Maddison Levi is being recognized as a special talent in Australian rugby, often referred to as the ‘cheat code.’ She showcased her exceptional skills during the Dubai Sevens, leading the women’s World Series champions to a victorious start of the season.
Recently named the women’s world sevens player of the year, Levi had a remarkable weekend, scoring a record-breaking 15 tries. This outstanding performance contributed significantly to Australia’s success in the final match, where they secured a thrilling 28-24 win over New Zealand, the Olympic champions.
The team, now led by Bella Nasser, had to wait longer than expected for this victory. It came after a disappointing Olympic campaign in Paris, where the Australian squad, considered favorites, fell short of claiming a medal, leaving them disheartened.
‘It’s pretty incredible. I’m lost for words with how I feel right now, like, I’m on the verge of tears, but also laughing and so happy,’ said Nasser.
‘I’m so proud of the girls.’
Levi’s incredible performance, capped by the winning length-of-the-field intercept score in the final, also helped them put the record straight in the 39-0 quarter-final win over Canada, who had sensationally beaten them in the Olympic semis.
Maddison Levi had a record-breaking weekend for Australia with 15 tries in series defence
It comes after Levi was named best player in world rugby in Monacco ahead of the Dubai series
Former Wallabies great Matt Giteau is so impressed by Levi he has labelled her a ‘cheat code’
After scoring a hat-trick against China, four against Fiji and two against Ireland on Saturday, the unstoppable Levi rattled up another treble against the Canadians and two more in the 35-7 semi-final win over Great Britain.
Then, with the New Zealanders leading 24-21 with just three minutes left in the final, the 22-year-old Levi, after a tough final in which she’d been caught out a couple of times at restarts, latched on to a stray pass near her own line and galloped 80 metres to the line for the match-winner.
Watching her destructive performance, Wallabies’ great Matt Giteau was left tweeting on X: ‘Maddi Levi is a genuine cheat code.’
Her 15 tries in one tournament beat the record of 14 set by New Zealand great Portia Woodman in Atlanta in 2015. Levi now has 167 tries in her World Series career, on target to race past Woodman’s record career mark of 256.
But she wasn’t the only Australian stand-out, with her sister Teagan Levi scoring a try in the final along with Faith Nathan, who nabbed seven over the weekend.
Nasser, having taken over the skipper’s arm band from Charlotte Caslick as part of a post-Olympic reshuffle, also scored a crucial try in the final just before halftime.
But it was the 29-year-old long-time star Caslick herself who made the vital, match-sealing turnover with just 22 seconds left as New Zealand, who scored tries through Jorja Miller, Risi Pouri-Lane, Theresa Setefano and Manaia Nuku in the roller-coaster showdown, pressed desperately for a last-gasp winner.
It helped earn Caslick the player-of-the-final award and left her being mobbed by her adoring teammates afterwards. ‘I think every year we roll out more and more young girls and it shows the depth of our program,’ she said.
In contrast to the success of Tim Walsh’s outfit, Australia’s men, the Olympic semi-finalists, endured a miserable season-opener, eventually finishing seventh overall after going down 22-20 to Argentina in the quarter-final, when even a terrific hat-trick from Henry Paterson proved not quite enough.
The Australians then won their consolation match 17-12 against Britain, featuring another Paterson try, to take the seventh spot as Fiji went on to take the crown, defeating first-time finalists Spain 19-5.
