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Test rugby has a new team after years of campaigning ends in 'landmark win'
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'We're all devastated at the moment' - Australia Rugby Sevens Men's team
By Ian Cameron
Australia’s Rugby Sevens Men’s team admit they are devastated after finishing fourth at the Paris Olympics following a narrow 26-19 loss to South Africa in the bronze medal match at Stade de France.
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John Manenti’s team faced a significant uphill struggle when captain Nick Malouf received a red card midway through the second half.
Despite this setback the team managed to score two late tries, leveling the score at 19-19. Dietrich Roache had an opportunity to put Australia ahead, but his conversion attempt from a difficult angle was unsuccessful.
South Africa then scored the decisive try after the buzzer.
Their fourth-place finish does however mark Australia’s best result in Rugby Sevens at the Olympics. Previously the team had never progressed beyond the quarter-final stage, finishing eighth in Rio and seventh in Tokyo.
In the semi-final match against eventual silver medalist Fiji, Australia managed to keep the score tied at 7-7 going into halftime, thanks to some brilliant play by Ben Dowling. Fiji then dominated the second half, maintaining possession and scoring four unanswered tries, securing their place in the gold medal match against France.
Australia Men’s coach John Manenti said: “It’s a tough way to finish, we fought so hard to get back in the game.
“We threw all our attacking weapons on and threw the dice. Six men, down two and got ourselves back in the fight… the guys played their hearts out.
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“We’re all devastated at the moment but when we go home and think about how we played for three days in a row at this stadium in front of 70,000 people it’s a good result and pretty special.”
France went on to win the gold medal in the event and while Australia missed out on a medal, it represented a significant improvement from the Aussie’s previous Olympic outings.
Australian eyes will now turn to the Australia Rugby Sevens Women’s side, who are one of the favourites for gold in their event.