Canada tops pool, Argentina Men holding on in Hamilton

Canada’s Men are closing in on a Semi Final spot at the Hamilton Sevens after finishing Day One at the top of Pool C. Meanwhile Argentina are holding on in Pool D but the best the USA can now hope for is a 5th-place seeding match after losing to hosts New Zealand.

The controversial new format leaves the Eagles with no chance of reaching the Semi Finals despite still the strong likelihood of finishing second in Pool A. Their opening round win over Scotland set the stage for their face-off with New Zealand but the men in black were in devastating form, outscoring the USA four tries to one.

Argentina endured a torrid start to their day as they were dismantled by Australia 38-7 leaving them on the brink of Semi Final elimination. A stunning turn of fortunes saw them recover with a remarkable 40-nil performance over Samoa, with two tries apiece going to Luciano González Rizzoni and Matías Osadczuk. The result keeps them alive though severely disadvantaged.

It’s the unlikely Canadians, the lowest ranked of the Americas teams heading into the tournament, who have the greatest chance to qualify for the Semi Finals. Phil Berna’s burst onto a Nate Hirayama offload while shorthanded gave them a confidence-boosting win over Ireland to start the day. A last-gasp try from David Richard earned them a draw against France and the two sides move into Day Two level on points.

Pool D will be decided by points differential, and with Canada only one up on France it is all to play for in their last pool match against Spain. Argentina will need to upset an undefeated Fiji to stand a chance, and score points in the process. The USA will look to regroup against Wales knowing their tournament has only two matches remaining.

Live broadcasts are available on the CBC Sports website in Canada, NBC Sports Gold in the USA, and ESPN in Latin and South America. A complete fixture list can be seen here.

 

DAY ONE RESULTS

POOL A
Scotland 7 – 24 USA
New Zealand 47 – 0 Wales
Scotland 24 – 19 Wales
New Zealand 26 – 5 USA

POOL B
Kenya 19 – 24 England
South Africa 31 – 5 Japan
Kenya 12 – 12 Japan
South Africa 19 – 21 England

POOL C
Ireland 21 – 26 Canada
France 21 – 17 Spain
Ireland 28 – 17 Spain
France 12 – 12 Canada

POOL D
Argentina 7 – 38 Australia
Fiji 19 – 12 Samoa
Argentina 40 – 0 Samoa
Fiji 19 – 12 Australia

 

DAY TWO AMERICAS FIXTURES

Sat, Jan 25 – 17:07 ET – POOL C – Canada vs Spain
Sat, Jan 25 – 18:57 ET – POOL D – Fiji vs Argentina
Sat, Jan 25 – 19:19 ET – POOL A – USA vs Wales