Perfect start for Americas in Hong Kong

All three Americas teams won their opening fixtures on Day One at the Hong Kong 7s. Argentina, Canada, and the USA each came away victorious though none were and their best and in each case there was significant opposition. With Chile also winning their two games in the qualifying bracket, it was a good day for Americas rugby at the world’s most prestigious sevens tournament.

Of the Americas trio it was Argentina who performed the best. An early try for captain Gaston Revol set the tone against Scotland, and they never relinquished the lead. German Schulz, Matias Osadczuk, and Renzo Barbier added singles to make the final score 22-14.

The USA held a 14-0 lead at the break thanks to tries from Folua Niua and Perry Baker, but had to hold on for dear life in the second half as the Russians controlled possession. German Davydov replied but a second score did not come, and Mike Friday’s men breathed a sigh of relief as they head into Day Two. Notably absent from the Eagles lineup was Danny Barrett, who missed the opener for unknown reasons but could yet make a return with 13th man Malon Al-Jiboori not called into the squad.

Canad took a nerve-wracking result over a game Kenyan side by 17-14 with Nathan Hirayama’s drop goal penalty from in front of the posts with time expired giving them the win. Luke McCloskey opened the scoring with a runaway score down the left flank and Harry Jones slid onto a finely-weighted Hirayama grubber for a second try. The win keeps Canada’s Cup Quarter Final hopes alive with match against France up next to determine their fate.

All matches are streamed live by World Rugby.

 

DAY ONE RESULTS

POOL A
Australia 22 – 19 Samoa
England 52 – 0 South Korea

POOL B
Canada 17 – 14 Kenya
South Africa 17 – 10 France

POOL C
New Zealand 19 – 7 Wales
Fiji 36 – 0 Japan

POOL D
Argentina 22 – 14 Scotland
USA 14 – 7 Russia

 

DAY TWO FIXTURES

Apr 7 – 23:18 ET – POOL A – Australia vs South Korea
Apr 7 – 23:40 ET – POOL A – England vs Samoa
Apr 8 – 00:02 ET – POOL D – Argentina vs Russia
Apr 8 – 00:26 ET – POOL D – USA vs Scotland
Apr 8 – 00:50 ET – POOL C – New Zealand vs Japan
Apr 8 – 01:12 ET – POOL C – Fiji vs Wales
Apr 8 – 01:34 ET – POOL B – Canada vs France
Apr 8 – 01:56 ET – POOL B – South Africa vs Kenya

Apr 8 – 03:18 ET – POOL A – Samoa vs South Korea
Apr 8 – 03:40 ET – POOL A – England vs Australia
Apr 8 – 04:02 ET – POOL D – Scotland vs Russia
Apr 8 – 04:24 ET – POOL D – USA vs Argentina
Apr 8 – 04:48 ET – POOL C – Wales vs Japan
Apr 8 – 05:12 ET – POOL C – Fiji vs New Zealand
Apr 8 – 05:34 ET – POOL B – Kenya vs France
Apr 8 – 05:56 ET – POOL B – South Africa vs Canada