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Sport | All Blacks

All Black Sevens' culture shift

The back-to-back world champions have been embracing a multicultural environment under Clark Laidlaw.

The team finished their captain's run in Hamilton ahead of this weekend's NZ Sevens tournament with a Samoan hymn inspired by Sione Molia.

Co-captain Tim Mikkelson says it is something that they have been doing for the past year since Laidlaw was named coach in 2017.

Mikkelson says, despite being hesitant at first, after a year of doing it "the boys love it."  They sing after their captains run and before their games.

"We'll sing together to bring us together, unite us before we go out to battle someone," Mikkelson says.

The team has an eclectic mix of waiata that they chose from beforehand.

The multicultural playlist reflects the many cultures in their squad, with Fijian songs, Māori songs, and the odd Kiwi classic thrown in as well.

Mikkelson says they sang the Herbs and Dave Dobbyn classic "Slice of Heaven" at the Commonwealth Games last year on the Gold Coast, where they won gold.

"So it works!" Mikkelson says.

The All Blacks Sevens will play Canada, Japan and Spain in pool play, which begins on Saturday.