Blitzboks shine while Fiji thump New Zealand in Sydney
South Africa are assured of top spot in Pool B after beating France and Argentina on day one of the HSBC Sydney Sevens at Bankwest Stadium.
A pulsating end to the opening day saw Fiji thump defending champions New Zealand 26-5 to join hosts Australia, England, South Africa and USA as the only teams with a perfect record.
Fiji’s victory, their sixth in a row when the sides have met in the pool stages on the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series, sees them top Pool A from their greatest rivals New Zealand, who would have qualified for the semi-finals with victory.
South Africa also bounced back from a disappointing event in Hamilton last weekend to become the first team to confirm their place in the semi-finals in Sydney as Pool B winners with a game to spare, as even if the Blitzboks lose to Samoa, they would still finish above a victorious France or Argentina on the head-to-head rule.
Australia and England sit top of Pool C and D respectively, the hosts only on points difference from USA. The Australians raised $15,000 for the Red Cross Appeal supporting those affected by the recent bushfires by scoring 10 tries in victories over Scotland and Japan.
Rugby Australia, World Rugby and partners are each donating $500 for every try scored by the Australian men and women in their home event, so with the 11 tries scored by the women’s team in their two matches, a total of $31,500 was donated on day one.
The pool stage concludes on Sunday after which the four pool winners will progress straight to the Cup semi-finals. The other teams will go into play-offs to determine the rankings from fifth to 12th.
This comes as this season’s two-day combined men’s and women’s events are played across a new and exciting format to ensure that both men and women play under the same conditions over the entire tournament.
The action gets underway at 11:07 local time (GMT+11) with Scotland’s Pool C encounter with Japan.
Day One results
USA 32-14 Scotland
Australia 33-7 Japan
Argentina 14-52 South Africa
France 24-17 Samoa
Canada 28-19 Ireland
England 47-0 Spain
Kenya 14-28 Fiji
New Zealand 54-5 Wales
USA 45-7 Japan
Australia 31-14 Scotland
Argentina 28-21 Samoa
France 12-24 South Africa
Canada 12-28 Spain
England 19-12 Ireland
Kenya 21-26 Wales
New Zealand 5-26 Fiji
With thanks to World Rugby