It is a side that contains three capped players - James Topping, Matt Mostyn and , several A caps and three youngsters who include last season's Irish Schools centre Gavin Duffy, the replacement for Gordon D'Arcy. For Argentina the Dubai tournament will be particularly important, coming as it does just two months before Pumas stage the World Cup in Mar del Plata. The other home unions challenge will come from Wales. The Welsh side, under coach Colin Hilman, come into the Dubai tournament after a tough baptism at Durban. But having run Fiji close in the Durban event, Wales will have gained enormous confidence from the experience of playing in South Africa.
Wales have South Africa, Canada and last year's Plate runners-up Zimbabwe in their group.
All will be difficult opponents for Wales but with capped players Jason Jones-Hughes, Matthew Robinson and Kevin Morgan in their side the Welsh should be able to hold their own. In the fourth group Australia and Manu Samoa should qualify for the quarter finals by overcoming Hong Kong and Kenya. After the rain soaked Durban event last weekend, Dubai, the second tournament in the IRB world series, should deliver drier conditions, ideal for fast and entertaining sevens rugby. Jamaica are about to compete in the 2003 World Cup Qualifying Tournament in Grand Cayman as well as a number of international sevens tournaments in 2002 and are launching a recruitment drive for new talent.