Heavy hitters come up trumps on day one of the Olympic rugby sevens

HSBC SVNS Series powerhouses Australia, France and New Zealand each completed an unbeaten day one at the 2024 Olympic rugby sevens competition to secure their places in the quarterfinals.

Stamping their authority early on Pool A, New Zealand picked up where they left off at the SVNS Series event in Singapore, putting on a rampant display to see off China 43 – 5. In a masterful display of pace and power, Michaela Blyde scored four tries, while Stacey Waaka dotted down twice.

Ending their day as they started, the Black Ferns Sevens wore down their closest pool rivals, Canada, en route to a statement 33 – 7 win in the final match of the day.

This loss means Canada, who held off a late Fijian surge to win 17 – 14 earlier in the day, will now duke it out with China for second place in the pool. For their part, China parked their disappointing 43 – 5 loss at the hands of the Black Ferns Sevens to brush aside Fiji 40 – 12.

Kicking off the action, Great Britain overcame a fast start by Ireland to secure a 21 – 12 win to begin their Pool B campaign on a good note. Trailing 12 – 5 at the break, Great Britain found their attacking flow early in the second half as Jasmin Joyce brought the scores level inside thirty seconds. Knocking over the conversion, Emmar Uren nudged her team into the lead before Isla Norman-Bell sealed the deal with a try two minutes later.

Ireland would recover from their opening-round loss to run up the score in a comprehensive 38 – 0 dismissal of South Africa. The win did, however, come at a cost to the Irish, who saw captain Lucy Mulhall Rock depart with a heavily strapped knee.

Taking control of Pool B on day one, Australia began their campaign with a 34 – 5 win over South Africa, as Levi Madison dominated proceedings with four tries. This result would precede a dominant 36 – 5 win over Great Britain, with Madison once again grabbing the headlines with a hat-trick of tries.

Clearly a step above their Pool B rivals, the Australians’ slick passing and uptempo game, with Charlotte Caslick directing proceedings, reaffirmed their status as gold medal contenders.

In Pool C, the hosts France ran riot as they kept both Brazil and Japan scoreless to end day one with a perfect + 75 points differential.  Caroline Drouin stole the show for Les Bleus, slotting nine out of ten conversions to accompany her try.

Setting up a crunch pool-deciding clash for day two, the United States also brushed aside Japan before seeing off a determined and physical Brazilian side.

Despite securing the win, USA head coach Emilie Bydwell was visibly frustrated midway through the second as she encouraged her side to take more chances when in possession—responding to their coach’s plea with Ilona Maher and Alex Sedrick, putting some gloss on the scoreline with two late tries.

Day two of the Olympic rugby sevens will begin tomorrow, July 29th, at 13.00 local time, with Great Britain taking on South Africa. Following the conclusion of the pool stages, the first quarterfinal match will kick off at 20.00.