Ben Ryan on Commonwealth Games draw for England Sevens

England's Tom Varndell in action at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne

England will face Australia in the pool stages of the Rugby Sevens at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi in what coach Ben Ryan describes as “the tastiest match in the qualifying round”. The 2006 silver medallists have been placed in Pool D with the Wallabies, Namibia and Sri Lanka for the tournament that takes place on October 11 and 12 this year. England were beaten 29-21 in the Melbourne final four years ago when New Zealand claimed their third gold medal following their wins at Manchester (2002) and Kuala Lumpur (1998).

“It brings it all to life now the draw has been made and it will concentrate our minds on the task in hand and what we need to do over the two days to finish top of the pile at the Commonwealth Games,” said England Sevens head coach Ryan.

“Over the years we’ve had the upper hand against Australia but this season just gone they’ve put together a side equal to any in the world. The scoreline from the last IRB Sevens World Series reads won two, lost two, drawn one which shows you how tight it’s been. It’s going to be an absolute ding-dong in Delhi and it’s the tastiest match-up in the qualifying round.

“It’s also good to be playing sides we haven’t met before in the pool stages. We’ve never played Namibia before as far as I know and last played Sri Lanka a couple of years ago in Hong Kong.

“One of the most exciting things is being part of a larger Team England. Building relationships, seeking advice and sharing knowledge with other sports is something we’ve been doing for a while and to be able to go to the Commonwealth Games with them all will be a great experience.”

New Zealand are in Pool A, where they will face opening matches against World Series regulars Scotland and Canada as well as Caribbean champions Guyana.

South Africa, the 2002 bronze medallists, head Pool B and face opening ties against Wales, Tonga and the host nation India.

IRB Sevens World Series champions Samoa top Pool C and take on Kenya, Uganda and Papua New Guinea.

England will announce their training squad for the Commonwealth Games later this month.

Commonwealth Games Rugby Sevens, October 11-12

• Pool A: New Zealand, Scotland, Canada, Guyana
• Pool B: South Africa, Wales, Tonga, India
• Pool C: Samoa, Kenya, Uganda, Papua New Guinea
• Pool D: England, Australia, Namibia, Sri Lanka