Sunday, 11 December 2011

New Zealand beat hosts in SA Sevens final

New Zealand beat host nation South Africa to win the IRB South African Sevens tournament in Port Elizabeth.

The defending sevens series champions edged South Africa 31-26 in a thrilling final in front of 30,000 fans that was decided by a Tomasi Cama try with the last move of the match.
The victory sees the All Blacks draw level with Fiji at the top of the current sevens series standings on 51 points, with South Africa just behind in third on 48 and England fourth on 47.
"It was a great final, South Africa played really well but it was great for my new young guys to come on and provide something for that win," said New Zealand coach Gordon Tiejtens.
"It's great for my team to get back on track. To beat South Africa on their ground is great for us. When you look at it, we have been to three tournaments and been in two finals. I am really proud of the guys."
New Zealand edged into the lead early on thanks to tries from skipper DJ Forbes and scrum-half Cama.
But the Springboks hit back through a brace from Bernardo Botha before Frank Halai scored on the stroke of half time to put New Zealand back in front.
South Africa then took the initiative with tries from Steven Hunt and Cecil Afrika, but Halai crossed over once again to get the All Blacks back within two points before Cama scored with the last move of the match.
Samoa took third spot in the tournament after beating England in the third-place play-off, while Wales beat Fiji in the Plate final.

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