1
Madrid Grand Final next: SVNS champions will be crowned as top 8s locked in
Argentina’s Gaston Revol struggled for words on Sunday afternoon. Los Pumas Sevens had just beaten South Africa in a thrilling fifth-place playoff which was enough to see them crowned SVNS Series League winners for the first time ever.
ADVERTISEMENT
Playmaker Tobias Wade scored what ended up being the title-winning try late in the second half at Singapore’s National Stadium, but the regular season crown wasn’t theirs until Matteo Graziano won a penalty at the breakdown.
Thousands in attendance either cheered, groaned or sat stunned in silence as Los Pumas Sevens completed a miraculous comeback. To win their maiden League title is a momentous achievement for Argentina Sevens.
But there’s more to play for this season.
The top eight teams in the women’s and men’s competitions will contest for HSBC SVNS Series championship glory at the upcoming Grand Final event in Madrid from May 31 to June 2.
Argentina will be eager to back up their League title on the Series final stop, and the same goes for women’s League title-holders New Zealand.
The Black Ferns Sevens recovered from a slow start in Dubai, Cape Town and Perth to win four Cup finals on the bounce. But they were still equal on 106 competition points with arch-rivals Australia which is what made Sunday’s final even more interesting.
With the neighbouring nations both qualifying, whoever won the decider would get to lift two trophies on the same night. On the back of a Jorja Miller masterclass, the Kiwis ended up winning 31-21.
ADVERTISEMENT
“It definitely feels pretty good. We always want to go to battle with the Aussies in the final,” Player of the Final Jorja Miller told RugbyPass.
“To go out there, get the win, have a pretty decent performance, I’m pretty happy.
“To go into Madrid with confidence and knowing that we’ve built from the start of the season off the back of LA, Vancouver into here,” she added.
“We’re gonna go home, put some work in and hopefully bring it out in Madrid.”
Finalists New Zealand and Australia had already booked their place in the upcoming Grand Final before taking the field in Singapore. The same could be said for France, USA, Canada, Fiji and Ireland.
ADVERTISEMENT
Great Britain ended up claiming the one other spot in the Grand Final at the National Stadium but it didn’t come easy with Japan coming heartbreakingly close to a semi-final berth which would’ve kept the door open.
The British beat Brazil in pool play which went a long way to securing their spot in Madrid, and even though they lost to eventual champions New Zealand in the quarter-finals, they still did enough to qualify.
“We knew this tournament was important but we took each game (by game) and Brazil was our main focus coming in,” Great Britain’s Isla Norman-Bell told this website following the win over Brazil.
“We put out a great performance and we’re really happy with that.
“We can’t control what else has happened throughout so we’ve just got to move on to the next game and hopefully get as many points as possible.
“We were all really disappointed with how yesterday had gone but we knew that today was a new opportunity and we’re jut really excited,” she added.
“We knew that we’d put in the work behind the scenes and we had analysed Brazil so we knew exactly what we were going to do coming into this game.
“I think that’s all we could be worried about. We did that on the pitch and we got a great score from that.”
Japan put up a brave fight. While a quarter-final win still wouldn’t have been enough to secure their spot in the GF, it would’ve kept their once-unlikely hopes alive. But the Japanese can still take plenty of positive into the play-off tournament in Madrid.
The bottom four teams on the SVNS Series will play the tour four sides from the division two Challenger Series to determine which quartet of teams earn core Series status for the 2024/25 season.
Canada, Samoa, Spain and the USA are the four men’s teams set for the play-off. The USA Eagles appeared destined for the Series’ finale but Great Britain’s incredible run to a third-place finish in Singapore was enough to see them jump into the top eight.
“Just because we don’t get together maybe as much as other teams, we’re not a team that makes excuses for performances if we don’t hit the mark,” Great Britain’s Charlton Kerr told RugbyPass after the semi-final defeat to Ireland in golden point.
“I think every game is the same focus for us now – every game is a must-win for us. I think we’ve had that opportunity from the start of the season to when I joined as well midway through the season.
“We haven’t been getting it right all the time at set-piece, bits of detail, but you’re not going to get it right all the time. The attitude and effort is always there for us and that’s what we say when we get back into the changeroom.
“The attitude and effort is a non-negotiable for us and as long as we keep sticking to that the set-piece and the technical bits will come.”
While Argentina are rightfully the League winners, New Zealand may be the team to beat in the men’s competition after taking out back-to-back Cup finals on the Series. The All Blacks Sevens took out the title in Hong Kong China and backed that up in Singapore.
The men in black came up against the Irish in the Singapore final – the very team who had knocked Argentina out in the quarter-finals. Ireland were also searching for what would’ve been their first-ever Cup final win on the Series.
But it wasn’t to be.
Leroy Carter, Fehi Fineanganofo and Dylan Collier all got on the scoresheet as the All Blacks Sevens held on for a tense 17-14 win in front of a loud crowd.
“Me and my mate Andrew Knewstubb, we’re sick of sitting home and watching all the boys win (while injured) so when we came back we made it a goal for ourselves to make sure that we didn’t do all that hard work for nothing,” New Zealand’s Tone Ng Shiu told RugbyPass.
“It’s good to be winning and to be with the boys. It’s so good.
“We just focus on ourselves, you know? The here and now,” he continued.
