overall and second in class capped off a superb weekend.

Henri added: “A huge thank you to my support network and sponsors, especially W1 Motorsport Group and team manager Mark Williams, who has a wealth of knowledge and gives me valuable advice.

“From the service crew to my mum, they have all been terrific. It was also brilliant to have the support and help from other Mini Rally Challenge members, who went above and beyond to help fix my damaged radiator.

“I really appreciate all the phone calls and messages from family, friends and sponsors. They all mean a lot to me.”

Henri also paid tribute to his co-driver Dilwyn John, whose experience proved invaluable throughout the event.

He said: “Having Dilwyn John as my co-driver was super. He is very experienced at gravel, stage and night events, and reading the maps over the weekend suited him perfectly.

“Thirteen-year-old Wil Parry also came along to service. He is very much part of the team now. It was his 13th birthday and he worked so hard with Mark to make sure the car was running well. Top job!

“I would also like to thank all of the organisers for a great event. We will be back next year.”

With a podium finish on his gravel debut followed immediately by his first outright Mini Rally Challenge victory, the future looks bright for Henri.

If these early performances are anything to go by, the Newcastle Emlyn youngster is certainly one to watch as his rally career continues to gather momentum.

Sport

Bluebirds give new home strip first run-out

Published

12 hours ago

July 9, 2026

Herald Sport

Haverfordwest County AFC’s new Tor Sports home kit made its first appearance on the pitch at the weekend

HAVERFORDWEST COUNTY AFC’s new home strip has been seen in action for the first time.

The Bluebirds wore the new Tor Sports kit during Saturday’s fixture, giving supporters a first proper look at the design on the pitch.

The strip keeps Haverfordwest’s traditional blue colours, with yellow detailing on the sleeves and shorts, while the club badge sits prominently on the front.

The club shared photos of the kit on social media, asking supporters: “How good?!”

The images show the squad walking out and in match action, with the new strip already getting plenty of attention from fans.

Haverfordwest County, who continue to proudly use the slogan #PlayingForPembrokeshire, will wear the kit as their home strip for the new campaign.