Hat-Trick Hero Kennedy Makes HSBC SVNS Dream Team In Cape Town

Kennedy’s full-time return to the Ireland Men’s Sevens team (sponsored by TritonLake) has helped them make a strong start to the new campaign, as they head into the Christmas break in fifth place in the World Series standings.

Ireland memorably beat both South Africa, the hosts and Dubai champions, and New Zealand at the Cape Town event. Kennedy described the historic 36-21 quarter-final win over the All Blacks Sevens as ‘getting a monkey off our backs’.

The playmaking Dubliner crossed for a fantastic first half hat-trick as the Ireland Men got the better of New Zealand for the first time in 11 World Series encounters. He finished the weekend with five tries, having also scored against the USA and Great Britain.

After the opening two tournaments of the 2024 SVNS season, Kennedy and Argentinian star Marcos Moneta are locked level on 11 tries each at the top of the try-scoring charts. Australia’s Nathan Lawson is just behind them on 10.

Jordan Conroy (110 tries) is currently the only Irishman to score 100 World Series tries, but Kennedy is on course to join his team-mate in the century club in the New Year. He has taken his career tally to 89 tries in 22 tournaments, for an average of 4.045 per event.

The 2022 World Rugby Men’s Sevens Player of the Year was joined in the Cape Town Dream Team line-up by Matias Osadczuk and German Schulz from champions Argentina, Fiji’s Kaminieli Rasaku, and Lawson, Maurice Longbottom and James Turner from runners-up Australia.

The 24 HSBC SVNS teams will get a well-earned rest over the festive period, before returning to action Down Under in Perth for the season’s third leg on January 26-28.