Dubai: Dubai and Series holders South Africa got their double defence off to a perfect start on the first day of the men’s World Series opening Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens on Friday.
The Springboks beat Uganda 19-10, Kenya 48-5 and Canada 28-0 to top Pool A, and now face second in Pool D Samoa in Saturday’s first cup quarter-final from 11am.
If successful, five-time Dubai-winners South Africa would equal New Zealand’s record of six wins here in Dubai on Saturday, totalling their third victory on UAE soil in three years.
Record 12-time World Series and six-time Dubai winners New Zealand may have something to say about that though, having also topped their group - Pool D - with three wins over Samoa 24-12, Argentina 21-19 and the USA 22-12.
The All Blacks now face second in Pool A Kenya in Saturday’s third quarter-final from 11.44am.
Others to look out for are last year’s Olympic gold medallists Fiji, who topped Pool C with three wins over Russia 50-7, Wales 21-7 and Australia 26-19, courtesy of a last ditch try to bounce back from defeat and decide the group in that final game.
Fiji, who won the past two consecutive World Series seasons before South Africa, have also won twice here in Dubai over the past four years and know what it takes to get the job done.
They will now play second in Pool B, which at the time of print was a toss-up between England and Scotland, who were both on two wins apiece heading into their final game together late on Friday.
Australia, who finished second in Pool C behind Fiji, will now take on the loser of that late England-Scotland duel in Saturday’s fourth quarter-final from 12.06pm.
Crowd favourites England had opened with victories over Spain 28-0 and France 14-12, while Scotland had similarly outdone France 24-12 and Spain 26-21, for both to take a joint lead in Pool B.
With England having won four-times in Dubai, second only to New Zealand and South Africa, they shouldn’t be overlooked as another possible to go all the way in the emirate.
Next year’s World Cup hosts the USA were a notable disappointment having finished bottom of Pool D with three defeats to Argentina 22-14, Samoa 26-14 and New Zealand 22-12.
Considering all eyes are on the Eagles in the build-up to San Francisco 2018, many would have expected better from them on day one especially as their star man Perry Baker has just been awarded Sevens Player of the Season this week.
However, Baker was a surprise omission from the starting line-up despite having travelled with the squad. And coach Mike Friday had made a conscious decision to give his side the summer off so they could be ready to last the season heading into their first home World Cup. This perhaps explained why his side came in seriously undercooked.
Men’s results – Friday
USA 14 Argentina 22
New Zealand 24 Samoa 12
Australia 38 Wales 7
Fiji 50 Russia 7
Canada 15 Kenya 29
South Africa 19 Uganda 0
Scotland 24 France 14
England 28 Spain 0
USA 14 Samoa 26
New Zealand 21 Argentina 19
Australia 47 Russia 0
Fiji 21 Wales 7
Canada 22 Uganda 17
South Africa 48 Kenya 5
Scotland 26 Spain 21
England 14 France 12
Argentina 12 Samoa 22
New Zealand 22 USA 12
Wales 29 Russia 5
Fiji 26 Australia 19
Kenya 29 Uganda 14
South Africa 28 Canada 0
