New Zealand Rugby has named Tomasi Cama Jnr as head coach of the All Blacks 7s for the 2024 season.
Cama who was assistant coach for six seasons, takes over from Clark Laidlaw and will take charge of the team through to the Paris Olympics next July.
NZ Rugby Head of Men’s High-Performance Mike Anthony said it was critical to provide the squad continuity as they prepare for Paris.
“Tomasi is a master of the game of sevens and an integral part of the DNA of this team, given his significant experience as both a player and a coach. He has mana within the playing squad and along with the management team has driven a strong performance culture and achieved success,” Anthony said in a NZRU statement.
Cama who has been a part of the AB 7s as a player and coach for 18 years said he had to think hard about stepping up into the head coach position.
“Following on from Titch (Sir Gordon Tietjens) and Clark (Laidlaw) – they are big shoes to fill given what they have achieved with this team. I had to think quite hard about how I could make an impact in this role. The players and management here made the decision easier; they are great people and great at what they do.”
Cama Jnr left Fiji for NZ to pursue a career in rugby in 1999, and has worked with some great coaches since, the likes of Dave Rennie at Manawatu, Titch and Clark.
Cama is one of five NZ men to have won World Rugby’s Sevens Player of the Year, in 2012 – the same year he won the Richard Crawshaw Memorial for New Zealand Sevens Player of the Year. He has won Commonwealth Games gold and the Rugby World Cup Sevens as both a player and coach, taking part in a total of 128 international tournaments. Cama is the all-time leading points scorer for the All Blacks Sevens and has scored the second most points in the history of the Sevens World Series.
