Current World Sevens Player of the Year Emilee Cherry has been recalled to the Qantas Australian Women's Sevens squad for the London Sevens after recovering from a knee injury.
Head Coach Tim Walsh has named a 14-strong squad (two to be omitted) for the penultimate round of the 2014/15 Women's Sevens World Series, the first of back-to-back tournaments in Europe.
The uncapped pairing of Taleena Simon and Dominique Du Toit have been included in Walsh's extended squad, with Rachel Crothers (shoulder) the only players ruled out through injury. Evania Pelite, meanwhile, will be part of the travelling party to London, but will not be considered for selection until the final round of the season in Amsterdam as the centre completes her recovery from a thigh problem.
Three players - Emma Tonegato, Amy Turner and Tiana Penitani - will all win their 10th Women's Sevens World Series caps in London.
"It goes without saying that having a player with the quality of Emilee [Cherry] is a huge boost. She is a world-class player who is a key game-breaker for us. I haven't altered too much player-wise from Langford but we have worked on a few things in training that I'm confident will improve our performance from the last two tournaments.
"Even though we have played in invitational tournaments in London before, this is a new tournament on the World Series calendar and one we are all looking forward to immensely. For the Semi-Finalists, there is the huge incentive of playing at a Twickenham which will give Women's Rugby a fantastic boost in profile.
"However, first things first, we are focussing all our energies on a tough pool on the first day. We have a good record against Fiji so far this season, but as they have showed this season, an on-song Fiji is a dangerous proposition. China will be desperate to avoid relegation from the World Series while we all know what to expect from a USA side that is now knocking on the door of a top four spot in the World Series standings."
Day One of the event, along with the all of the action except the 3rd Place Play-Off and Cup Final, will be held at the Twickenham Stoop. Those outstanding games will be played at a sold out 80,000 Twickenham Stadium at the conclusion of pool stages of the Men's tournament.
Australia currently sit third in the 2014/15 Women's Sevens World Series standings, two points behind second-placed Canada. The top four countries, along with host nation Brazil, will qualify automatically for the Rio 2016 Olympics.
All of the action from London will be streamed via worldrugby.org
Qantas Australian Women’s Sevens fixtures in London, England, 15-16 May:
Australia v Fiji, Pool C, 9.44pm AEST
Australia v China, Pool C, 12.28am AEST
Australia v USA, Pool C, 3.34am AEST
Qantas Australian Women’s Sevens squad for the 2014/15 Women's Sevens World Series in London, England (two to be omitted):
Nicole Beck. Place of Birth: Bulli, NSW
Charlotte Caslick. Place of Birth: Brisbane, QLD
Emilee Cherry. Place of Birth: Roma, QLD. Hometown: Toowoomba, QLD
Chloe Dalton. Place of Birth: Singapore. Hometown: Mona Vale, NSW
Dominique Du Toit. Place of Birth: Maronderra, Zimbabwe. Hometown: Toowoomba, QLD
Gemma Etheridge. Place of Birth: Tamworth, NSW. Hometown: Toowoomba, QLD
Ellia Green. Place of Birth: Suva, Fiji. Hometown: Melbourne, VIC
Shannon Parry. Place of Birth: Brisbane, QLD
Tiana Penitani. Place of Birth: Canberra, ACT. Hometown: Maroubra, NSW
Alicia Quirk. Place of Birth: Wagga Wagga, NSW
Taleena Simon. Place of Birth: Sydney, NSW
Emma Tonegato. Place of Birth: Wollongong, NSW
Amy Turner. Place of Birth: Tokoroa, New Zealand. Hometown: Brisbane, QLD
Sharni Williams. Place of Birth: Batlow, NSW. Hometown: Canberra, ACT
