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Fiji have done it. A masterful performance in the Gold Medal final saw them overwhelm Great Britain by a score of 43-7. The captain Osea Kolinisau crossed less than a minute into the match and by half-time the result was all but written at 29-0. Like Japan, Great Britain simply had no answer for the size, speed, and offloading ability of the Fijian forwards. Ben Ryan’s men complete a wonderful year, emulating Australia’s women by claiming the Gold on top of their HSBC Sevens Series title.
Great Britain have won the silver, a considerable achievement in itself given their last-minute preparations and ordinary performance during the HSBC season. South Africa meanwhile had little trouble earning the Bronze, outclassing Japan 54-14. The Blitzbokke will be somewhat let down to have fallen short of making the Gold final, but will at least leave with some silverware. Japan have shot way above their initial standing, entering the tournament ranked 15th in the world and having not been a core team on this year’s circuit.
In earlier action New Zealand defeated Argentina 17-14 to finish in 5th place, and France edged Australia 12-10 to take 7th spot. Both New Zealand and Australia will be greatly disappointed with their results after finishing 3rd and 4th respectively on the HSBC Series log.
FINAL RESULTS
7th PLACE FINAL
France 12 – 10 Australia
5th PLACE FINAL
New Zealand 17 – 14 Argentina
BRONZE MEDAL FINAL
Japan 14 – 54 South Africa
GOLD MEDAL FINAL
Fiji 43 – 7 Great Britain
FINAL STANDINGS
1 – Fiji
2 – Great Britain
3 – South Africa
4 – Japan
5 – New Zealand
6 – Argentina
7 – France
8 – Australia
9 – USA
10 – Spain
11 – Kenya
12 – Brazil
