7 of the best 7s Playmakers

The Vancouver 7s kicks of this weekend, so we count down 7 of the best 7s playmakers. These are the players that allow the speedsters to score some amazing tries and are the real heartbeat of any side.

7. James Stannard 

The Australian veteran, James Stannard, has played 184 matches for his country scoring 908 tries. At the age of 34 Stannard is still performs at every tournament he appears in. 

Having been a scrum-half for the Brumbies he has an excellent pass and it is very difficult to keep the Australian quiet.

6. Madison Hughes 

Hughes is the youngest player on our list at the age of 24 but that does not stop him being one of the most influential playmakers on the circuit.

He already has played 146 matches for the Americans 831 points and averages more than 5 points a game. 

Hughes is a real general in the USA team, as he dictates play and often sets the likes of Perry Baker and Carlin Isles on their way to the try line.

5. Tom Mitchell 

The English captain is one of the best athletes on the circuit as he is skilful and can leave many players diving at his ankles.

Mitchell led the English to a Series victory in Cape Town and is consistently one of the top performers in the English side.

Mitchell has played over 200 matches for England and was one of the stand-out players for Great Britain during the 2016 Olympics in Rio

4. Collins Injera

The mercurial Kenyan is a fan favourite at almost every stop on the 7s World Series and it’s not difficult to see why, he has blistering pace and is one of the most intelligent players around. 

Injera has scored the most tries in 7s history ,242, but besides being a prolific try scorer Injera works hard to put the players around him in position to score.

Before we show you our top 3 here are some notable mentions 

Rosko Specman 

Gaston Revol

Tom Lucas

and Our Top 3 is:

3. Tim Mikkelson

Mikkelson is one of the most feared attackers on the 7s circuit, his speed and skill level make him almost impossible to defend against.

His size does not help the defence either standing at just short of 2 metres tall and he weighs 100kg.

The New Zealander has a brilliant ability to offload in contact and has the vision to regularly put his speedsters away. 

2. Jerry Tuwai 

 The little Fijian pocket rocket is a nightmare to defend with the pace of a winger and the pass of a scrum-halve Tuwai has become one of the best players in the World 7s Series.

Tuwai has excellent vision and a keen eye for the try line scoring 61 tries in his career so far.

The fact that the Fijian only averages 2.83 points a game is a testament to how much of a playmaker he is as creates regular tries for Fiji.

1. Cecil Afrika

The top spot goes to the ever-improving Cecil Afrika, the former World 7s Series Player of Year is a key member of the successful Blitsbok team.

Whether he is scoring a hat trick or converting tries Afrika is consistently performing at 100% for the South African team.

Afrika also provides his side with a pin point boot into touch and from kick offs.

Afrika is a leader within the Blitsbok squad and has played a huge role in the success of the players around him like Seabelo Senatla, Justin Geduld and Rosko Specman.