All Blacks legend Dan Carter tips France and Argentina for more HSBC SVNS success

SINGAPORE – Two-time Rugby World Cup champion Dan Carter was hard-pressed to look beyond the in-form French and Argentinians to win the HSBC SVNS at the May 3-4 grand final in Los Angeles.

For the best part of 2024, Argentina were the world’s best rugby sevens side, as they topped the 2023-24 HSBC SVNS regular season and they are aiming to repeat the feat this campaign.

But the more clinical French gave them a good run for their money, winning the grand final and the Olympic gold in Paris.

Carter, who is in town for the ongoing Singapore leg of the world series as HSBC’s rugby ambassador, told The Sunday Times on April 5: “Two years ago, we wouldn’t be talking about France and Argentina being the powerhouses of sevens rugby.

“Having played rugby in France, I know the talent is there, and also in Argentina, a football-mad country where there are pockets of players who are into amateur rugby.

“There’s the real competitiveness that they have, and their willingness to win, grow, learn and play this beautiful, expansive style of rugby that’s really suited for the sevens game.

“They have built a culture that has given them a lot of success, whereas the traditional powerhouses like New Zealand, Fiji and South Africa are going through a rebuilding phase, where their national bodies are probably putting more focus on their 15s programmes.”

The 43-year-old Kiwi, widely regarded as the greatest-ever rugby union fly-half, claimed he was too old to play competitive sevens when it became an Olympic sport in 2016.

But the rugby legend knows a winner when he sees one, marvelling at the likes of Antoine Dupont who switched seamlessly from rugby union to lead France to Olympic sevens gold.

This, despite the two variations being “almost different sports now” due to the athleticism and different body types required for the short but high-intensity game.

Carter said: “When you see how Dupont plays, it’s never about him. He’s always making decisions on what’s best for the team, but he has this incredible instinct and X-factor to be able to change the game.

“It’s really important to have good leadership structures and players that have the X-factor but also enough humility to make sure they’re putting the team first. The collaboration between those two qualities is really important for the team to be successful.”

However, when it comes to 15s rugby, Carter is impressed by two-time defending World Cup champions South Africa, who are “striving to be one of the greatest teams that have ever played the game”.

He was particularly struck by how the Springboks have evolved their style to be forward-oriented but also incorporate an “incredible attacking backline”

He also noted Rassie Erasmus’ tactical brilliance, especially through his bomb squad tactic, in which he packs six forwards and two backs (instead of the more traditional five forwards and three backs) on the bench to maintain a higher level of physical output up front for the full 80 minutes.

Carter added: “More often than not, when you win a Rugby World Cup, you relax a little bit subconsciously because you’ve reached such a high peak that you’re not as driven.

“But you look at how South Africa performed in 2024, a year after winning their second Rugby World Cup, they were still hungry and driven.

“That gave me a little insight to how they are clearly trying to create a dynasty. The culture they have built in high-performing excellence and wanting to dominate their opposition is really prolific and a big part of their success for so long now.”

However, he does not think that the Springboks are so far ahead that they cannot be caught, with New Zealand, France, Ireland, England and Argentina in the chasing pack.

Pointing to the All Blacks’ heartbreaking 12-11 loss in the 2023 final, Carter said: “To win a World Cup, you need to have some hurt, some real sort of disappointment deep inside you.

“That resilience and motivation you get from dealing with adversity and setbacks really help drive you, and that gives me confidence that they will really want to win the next World Cup.”

At the SVNS Singapore on April 6, Argentina will take on Fiji in the men’s Cup semi-finals while Kenya face Spain.

In the women’s event, New Zealand will play France and Australia will face Canada in the top four.

Meanwhile in the SEA 7s, the Singapore women’s team beat Malaysia 12-5 in the final on April 5 to clinch the title, while Thailand won the men’s crown after beating Malaysia 10-5.