Who’s hot and who’s not: Antoine Dupont’s heroics, Duhan van der Merwe’s record and Melvyn Jaminet’s fate

Adam Kyriacou
Who's hot and who's not image 29 July 2024

France's Anotine Dupont and Melvyn Jaminet.

It’s time for our Monday wrap of who has their name in lights and who is making the headlines for all the wrong reasons after the weekend.

THEY’RE ON FIRE!

Antoine Dupont and France: What more can be said about this superstar? Dupont helped inspire France‘s men’s Sevens team to Olympic Gold on Saturday as his two-try showing in the final against Fiji inspired them to victory. After a sluggish start to the tournament, the hosts grew as the knockout stages came knocking with the Toulouse and Les Bleus scrum-half once again relishing the big occasion. What made his brace and one try assist all the more impressive was that he was used as an impact player off the bench. What a stroke of genius by Jerome Daret as Dupont’s bold switch to Sevens has paid off in the biggest way.

Duhan van der Merwe record: It was always a matter of when, not if, and on Saturday Van der Merwe was relieved to get the “monkey of his back” when he crossed against Uruguay. That 28th international try moves him clear of Stuart Hogg as Scotland‘s leading all-time try-scorer and he’ll no doubt build on that lead in the coming years. With Darcy Graham not being far behind his team-mate, their personal battle for scores should push both on to build on their tallies.

Returning All Blacks stars: Sam Cane and Will Jordan are notable returnees for New Zealand as their Rugby Championship squad was announced ahead of the opening game against Argentina next weekend. Cane will be looking to prove his worth in training as he hopes to sign off from international rugby in style at the end of this year. He currently sits on 95 caps which will surely be in the back of his mind while for Jordan a much longer future awaits under coach Scott Robertson. The pair know each other inside out from their time at the Crusaders and once feels he could be the long-term full-back for the ex-Crusaders boss.

Sevens turnout at Olympics: A packed out Stade de France from a rugby mad country such as France was inevitable but it doesn’t make it any less special for Sevens to be promoted on the global stage via the Olympic Games. The men’s tournament was the perfect appetiser before the Opening Ceremony as the country got behind their team who more than delivered, as mentioned above. Both the men’s and women’s action has been top drawer as rugby has certainly grabbed the attention.

Olympic Rugby Sevens: All the fixtures for day two of the 2024 Women’s medal push

Lions’ Pacific Island talk: Wouldn’t this be a special game as reports are suggesting that the 2025 British and Irish Lions could face a Pacific Islands XV next year on their tour. This is due to the collapse of the Melbourne Rebels which means the Lions have a gap in their fixture list before their second Test against Australia. Seeing the best of Fiji, Tonga and Samoa take on the Lions would be something special and our possible line-up for that team is just that.

Qatar bid reportedly loses: Elsewhere, there’s talk the upcoming Nations Championship won’t take place in Qatar after rugby chiefs opted against playing the finals in the Middle East. The biennial tournament is set to begin in 2026 and Six Nations and SANZAAR were reportedly in advanced negotiations to take the competition to Qatar, but they appear to have rejected that proposal for now, the Daily Mail has reported. The newspaper state that rugby bosses were aware of the potential reputational damage staging the event in the country could bring to the sport, given that their human rights record has been heavily criticised.

COLD AS ICE!

Melvyn Jaminet discovers fate: France full-back Melvyn Jaminet was slapped with a 34-week suspension by the French Rugby Federation on Friday after he posted a video of himself making a racist remark earlier this month. Jaminet put a video on his Instagram story on July 7, which included him making a racist comment about the Arab community. The 20-cap player was immediately suspended and sent home from the tour of Argentina before a FFR Disciplinary Council was held on Friday. It determined Jaminet should be fined 30,000 euros (£25k) and given a suspension of 34 weeks, which can be reduced by eight weeks if he takes part in various prevention actions after the 25-year-old Toulon full-back was declared to have “harmed” the best interests of the sport, according to FFR.

Series heavyweights struggle: Argentina, Ireland and New Zealand will be wondering what might have been after the men’s Rugby Sevens as all three World Rugby Sevens Series heavyweights came up short when it mattered in Paris. New Zealand especially will be furious with their showing against an unfancied South Africa in the quarter-finals as their error rate and inability to take the chances on offer cost them. Argentina lost to France in their last-eight game while Ireland came agonisingly close against Fiji. The top three sides in the Series ultimately finished fifth (New Zealand), sixth (Ireland) and seventh (Argentina).

Olympics disorganisation: Staying with the Olympics and it was disappointing to read that similar problems to that that impacted the England v Argentina game at the 2023 Rugby World Cup and the 2022 UEFA Champions League final between Real Madrid and Liverpool. According to reports, some supporters missed the first men’s Rugby Sevens match of Day One due to the gates only opening half-an-hour before kick-off. How frustrating for those wanting to enjoy every fixture.

READ MORE: Mike Friday: World Rugby must ’embrace the Olympics’ as NFL and league rivals emerge

Argentina Antoine Dupont Duhan van der Merwe Melvyn Jaminet Olympics Rugby Sevens Sam Cane Will Jordan

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