The Australia Men’s Sevens side have confirmed the appointment of former NZ Sevens assistant Liam Barry as coach.
Barry joins after almost six years in the NZ Sevens system under current Hurricanes boss Clark Laidlaw.
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During the this, the Kiwis took out nearly every title, including the Commonwealth Games gold-World Cup Sevens double in 2018, the 2020-21 World Series and silver at the Tokyo Olympics.
Barry played one game for the All Blacks during his long-standing playing career against France in 1995.
It saw him follow in the footsteps of father Kevin and grandfather Ned as the first family to have three generations play for the All Blacks.
After his playing career, Barry joined the Blues as an assistant coach in 2006, eventually moving on to take charge of North Harbour in the NPC.
"I'm very excited to take the team into the next cycle off the back of what they’ve done at the Paris Olympics,” Barry said in a statement.
"It's a great base to start from and it's a credit to John and the management with what they’ve done in the last cycle.
"I'm not looking to reinvent the wheel but rather build on what is already there. The players are fit, fast and skilful and I’m looking forward to working with them."
Barry will take charge in his first tournament at the end of the month as the SVNS world series commences in Dubai.
We are delighted to welcome Liam to Australian Rugby as Head Coach of our Men’s Sevens side," RA Head of High Performance Peter Horne said.
"Liam's proven track record in winning environments, combined with his passion for developing young talent perfectly aligns with the direction we are taking.
"Our Men's Sevens side had their best-ever finish at an Olympic Games in August and are consistently one of the teams to beat on the global stage.
"We believe Liam is the ideal person to build a strong connection and successful playing group in the future."
