Raiders DNA and rising stars boosts University of Canberra sevens rugby squad

These are the gems being unearthed by University of Canberra sevens rugby coach Liam McGrath on the road to Rugby Australia's University Sevens Series.

Canberra will play in the final of a pre-season tournament on their home turf on Sunday after winning two of their three matches on Saturday.

The University of Technology Sydney went unbeaten on day one but the star-studded outfit will return home before the finals, sending Canberra to Sunday's decider.

Canberra will meet the winner of the semi-final clash between the University of Newcastle and Melbourne University.

It gives fans another chance to see OzTag convert Lily Croker in action as she builds on the legacy carved out by her father Jason, the most capped Raider in club history.

"She's got that DNA," McGrath said.

"Defensively she was very strong. We knew she could attack but all the work is doing defensively is starting to pay off. Plenty to like."

Like Tess Staines, who left defenders clutching at thin air.

"She's a kid who has come up from Leeton with a rugby league background," McGrath said.

"I think she scored four tries, and most of them were long-range tries, making line breaks from 40 or 50 metres out, and at one stage about 80 out."

Or like Gislea Vaea, the Daramalan College student who handled the occasion with poise.

"She was playing in the halves which is a notoriously challenging position for someone so young but she was incredible, particularly defensively," McGrath said.

"She has a touch background so we knew she could attack, but her defence was really impressive. She has been putting in a lot of work with us around her footwork."

The University Sevens Series kicks off in Sydney and Brisbane next weekend. The competition has been split into two pools, with two regional rounds followed by two national rounds.

Pool A comprises the University of Queensland, Bond University, Griffith University, University of Adelaide, and Melbourne University. Pool B features University of Sydney, University of Canberra, University of Technology Sydney, and University of Newcastle.

McGrath has a 31-woman squad to pick from leading into round one with his side coming together from far and wide for a shot at sevens heaven.

"That's made up of a group in Canberra, a group of seven in the Riverina region and a group of five in the central west," McGrath said.

"We've got coaches out in those regions basically mirroring our program here. We find it has made the girls lives' a lot easier.

"Girls like Lilly Mason-Spice and Alahna Ryan down in the central west, who last year were having to come in for two to three weeks at a time, are now able to do their training at home and then get exposure for tournament weekends here."