WORLD CUP SEVENS: BlitzBoks to face Scotland in last eight
SAN FRANCISCO, DAY ONE WRAP: The BlitzBoks advanced to the last eight of the main draw at Rugby World Cup Sevens after they beat Ireland 45-7 in the Round of 16.
Siviwe Soyizwapi was the star of the show for the BlitzBoks as he ran in four tries in the victory.
Justin Geduld opened the scoring before Soyizwapi ran in two tries before the break to make it 19-0
Werner Kok kicked off the scoring in the second half with a try before Geduld got a second. Both tries were converted.
Soyizwapi then completed his quadruple with another two tries before Ireland got a consolation score before the end.
The BlitzBoks will now face Scotland in the Championship quarterfinals.
Your men’s Championship quarter-finals are as follows:@Scotlandteam v @Blitzboks @USARugby v @EnglandRugby @unionargentina v @fijirugby @FFRugby v @AllBlack7s#RWC7s pic.twitter.com/RBK2uA6wfm
— Rugby World Cup Sevens (@WorldRugby7s) July 21, 2018
Defending champions New Zealand and Olympic gold medallists Fiji launched their World Cup Sevens campaigns with comfortable victories on Friday as Australia crashed out.
New Zealand, bidding to become the first team in history to claim back-to-back World Cup Sevens crowns, overpowered Russia 29-5 to book their place in the quarterfinals at AT&T Park.
Fiji, the 2016 Olympic champions, meanwhile survived an early scare against a Japan side bristling with Fiji-born talent to win 35-10.
The Fijians, roared on by a vocal contingent of fans, held their nerve after trailing 7-5 at half-time to stretch away after the restart, with France-based stars Leone Nakarawa and Semi Radradra both impressing from the bench.
The Fijians will now play Argentina in Saturday’s quarterfinals for a place in the last four.
Reaction: @Blitzboks Ruhan Nel spoke to us after his side got their #RWC7s campaign off to a winning start against Ireland pic.twitter.com/xxPpXmDqCU
— Rugby World Cup Sevens (@WorldRugby7s) July 21, 2018
France’s Tavite Veredamu – a soldier in the French Foreign Legion who was drafted into France’s sevens squad last year – scored twice in a pulsating 22-17 victory over Australia.
“It’s just unbelievable,” Veredamu told AFP. “We knew that we could cause a surprise here. Hopefully we can cause another surprise this weekend.”
France’s reward for their upset of Australia is a meeting with mighty New Zealand on Saturday in the last eight.
The Scots battled into the last eight after an astonishing comeback to defeat Kenya.
The Kenyans looked to be cruising into the last eight after racing into a 26-0 lead early in the second half.
But Scotland reeled off unanswered tries from Harvey Elms, Scott Riddell and two from Jamie Farndale as well as a penalty try to seal a sensational 31-26 victory in stoppage time.
The biggest cheer of a raucous opening day watched by an estimated crowd of 25 000 came in the United States’ opening win over Wales.
The host nation have emerged as a genuine force on the world sevens circuit, where they have recorded victories in London and Las Vegas in recent years.
The Americans were too powerful for an outmatched Welsh team on Friday, running out 35-0 winners.
The USA will now face England for a place in the semifinals on Saturday. The English battled to a 19-15 win over Samoa to advance to the last eight.
Relive: @SpeedSt11ck jumps out of one tackle and speeds to his first ever #RWC7s try for @USARugby at the #RWC7s pic.twitter.com/EVsIUIFo1P
— Rugby World Cup Sevens (@WorldRugby7s) July 21, 2018
In the women’s tournament meanwhile, New Zealand marked themselves out as the team to beat with two emphatic wins, piling up more than 100 points without conceding a point in wins over Mexico and Ireland.
New Zealand will play the United States in Saturday’s semifinals.
Australia’s women meanwhile will have a chance to avenge their men’s team’s defeat when they face France in the other half of the draw.
Australia progressed with wins over Papua New Guinea and Spain. France advanced to the semifinals after beating Canada 24-19.
Here are the timings for day two of Rugby World Cup Sevens 2018!
Kicking off Saturday at 0930hrs (GMT-7) pic.twitter.com/wH1XtroG2e
— Rugby World Cup Sevens (@WorldRugby7s) July 21, 2018
Click here for all DAY TWO’s fixtures!
Day One Results:
Men’s tournament:
Pre-round of 16:
Kenya 19-7 Tonga
Canada 29-21 Papua New Guinea
France 50-0 Jamaica
Wales 33-12 Zimbabwe
Samoa 45-7 Uganda
Russia 21-7 Hong Kong
Japan 33-7 Uruguay
Ireland 17-12 Chile
Round of 16:
Scotland 31-26 Kenya
Argentina 28-0 Canada
Australia 17-22 France
England 19-15 Samoa
New Zealand 29-5 Russia/Hong Kong
Fiji 35-10 Japan
South Africa 45-7 Ireland
United States 28-0 Wales
Women’s tournament:
Round of 16:
Fiji 12-19 Spain
France 33-7 Japan
Russia 24-14 South Africa
Canada 43-19 Brazil
Australia 34-5 Papua New Guinea
New Zealand 57-0 Mexico
England 14-19 Ireland
Quarterfinals:
Ireland 0-45 New Zealand
United States 33-17 Russia
France 24-19 Canada
Spain 0-34 Australia
AFP & @rugby365com
