Undermanned Aussie rugby sevens team denied late in final of Singapore Sevens
AN injury-depleted Australian sevens team have been denied a memorable tournament victory in Singapore after Fiji scored a try after the siren to snatch victory.
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AN injury-depleted Australian sevens team have been denied a memorable tournament victory in Singapore after Fiji scored a heartbreaking try after the siren to snatch victory.
Under new coach Tim Walsh for the first time but without injured skipper Jesse Parahi, Australia trailed 21-10 with a little under three minutes left on the clock but refused to give up.
They scored two tries to take a one-point lead with barely any time left on the clock.
Australia looked like they’d won a second tournament of the series for the first time since 2001 when Fiji spilt the ball from the kick-off and Locky Miller crossed again as the siren sounded.
But their joy was short-lived because referee James Doleman ruled an Australian knock-on.
It was a very tough call but it would end up being a soul-crusher, with Fiji finding space on the right wing soon after, which allowed Alasio Naduva to race 50 metres downfield to score a tournament-winning try.
The Aussie players were left gutted, and a relieved Fiji were gracious in their praise for the young Australian team, who’d simply refused to give up despite being down by as much as 14 points during the game.
In coming days the players and coaches may come to see the silver linings of their courageous performance in Singapore.
For new coach Walsh, it was evidence he has been given a squad by former coach Andy Friend already armed with the spirit and the physical ability to beat the big boys on the world sevens series.
Walsh, too, was gracious enough to point all positive reviews during the tournament to Friend’s work before his only very recent arrival.
The signs all point upwards for the Aussie sevens team, too.
The fact Parahi was absent for the final meant the last three Australian captains were out injured. Lewis Holland and James Stannard are also still sitting on the sidelines, and another playmaker was also absent in Tom Lucas.
But the calibre of emerging youngster in the Australian program who have stepped up this year will be extremely encouraging for Walsh.
Ben O’Donnell was named the best player in the tournament for the third time in eight rounds this season — a remarkable effort given this is the Randwick man’s first year on the world series.
John Porch has also proved himself to be a world-class player, and has stepped up considerably as a leader, a playmaker and a finisher.
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Originally published as Undermanned Aussie rugby sevens team denied late in final of Singapore Sevens
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