In sevens, Walsh believes you might in fact need more.
“[It’s an] interesting question because everything in sevens is magnified, so you could argue that you’ve got to have six or seven within 10,” he said.
Fortunately, he has two up his sleeve in the Levis.
It’s no surprise that the pair were firmly in the sights of the NRLW and AFLW, but the deadly blonde-haired backs said the opportunity to travel and play on the international stage meant nothing else could compare.
“The NRL was definitely a big draw card and AFL, having played a season and Teags being drafted but not being able to actually debut, they play on your mind but once we made the transition to sevens, I guess you can’t put a price on travel,” Maddison Levi said.
“We’re so young, we get to compete at the highest level for our country and I think nothing in the female sport that we were looking at compares to actually being on par with that level.”
Teagan added: “[It was] definitely a temptation, but you can’t beat traveling around the world.”
Extraordinarily, Maddison Levi didn’t even make a rep team until her final year of being a teenager.
Now, she’s the deadliest strike weapon in world rugby and credits her tough road to the top as her daily inspiration.
“I probably cracked my first rep team in 2019 for AFL and rugby,” she said.
“I guess having Teagan step up and crack the teams before me and take my position didn’t really help. But I say to every young athlete that I probably wouldn’t be the athlete I am today if I had walked straight through in every team, so it actually shaped the person I am today.”
While the Levis have their eyes firmly on the road to Paris, a whirlwind 72 hours in the French capital to coincide with the World Cup final and World Rugby Awards only reinforced Maddison’s appeal in the wider game.
“I just sat there and took it all in because I hadn’t been to a World Cup game, let alone a World Cup final in Paris and the atmosphere was just insane,” she said.
“You just can’t hear yourself. I came back to all the girls and said, ‘Listen, I want to be in that gold medal match because the atmosphere is so insane.’”
Once upon a time, the sevens and 15s programs rarely crossed paths too.
But the professionalisation of women’s XVs, as well as the fact Australia will host the women’s World Cup in 2029, has shifted the mindset of those thinking about playing both variations of the game.
“It’s definitely on the cards,” Maddison Levi said.
“The main focus for us at the moment is sevens and to bring home that Olympic gold, but to be a dual international is definitely something I’ve always dreamed about and having Teags by my side.
“Looking at the games this year and the women’s XVs growth is developing and each year is going to get bigger and bigger and the World Cup the year
after the Olympics is definitely in sight for us.
“We won’t rule out anything too soon and to have that Rugby Australia contract through until 2026 will help us decide and possibly crossover.”
If they do, the Wallaroos and rugby will only benefit because the pair aren’t just gifted on the field, they want to change the perception of the game off it too.
“We’ve already seen a shift from when the girls won in Reo to when we won the Comm Games for not only younger girls but younger males actually looking up and wanting to play women’s sevens,” Maddison Levi said.
“Hopefully we can be at the forefront of that charge and lead the way.”
AUSTRALIA WOMEN’S SEVENS SQUAD – 2023/24 SEASON
Lily Dick, Sharni Smale, Faith Nathan, Dominique Du Toit, Teagan Levi, Madison Ashby, Charlotte Caslick (c),
Kaitlin Shave, Tia Hinds, Bella Nasser, Demi Hayes, Maddison Levi, Heidi Dennis, Bienne Terita, Sidney Taylor, Alysia Lefau-Fakaosilea, Sariah Paki