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With the ever-popular NZI Sevens set to start on Friday, the home crowd will be expecting nothing but victory for current Series leaders New Zealand.

In a special two part feature Robin Heymann spoke to the Kiwis legendary coach, Gordon Tietjens, about the pressures of the event, his side’s blistering start to the campaign, structures in New Zealand and his future in the game.

Gordon Tietjens must be one of global rugby’s major unsung heroes. Rugby fans who are more comfortable with the goings on of the 15-a-side game might not have even heard of ‘Titch’, somewhat of a tragedy given that in Sevens circles, the New Zealand coach is regarded simply as the best there has ever been.

The evidence? Eight (out of 10) IRB Sevens World Series wins, three Commonwealth Games Gold medals and countless other titles have all been brought back to The Land of the Long White Cloud. Not only that but legends like Lomu, Cullen and Rush have all been moulded by the 54-year-old.

His passion for the game is unparalleled. From conversations with former players you learn that late night calls to his players for in-depth analysis of their games was common and that was back in the nineties, with IRB Sevens a different kettle of fish now.

Having done it for so long you sometimes wonder how he keeps going when he’s achieved everything (Olympic gold excluded) the sport can offer.

“I think having a balance is crucial. I work as well in a job outside rugby. It’s good to sometimes get away from rugby, keep fresh and have new ideas. I still retain the enthusiasm and love being part of it,” said Tietjens speaking from a training camp in Mount Maunganui last week.

“It’s exciting finding new players who go on to play Super 14 and even become All Blacks. I think there have been around 15 players who have gone onto to play for the All Blacks from Sevens, it’s a great launching pad and it excites me to be part of that.”

Body on line for home fans

The key ingredient which seems to underpin his success is the installation into all his players of the significance of hard work.

One of his favourite expressions is ‘emptying the tank’ and that summarises perfectly the sacrifices he expects from his athletes. His fitness sessions are notorious in New Zealand for their brutality and intensity but it pays dividends.

With the IRB Sevens World Series road show headed to New Zealand’s capital city, Wellington, this weekend, Tietjens’ troops couldn’t be in a more healthy position. Wins in the two legs thus far in Dubai and George has already seen them build a decent cushion in the overall log.

With a raucous and revved home Cake-Tin crowd ready to urge them on it’s all looking rather rosy. But Tietjens assures me that it is not all plain sailing with the home tournament.

The Kiwi public, perhaps naively, will only accept a win on their home patch and despite the increasing competiveness of the Series, anything but a ‘W’ is not accepted.

“There’s more pressure for us to perform here than in any other tournament. Not just on the field but off the field as well. Different requirements and demands form press and media. Then there’s your family and home fans.”

Last year’s final bought one of the greatest matches ever in IRB Sevens history when England against all odds fought back from 17-0 to stun the home side with a late Damu score at the death.

“Yeah obviously that defeat hurt us a lot and we really want to make up for that last minute loss this time around. If you look our pool it’s really huge as we are up against South Africa and Wales, with the Welsh of course beating us last year.”

That’s not forgetting their local neighbours Niue, who make up the pool. They have stunned the established nations before including Samoa last year. Despite the weighty demands it puts his team under, the NZI Sevens is a tournament that Tietjens loves and rates highly still.

“I might be being a bit bias, but for me it’s one of the best tournaments. Along with Dubai and Hong Kong it is an event I love. All these events really do look after the team exceptionally and the crowd support you get is superb.”

Experienced men key

It’s not really a surprise to see the Kiwis come storming back in to the mix, with Tietjens maintaining a pretty similar squad to the previous year’s campaign with his younger troops now battle hardened.

Talk of crisis from last year’s winless run is idle when you consider how they were seconds away to beating England in two of last year’s amazing finals.

The Kiwi’s leading competitors probably won’t be thanking us ‘wise’ heads in press who might have inadvertently overlooked New Zealand’s chances at the start of the season.

Despite the Kiwis dominance on the circuit over the last decade, they surprisingly went winless last season – although they did make three finals.

Instead there seemed to be a clamour for the well prepared defending champions South Africa and some of the other nations who had been in training well before Tietjens’ men leading into Dubai.

“Heading into Dubai I feel we were 20% underdone compared to the other side’s that had got some tournaments in. A big motivation for us was that no-one seemed to be talking about us but rather focusing on everyone else it seemed. Again it felt like we had nothing to lose with some new players there.”

What the Kiwis lacked in the engine and match preparation they more than made up for in basics and heart. Whenever they seemed to go behind in games they seemed conjure up some steely resolve to keep themselves in touch.

When it came to both the George and Dubai finals, brick walls were erected in defence combined with that magical ability to take their chance when it mattered most. A simple but lethal combination that will win you most games.

Tietjens has been quick to heap praise on his four most experienced members of his squad with captain DJ Forbes, Zar Lawrence, Lote Raikabula and Tomasi Cama as his pillars.

Any side would love to have just one this of these vastly experienced IRB Sevens campaigners in their side. But combine all four with strike runners like Sherwin Stowers and Kurt Baker and you have something potentially special.

“I’ve got four senior players. They are who the younger players learn from. They have played in some big game situations and can handle that pressure. They will have to play well for my team to respond,” added Tietjens.

Check out Part Two of the Gordon Tietjens interview this Wednesday February 3 only at UR7s.com.