Rugby Australia is pleased to announce the Australian Under 18s 7s and Australian Schoolgirls teams to compete at the 2025 Global Youth 7s at Dilworth School in Auckland on December 19-21.
The Global Youth Sevens is an international Under 18s rugby tournament for boys and girls, established in 2016, that brings together some of the world’s best youth Sevens players, to showcase their skills and talent on a global stage.
Respective Australian coaches Shannon Parry and Luke Zeremes have named their squads for the annual tournament, which acts as a key development pathway towards Rugby Australia's national 7s program.
An impressive 90 per cent of the full-time Australian Sevens program have graduated from the Global Youth 7s teams including captain Isabella Nasser, Maddison Levi and Faith Nathan.
Having won the tournament in 2018, 2019, 2023 and runners up in 2017, 2022, 2024, the Australian Under 18s team will go in again as a strong contender.
The team was selected from a wider squad of 45 players who attended three selection camps across the year with Wallaroos World Cup squad member Waiaria Ellis headlining the side.
Ellis, 18, made her XVs debut for Australia in July and joins Darci Turinui, the daughter of former Wallaby Morgan Turinui, who was the leading try scorer in the recent Next Gen 7s competition.
Rugby Australia Head of Women’s Pathways Lachlan Parkinson said: “The Australian Under 18s team will be looking to go one better than last year after losing the final to Japan.
“This has become a great rivalry with the Japanese girls after they won in 2022 before we regained the title in 2023 and they won it back in 2024.
“The Australian Schoolgirls Under 18s program is also a major part of the 7s pathway in Australia, providing additional opportunities for our elite youth players to participate in an international tournament.
“The two programs work closely together to support the development of the athletes.”
The Australian Schoolgirls side will feature in the tournament for a third time after winning the title in their inaugural season in 2023.
Four players will return to boost the side from last year’s campaign including Queenslanders Billie Backus and Mia Byrnes, and Hunter Sports High School products Keira Callaghan and Ellazae Elers.
Australian Schools Rugby Union Executive Sarah Ridgewell said: “This year's selection process was incredibly competitive, which is exactly what we want to see.
“We've assembled a squad that balances experience with emerging talent, with these student athletes having shown tremendous commitment to earning their places.
“We continue to see remarkable growth in schoolgirls 7s across Australia with more schools embracing the format for its fast-paced and fun nature and recognising it as an accessible entry point into rugby.
“What's particularly encouraging is that schools are viewing 7s not just as a participation sport, but as a genuine pathway to high-performance school representative opportunities.”
The Global Youth 7s can be streamed next month via the streaming hub at https://www.globalyouthsevens.rugby/watch
- Aimee Henry – Queensland
- Charli Nikola – Queensland
- Cobi Ryan-Last – NSW
- Darci Turinui – NSW
- Darcie Prosser-Shaw – NSW
- Kaelyn Passi – Queensland
- Lacey Cross – NSW
- Layne Prince – Queensland
- Logan Lemusu – NSW
- Maddi Pomerenke – Queensland
- Peyton Lefau-Fakaosilea – Queensland
- Tahlia O’Brien – NSW
- Waiaria Ellis – NSW
- Head Coach – Shannon Parry
- Manager – Ryan Webster
- Athletic Performance – Katelyn Murray
- Physiotherapist – Emma Craig
Players unavailable for selection due to injury
- Coco Marsters
- Tekainga Enkera-Raveora
- Lola Harrison
- Poppi Flanders
- Anika McCarthy
- Billie Backus – King's Christian College, Queensland
- Chloe Sivewright – Richmond River High School, NSW
- Ellazae Elers – Hunter Sports High School, NSW
- Georgina Hayes – Mater Dei Catholic College, NSW
- Keira Callaghan – Hunter Sports High School, NSW
- Lusiana Vesikula – Kingsgrove High School, NSW
- Matilda Vial – Keebra Park State High School, Queensland
- Matilda Richards – Mt. St Michael's College, Queensland
- Mia Byrnes – The Glennie School, Queensland
- Poppy Gibbons – The Glennie School, Queensland
- Reese Orcher – Clayfield College, Queensland
- Tiki Calliste – King's Christian College, Queensland
- TJ Murray – King's Christian College, Queensland
- Jenna Aiono – Copperfield College, Victoria (Shadow player)
- Laura-May McGovern – Siena Catholic College, Queensland (Shadow player)
- Head Coach – Luke Zeremes - St John's College
- Assistant Coach – Kieran Smith - Dubbo College Senior Campus
- Manager – Sophie Shadlow - The Glennie School
- ASRU Executive – Sarah Ridgewell - Matthew Flinders Anglican College
