Past forgotten, future beckons

Dubai: The heartbreak of not being able to take centre stage in front of their home fans on World Cup Sevens night is a thing of the past for the Arabian Gulf women's team, according to captain Bridie Johnson.

As they step up their preparations for the Dubai Sevens with the Bangkok Invitational 7s this weekend, Johnson believes the squad are a radically different side to the one that failed to qualify for the World Cup.

"We're not holding on to the past any more," said Johnson, adding: "We've turned over a new leaf and looking at things differently now."

The irony however could not be missed as the side went about their final training session before leaving for Bangkok amid an empty stadium overlooking the very pitch that hosted the first women's World Cup Sevens competition.

"A lot of us were disheartened after failing to qualify, so we just decided to leave the Arabian Gulf side for a while and go back to our clubs. We had to get back to discovering why we love the game in the first place," said Johnson. "Coach Bruce King has offered us a lot, especially the senior players like myself," she added. "And we now have a motto titled ‘Never stop improving'. Because we know if we each focus on getting better, it will only help us become better as a team."

Part of King's plan to boost the fitness levels of the girls involved convincing players to help him run his fitness company, Goal Attained. "Now we've got a situation where seven girls are staying in a villa. They are all fitness instructors at the company and have also got their own fitness routines to follow. So every time I get out, I can see if they're training or not," said King.