Matthew Gonzalez (rugby 7s) made his debut for Australia at the Singapore leg of the World Series Sevens in April 2022 ahead of his Commonwealth Games debut in Birmingham. He was one of six players in the squad who had no Olympic or Commonwealth Games experience.

It had been a long wait for the 27-year-old speedy halfback: Gonzalez had played over 70 games for Sydney club side Eastwood in a decade, often plagued by injury.