Singapore Sevens: double joy for Kiwis, who lay down Olympic marker, as Argentina win first world series title
- Argentina men finish fifth in Singapore to finish two points in front of second-placed Ireland following seven-leg HSBC SVNS Series
- Great Britain wriggle out of bottom four following rout of Australia in third-place playoff, USA tumble into relegation contest
New Zealand celebrated twin success for the second straight tournament while Argentina did enough to claim the men’s HSBC SVNS Series title, on an exhilarating closing day of the Singapore Sevens.
Both Kiwi teams reigned supreme at last month’s Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens, repeating their dominance from 2023.
And New Zealand on Sunday turned Singapore black, too, to lay down a marker ahead of the Paris Olympics in July.
The women inflicted a second-half blitz on Australia to win a rip-roaring final 31-21, before the men’s team denied Ireland their first world series title in a tight decider that finished 17-14.
Singapore was the seventh and closing leg of the series, with the grand finals poised to begin in Madrid on May 31.
The Black Ferns made predictably light work of Fiji in their semi-final. They raced into a 26-5 half-time lead, before taking their foot off the throttle and allowing the Fijians to close the gap to 33-22. Australia needed a last-minute try from Faith Nathan to beat France 19-12 in their semi.
