New Zealand women claim Commonwealth Gold

A thrilling Gold Medal final at the Commonwealth Games saw New Zealand defeat Olympic champions Australia 17-12 in extra time on Sunday. The match brought a close to the first ever Women’s Rugby Sevens event at the Games.

New Zealand took a 12-0 lead into halftime with tries from Portia Woodman and Michaela Blyde, but Australia roared back in the second half with Emilie Cherry and Ellia Green touching down to level the scores. A stunning 80-meter sprint down the middle from Kelly Brazier clinched the title five minutes into the extra period.

The Bronze Final would see England upsetting Canada 24-19. A yellow card to Ghislaine Landry just a minute into the match opened the door for two England tries in quick succession from Lydia Thompson and Deborah Fleming. Claire Allan added one more to leave Canada in dire straits at 19-0 down but Bianca Farella grabbed one back just before the halftime break.

Canada needed some inspiration in the second half but it was rising star Jess Breach who broke their hearts shortly after the restart. Down three scores Canada mounted a desperate comeback with Charity Williams and Sara Kaljuvee scoring tries but time was their enemy and the final whistle sounded before they could score a fourth try.

It was a difficult tournament for the Canadians, who finished with two wins and three defeats. They dropped their final pool match 24-7 to the eventual champions and were no match for Australia in the Semi Final, falling 33-7. They now prepare for an immediate return to action in Kitakyushu for the third stop on the 2017-18 HSBC Women’s Sevens Series.

FINAL STANDINGS
1 New Zealand
2 Australia
3 England
4 Canada
5 Fiji
6 Kenya
7 Wales
8 South Africa