Sevens rugby: South Africa men, Australia women triumph in Seville

South Africa’s men and Australia’s women came out on top once again in the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series after an enthralling conclusion to the weekend in Seville.
The Blitzboks beat Australia 33-7 in the men’s final to continue their perfect start to the 2022 Series and rack up a sixth straight Cup victory.
Neil Powell’s side recorded a 34th consecutive win in the final, equaling the second-longest streak of all time, set by New Zealand’s 2001-02 team.
Argentina overcame Ireland 12-5 in the bronze match to clinch their fourth consecutive podium finish.
Australia’s women won their third gold in four 2022 Series events, but they had to be at their best to come from behind and beat an in-form Ireland side competing in their first ever Cup final.
England’s women beat Málaga champions USA to take bronze, their first Series medal since 2019.
South Africa’s dominance shows no sign of waning, and they were once again untouchable as they added a Seville gold to their haul, after triumphing in Dubai twice and in Málaga last weekend.
In the women’s decider, Australia’s Faith Nathan scored a match-winning try after the buzzer to clinch a comeback victory over an Ireland side competing in their first ever Cup final.
Ireland’s rise to the showcase match, including a semi-final thrashing of England, was the story of the weekend in the women’s event, and they put in another superb performance to push the Series leaders all the way.
Argentina continued their superb record in the 2022 season by winning a medal at a fourth consecutive tournament, beating Ireland 12-5 in the bronze match.
The Pumas, who suffered a heartbreaking last-gasp defeat to South Africa in the Málaga final a week earlier, denied an Irish side chasing their first medal since 2018 in a fiercely contested clash.
In the women bronze final, England had a daunting task in front of them in their bid to win a first medal in almost three years as they faced an in-form USA side that won gold in Málaga just a week earlier.
But they put in an assured performance to triumph 19-12 and put the disappointment of a heavy semi-final loss to Ireland behind them.
USA sealed fifth place as a Kevon Williams try after the buzzer clinched a 22-17 win over England, after the two playoff contestants beat France and Scotland respectively in the fifth-place semi-finals.
Kenya and Spain knocked out Germany and Japan to reach the ninth -place playoff, which the Kenyans won 24-19, while Wales defeated Canada 19-14 to take 13th place.
Ireland’s run to their second ever Cup semi-final was the story of day two in the women’s event, and the dream run didn’t end there as they ran riot in an outstanding 29-0 semi-final win over England.
France finished fifth thanks to a 26-10 playoff win over Russia, but hosts Spain were pipped to seventh by Canada after losing their playoff 21-5.
Brazil took ninth, overcoming Poland 17-5, while Belgium also clinched some valuable Series points by beating debutants Portugal 40-7 in the 11th place decider.
The Sevens Series now takes a break until April, when the men will head to Singapore and Vancouver in consecutive weekends over 9/10 and 17/18, while the women head to Langford next on 30 April/1 May.
COURTESY