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Although the IRB Women’s Rugby World Cup 2010, currently taking place in England, is playing out in the traditional 15-a-side format, there are many familiar rugby sevens faces amongst the teams.

In fact according to the IRB, 54% of players from the eight nations that were at last year’s Rugby World Cup Sevens 2009 in Duba are also currently participating at the Surrey Sports Park.

Cynics will argue it might be the lack of quantity and quality of female players that makes the crossover so large. Obviously compared to the men the women can’t afford to rely on specialists with the game still growing and with both forms of the game tapping into the similar pool of players.

But let’s take some positives form this. Having so many exponents of the abbreviated code playing in the biggest stage of the game has meant we have seen fast, attractive and entertaining rugby.

The women’s game is heading in the right direction and the exposure it will receive over the coming weeks will hugely benefit all of women’s rugby – and of course turning those cogs slightly further ahead of Olympic Rugby in 2016.

So who are some of the names UR7s readers might recognise?

Australia’s historic sudden death extra time victory over New Zealand saw them crowned the first ever women's Sevens champions last March.

Captain in both formats, Cheryl Soon, has joined IRB Women's Personality of the Year 2009 Debby Hodgkinson from the victorious Dubai squad.

The likes of Ruan Sims, Nicole Beck, Tricia Brown, Tobie McGann, Alex Hargreaves and Tui Ormsby are also in the Wallaroos squad for the current World Cup that has so far yielded a win and a loss in the pool stages.

But the Kiwis, three-time winners and defending 15s champions, got their revenge on Tuesday night, humbling the Aussies 32-5. But the exciting Australians, with many coming from a Touch Rugby as well as sevens background, did manage an opening day 26-12 win over Wales.

"They're (New Zealand) the defending world champions and they're the benchmark in Women's Rugby,” said Soon.

“We knew we were going to be up for a huge challenge. Unfortunately, we didn't come through with the goods in the end but we will work on it for the next one.”

Kiwi flyer Carla Hohepa, the leading try scorer at RWC Sevens 2009, has also shown her versatility with a hat-trick in the Black Fearns’ first round humbling of South Africa (55-3) on Friday and another against Australia.

Hohepa is joined by quality performers such as Huriana Manuel, Justine Lavea, Victoria Grant and Renee Wickliffe who also shone in the Dubai desert.

South Africa bounced back from that defeat against the Fearns with a grafting win against Wales on Tuesday afternoon. Half-backs Zenay Jordaan and Saloma Booysen transferring their class from the sevens arena to boss proceedings in a rainy windswept Surrey.

England, with a larger player pool then most, predictably find themselves unbeaten so far in the competition.
Flyer Michaela Staniford, described by coach Gary Street as one of the ‘best outside backs in the world’, is also one of the premier sevens exponents in the globe.

Danielle Waterman, Kat Merchant, Rachael Burford, Maggie Alphonsi and Heather Fisher also have decent sevens pedigree. The hosts’ next opponents will be the USA who themselves include sevens speedster Christy Ringgenberg.

It’s a different story for Kazakhstan who can’t be picky with their selections. All 12 of their squad that lost the Asian Women's Sevens final to China last month have also travelled to England.

Yes, UR7s may be ‘for everything 7s’ but we salute the girls who are catching the eye in both arenas. These truly are the days of their lives.

With thanks to rwcwomen.com