“We won Singapore. Obviously, we’ll acknowledge (League winners Argentina) because they’ve been the most consistent in the Series but we’re just enjoying the moment.”
Three different teams lifted trophies at Singapore’s National Stadium on Sunday. That sets the stage for a mammoth Grand Final in Madrid in just a few weeks.
See the HSBC SVNS champions crowned in Madrid, 31 May-2 June. Tickets from €10 available to purchase HERE.
Comments on RugbyPass
Always reluctant to blame a coach when losses rack up, but Penney must go. The backline is dysfunctional and the coach must carry the can. No cohesion, no idea and in many cases, minimal skill. The trains out of Roma St depart faster than the ball from Crusaders’ set pieces. Wouldn’t be surprised if the forwards went on strike.
1 Go to commentsAdding to earlier comment. Cullen Grace has been playing great at no6. Lio-Willie , who was on fire a few weeks ago, had a bad game. I think Cullen should have been moved to 8 earlier, Dominic Gardiner on earlier. Feel for Quinten Strange , put in a big shift .
4 Go to commentsWe dominated the scrums Ben Curry was all over pitch again .Surely James Harper got to be one of best English tightheads
1 Go to commentsRoos is a better option at 6 than 8 for the boks. Needs to work on his windgat though.
1 Go to commentsThe Sharks’ 2nd team maybe?
1 Go to comments‘radical’
1 Go to commentsCome back to Christchurch Robbie, please!
1 Go to commentsI think there is zero chance Sam Cane will be selected for another Test. There is simply no point except sentimentality. Razor is not sentimental- ask Wyatt Crocket. Razor is a ruthless selector
4 Go to comments> It would be best described as an elegant solution to what was potentially going to be a significant problem for new All Blacks coach Scott Robertson. It is a problem the mad population of New Zealand will have to cope with more and more as All Blacks are able to continue their careers in NZ post RWCs. It will not be a problem for coaches, who are always going to start a campaign with the captain for the next WC in mind. > Cane, despite his warrior spirit, his undoubted commitment to every team he played for and unforgettable heroics against Ireland in last year’s World Cup quarter-final, was never unanimously admired or respected within New Zealand while he was in the role. Neither was McCaw, he was considered far too passive a captain and then out of form until his last world cup where everyone opinions changed, just like they would have if Cane had won the WC. > It was never easy to see where Cane, or even if, he would fit into Robertson’s squad given the new coach will want to be building a new-look team with 2027 in mind. > Cane will win his selections on merit and come the end of the year, he’ll sign off, he hopes, with 100 caps and maybe even, at last, universal public appreciation for what was a special career. No, he won’t. Those returning from Japan have already earned the right to retain their jersey, it’s in their contract. Cane would have been playing against England if he was ready, and found it very hard to keep his place. Perform, and they keep it however. Very easy to see where Cane could have fit, very hard to see how he could have accomplished it choosing this year as his sabbatical instead of 2025, and that’s how it played out (though I assume we now know what when NZR said they were allowing him to move his sabbatical forward and return to NZ next year, they had actually agreed to simply select him for the All Blacks from overseas, without any chance he was going to play in NZ again). With a mammoth season of 15 All Black games they might as well get some value out of his years contract, though even with him being of equal character to Richie, I don’t think they should guarantee him his 100 caps. That’s not what the All Blacks should be about. He absolutely has to play winning football.
4 Go to commentswhat’s happening to Ian Peel?
1 Go to commentsAs a Crusaders fan , so disappointed , again.But I think Fergus Burke was all class for the Crusaders in his first game since October last year. Fletcher Newell , was so good at prop. Johnny McNicoll has been gold since returning from Wales. Noah Hotham brilliant , in a coming of age second season for the Crusaders.Jone Rova did really well at centre. The end of the game was tough.Sevu Reece , what a game/season in tough times.
4 Go to commentsFellas a balloon
3 Go to commentsBlues B team on display and made no race of it. By far the best team in SR with the Hurricanes barely getting past the winning post. Up the Blues 💙
7 Go to commentsWould be amazing to have Servette Genève reaching this level
3 Go to commentsThe Crusaders can't buy a win this season. Surely Penney's contract won't be renewed. There's still enough talent in the squad that they oughta be winning more.
1 Go to commentsABs captain for 23 seasons. Decent record. Surely nobody will surpass it. Legend. But alas a typo…
4 Go to commentsJust FYI Rugbypass, I for one am tired of your clickbait titles and thumbnails and will be clicking them no longer. Good day.
1 Go to commentsI think Farrell despite all of the stick he gets in the media is still one of if not the best fly half in the world. He is literally the full package. He can kick one of the best in the world, probably has the best defensive game of a fly half in the world and if he wants to he can run, take contact and find an offload to keep the pace of the attack. I dont know why he isnt spoken more about still being one of the best in the world with the likes of dupont. Farrell is the ultimate captain and team leader and is experienced- he has been in nearly any situation you can think of. I still believe due to these reasons that he is England’s best ever player and is still one of the best players in the world.
48 Go to commentsBlues are dominating up front and that’s been a long time coming. They have won the up front confrontation which is where canes, hilanders and act brumbies are also strong.
7 Go to commentsJust watched brumbies v safas game sadly not a show in he’ll thryr anywhere near quarters or semi contention. Admittedly some issues around new comers bot what stands out for me is coaching management, poor game planning and accuracy.
5 Go to comments