HSBC SVNS off to a flying start in Dubai
- HSBC SVNS kicks off in Dubai to welcome a new era for rugby sevens.
- Australia, France and New Zealand women, and Argentina and South Africa men finish day one with perfect win records.
- Women’s quarter-final lineup: New Zealand v Brazil, Ireland v Canada, France v Fiji, USA v Australia.
- Men’s quarter-final lineup: South Africa v Australia, Ireland v Fiji, USA v New Zealand, Samoa v Argentina.
- The action continues from 09:30 local time (GMT+4) on Sunday with the quarter-finals and concludes with the women’s and men’s finals at 19:13 and 19:53 respectively.
The HSBC SVNS got off to an electric start on a day of historic firsts in Dubai to kick off a new era for rugby sevens in thrilling style.
The opening day of the Emirates Dubai 7s saw some sensational rugby sevens played in front of a vibrant festival atmosphere as the best 12 men’s and women’s teams in the world showcased their speed, skill and talent to entertain a packed Sevens Stadium.
READ WOMEN’S DAY ONE REPORT >>
In the women’s competition Australia, France and reigning series champions New Zealand each claimed a hat-trick of victories to top their pools.
The men’s event saw seven of last season’s top eight qualify for the quarter-finals with only South Africa and Argentina recording three wins on day one. In a repeat of the recent Rugby World Cup final, the Blitzboks overcame the All Blacks Sevens in a scintillating final match of the day to top pool A.
VIEW RESULTS, POOLS AND FIXTURES >>
With the reimagined competition format removing draws from the pool phase this season, for the first time in the HSBC SVNS, a pool game went to sudden death as Canada women beat the USA. Carissa’s Norsten’s history-making golden-point try in overtime sparked jubilant celebrations by a team who beat their North American rivals just once in six series games last season.
Meanwhile, South Africa women, who were promoted from the Challenger, became the first team to claim the newly introduced losing bonus point for teams who are defeated by seven points or less as they were unlucky to lose 19-14 to New Zealand thanks to a last-minute try from captain Sarah Hirini.
Brazil took advantage of the new losing bonus-point system to qualify for the quarter-finals as one of the two best third-placed teams, where they will face the all-conquering New Zealand.
In the other women’s quarter-finals France will face Fiji, Ireland meet Canada and USA line-up against Australia, who are looking to retain the Dubai title they won last year.
Australia captain Charlotte Caslick said of team-mate Maddison Levi who leads the try-scoring charts with seven tries on day one: “We have to defend her all the time in training and it’s no easy task, that for sure. She’s fast but also so strong and powerful, so if she doesn’t go round you, she goes through you.”
France’s Caroline Drouin was pleased with their day’s work: “We are very happy. It was a great day with three wins. It wasn’t an easy group but we’ve got to do better tomorrow.”
The men’s tournament which has been reduced from 16 to 12 teams this season was intensely competitive from start to finish and set up a mouth-watering set of quarter-finals on Sunday.
Reigning Dubai champions South Africa will face Australia while impressive Ireland will take on double Olympic champions Fiji. Current series title holders New Zealand will play USA and Samoa v Argentina completes the line-up.
Australia men’s captain Nick Malouf is looking forward to tomorrow: “Doing what we’d spoken about for the first time today was the most pleasing thing. Tomorrow’s a whole new day so we’ll put our best foot forward.”
USA Head Coach Mike Friday said: “We left four of our senior players at home in pre-season but the young men embraced the opportunity today.”
The action in Dubai continues from 09:30 local time (GMT+4) on Sunday beginning with the women’s quarter-finals. The event concludes on Sunday evening when the podium positions will be decided with the women’s final at 19:13, followed by the men’s final at 19:53 local time.
Fans can watch the HSBC SVNS action wherever they are in the world, either via broadcaster partners or online on Rugby Pass TV. All matches taking place on pitch two in Dubai will be live-streamed on Rugby Pass TV.
The HSBC SVNS 2024, World Rugby’s revamped and rebranded global celebration of rugby sevens, is taking place across eight iconic destinations and is set to supercharge the sport’s global appeal.
VIEW HSBC SVNS 2024 CALENDAR >>
The new look HSBC SVNS 2024 features seven regular-season events – in Dubai, Cape Town, Perth, Vancouver, Los Angeles, Hong Kong and Singapore – before the Grand Final in Madrid. The top eight placed teams based on cumulative series points after seven events will compete in the new ‘winner takes all’ Grand Final, where the women’s and men’s champions will be crowned.
Madrid will also play host to the high stakes relegation play-off competition where teams ranked ninth to 12th will join the top four teams from the World Rugby Sevens Challenger, with the top four placed teams securing their place on HSBC SVNS 2025.
The reimagined competition model means fans can expect even more excitement, entertainment and nail-biting jeopardy. And with the clock counting down until rugby sevens kicks off the Olympic Games in Paris on 24 July 2024, the action will be hotter than ever on and off the pitch.
In line with World Rugby’s commitment to grow the women’s game, all HSBC SVNS events will see men’s and women’s teams sharing the platform equally to showcase their incredible strength, speed and skill on the biggest stages around the world.
HSBC SVNS events deliver the ultimate in immersive experiences, a unique festival of sport, entertainment, music, culture and cuisine alongside the world’s best men’s and women’s athletes set against the spectacular backdrops of some of the most stunning locations around the globe.
