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Welsh duo chase Rio gold

Welsh duo chase Rio gold

Having seen GB Women narrowly miss out on a medal, GB men’s head coach Simon Amor has told his squad to “play to your full potential and enjoy every single moment” when they begin their campaign against Kenya this afternoon.

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Two Welsh players, Sam Cross and James Davies, are in a GB squad which is in a daunting pool which also has Kenya, New Zealand and Japan.

Team GB men get their Olympic campaign underway with a match against Kenya (4pm) before taking on Japan (9pm).
Amor believes his squad are ready for the challenge awaiting them in Rio.

“These guys will give absolutely everything for Team GB,” said Amor. “They will stay calm and composed and give it their best.

“This is a unique experience for them and one they will look back on for many years to come. It’s a special time for everyone and they are embracing every moment of it.”

“We start off with a very physical challenge from Kenya who are a big team,” said Amor.

“They bring a real physical challenge so we will have to match that one and play with real creativity. We then play a very fast and dynamic off-loading team in Japan so they will be a different kind of style and threat.

“Finally we have New Zealand, who are among the favourites, and who have picked an enormous team so again it’s another big challenge. If we can play to our full potential and gel our combinations then we can beat anyone in the world.”

Amor also says the excitement is building within the squad after months of build-up.

“They are excited, they are approaching it without any fear, they know what the expectation is and they are embracing the opportunity,” he said.

GB Women’s hopes of claiming a medal evaporated when Canada overturned an earlier defeat in pool play to claim the bronze medal with a 33-10 defeat – Wales Jasmine Joyce dashed over late on for what proved a consolation try.

Simon Middleton’s side were earlier beaten 25-7 by New Zealand in the semi-finals.

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