Australia’s women are having a good IRB Women’s Sevens World Series.

Winners of the opening round in Dubai last November after an amazing comeback in the final against world champions New Zealand, they repeated the feat in Brazil when they beat their trans-Tasman rivals in the rain in Sao Paulo.

Fitness and conditioning is one part of Australia’s success this season and moving their base to Sydney where they train with the men’s team has been another important factor. But one crucial aspect has been the inspirational leadership of Sharni Williams.

“We were happy with the performance in Brazil, with a couple of new young girls getting a start and obviously with the rivalry we have with New Zealand it was awesome to get one over them,” admitted Williams.

“I just think our preparation was much better than it was in Atlanta.”

Another factor is the youth and sheer exuberance of the team she’s captaining, typified by Emilee Cherry who was named the Most Valuable Player following the tournament in Brazil last month.

“You get experience from every game that you play,” continued Williams. “I think going part-time at Narrabeen has been really beneficial for the young players.

Mental toughness

“One of the biggest things to learn is not getting overwhelmed. If you try and take too much in, you get overwhelmed and you don’t play very good footy. We go out there (in training) and do a lot of game scenarios and that’s definitely helped us in the dying minutes of the game.”

Wise words from Australian captain, who has also focused on mental toughness this season, especially when it comes to facing New Zealand.

“I think it’s more of a mental game and we’re definitely mentally tough these days. I think the mental game is the biggest thing against New Zealand, they’re tough and they are the nation that’s known for rugby, but Australia is definitely getting up there and over that hurdle.”

Australia will need to be “mentally tough” as they face a tough pool on day one at the University Town Stadium in Guangzhou, China, with matches against England, Ireland and Fiji.

AUDIO: HEAR MORE FROM SHARNI WILLIAMS >>

After their victory in Brazil, Australia now sit on 56 points at the top of the standings table alongside their New Zealand rivals and Williams knows a Cup win this weekend could be vital in their quest to be crowned Series champions.

“Guangzhou is important this weekend and making the finals is a must. We have got a couple of new players coming in, so a couple of fresh legs on the tour, and hopefully they can make their mark.”