South Africa’s Blitzboks successfully defended their home rugby sevens title with a dramatic comeback, while Australia’s Wallaroos pulled off a stunning upset against New Zealand in the women’s final on Sunday. The Blitzboks became the first men’s team to win back-to-back titles at the Cape Town Sevens in a decade, marking a significant achievement for the team.
In the men’s final, South Africa faced Argentina in a tightly contested match. The Blitzboks trailed 14-7 at halftime, with Argentina’s Luciano Gonzalez scoring his tournament-leading eighth try and setting up Marcos Moneta‘s first try in the final. South Africa’s Donavan Don responded with a try following a pivotal intercept by Zain Davids.
Argentina maintained their momentum, extending their lead to 19-7 just after halftime when Moneta scored his second try. However, the Blitzboks rallied in the last moments of the match. With less than a minute remaining, Shilton van Wyk stripped the ball from Moneta at halfway and delivered a crucial pass to Christie Grobbelaar, who scored. This tied the match at 19-19. Ricardo Duarttee‘s conversion gave South Africa a narrow 21-19 lead with only seconds left, securing their victory as they held on until the final whistle.
Australia’s Wallaroos made headlines by defeating New Zealand 26-12 in the women’s final, ending a streak of four consecutive losses to the Black Ferns in the world series. The Wallaroos dominated the first half, scoring three tries and capitalizing on New Zealand penalties. Heidi Dennis opened the scoring with a try after evading Kelsey Teneti. Teagan Levi followed suit, scoring shortly after.
With a firm grip on the match, Bella Nasser scored from a tapped penalty just before halftime, pushing the score to 19-0. The second half continued to favor Australia, with Maddison Levi scoring another try that was converted by her sister Teagan, bringing the score to 26-0. New Zealand managed to score two late tries, but their efforts fell short, largely due to Australia’s solid defense.
Looking ahead, the next leg of the sevens world series will take place in Singapore from January 31 to February 1, 2024. The outcomes of both finals highlight the competitive nature of rugby sevens and set the stage for an exciting continuation of the series.
