Fijiana Qualify For Cup Quarters
Despite losing two pool games, the Fiji Airways Fijiana 7s team managed to secure a Cup quarterfinal berth.
The Iliesa Tanivula-coached side went down to Australia 24-10 in their pool opener and Canada 21-12 but bounced back to beat Russia 20-12. However, Fijiana winger Tima Ravisa’s try against Canada has been one of the highlights of the first day. The move started from their line with Pricillia Siata punching through a gap before passing it on to captain Ana Maria Roqica who was tackled short of the line but managed to passed it on to Ravisa to score a glorious try.
They again face series leaders Australia in the Cup quarters while New Zealand, who are in hot pursuit in the race for the series title, will face Spain.
In the other quarterfinals hosts France take on England, while Canada face USA. With Australia leading rivals New Zealand by just four points in the standings, the stage is set for an epic climax to the series.
The two dominant teams find themselves on different sides of the quarter-final draw meaning they could meet in the final. A silver medal in Paris would be enough to secure the series title for Australia.
Both nations recorded perfect records on day one with three straight victories to top their groups. Australia after the Fiji win scored a tense 2420 defeat of Russia and finished the day with a convincing 31-14 win over Canada.
New Zealand started the day with a hard fought 24-12 win over England, before beating Wales 54-7 and completing the day with a solid 17-0 defeat of Ireland.
In front of an enthusiastic crowd hosts France showed their dominance to record three wins out of three with crowd pleasing victories over USA (14-5), Spain (20-0) and Japan (26-17).
France are currently third in the series standings and will be hoping to secure a place on the podium on home turf.
Invitational team Wales created a moment of history by scoring their first ever try on their first series world series appearance against Ireland, despite going down to a 24-5 defeat.
The fifth and final round of the HSBC World Rugby Women’s Sevens Series 2018 sees three days of intense rugby sevens action in a combined event with the men’s series finale.