Two young stars set to shine bright after being named in Black Ferns Sevens

Teenagers Maia Davis and Le’Oxeayn Maiu’u have been named in the Black Ferns Sevens’ contracted squad for the upcoming SVNS Series. Davis is a supremely talented athlete, while Maiu’u has been compared to two-time Olympic gold medallist Portia Woodman-Wickliffe.

Davis has enjoyed two seasons of Farah Palmer Cup with the Manawatu Cyclones, as well a couple of campaigns with the New Zealand Under-18 Sevens team and some time with the New Zealand Sevens Development side.

In those 10 appearances for the Cyclones, Davis scored 10 tries and kicked 15 conversions. Manawatu won 90 per cent of their fixtures across those two seasons, however they did lose last year’s Championship Final before taking out the 2024 title with a 33-3 win over Otago.

Maiu’u is a recent graduate from Mt Albert Grammar who has joined the Black Ferns Sevens at their team base in Mt Maunganui. The New Zealander debuted at Farah Palmer Cup level with Auckland earlier this year, before going on to make another six appearances.

During Maiu’u’s ascent to the Black Ferns Sevens, the Kiwi showed signs of promise by earning selection for the Condor Sevens side in 2019 at just 13 years of age. That side included current Black Ferns Sevens representatives Kelsey Teneti, Manaia Nuku and Jorja Miller.

With the two bright young stars joining the Black Ferns Sevens for the upcoming 2024/25 season, coach Cory Sweeney spoke about how both of them have huge potential – even suggesting that they’re likely to debut on the Series this season.

“I think every sport in New Zealand has eyes on Maia; she’s a talented young athlete. One of the more important skillsets in sevens is kicking and Maia comes in really advanced in that space. She has great game awareness and is a well-rounded player,” Sweeney said in a statement.

“Le’Oxeayn is similar to Portia. She is another netballer that has the great footwork that comes from netball and has a sprinting background, so we are excited to get her in the programme and develop her into a professional sevens player.

“We are at the start of a four-year cycle so (we) have time to grow and develop these players along with other young players that come in. I anticipate these two players will feature on the (SVNS Series) this season.”

The Black Ferns Sevens has 17 players currently contracted, with room for another three players to join the prestigious squad in the new year. Michalea Blyde, Stacey Waka, Sarah Hirini and Jazmin Felix-Hotham are among the big names returning for another year.

On top of that, five development contracts are also on offer. Those contracts offer younger players the opportunity to immerse themselves in the environment for up to 50 days during the season.

The Black Ferns Sevens squad

Michaela Blyde, Kelly Brazier, Maia Davis, Dhys Faleafaga, Jazmin Felix-Hotham, Sarah Hirini, Shiray Kaka, Le’Oxeayn Maiu’u, Justine McGregor, Jorja Miller, Manaia Nuku, Mahina Paul, Risi Pouri-Lane, Alena Saili, Theresa Setefano, Kelsey Teneti, Stacey Waaka