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Punch-up in tunnel ends Welsh 7s player's tournament - reports

Tom Williams of Wales

A Welsh 7s star missed the last day of the Rugby World Cup Sevens in San Franciso after he was involved in a violent altercation with another player.

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The BBC are reporting that Tom Williams missed the day as a result of an incident with a Samoan player in the AT&T stadium.

The incident is alleged to have happened in the tunnel following Wales’ game with Samoa, which they won 24-19.

According to the BBC the Welsh Rugby Union have issued a statement saying that Samoa have “provisionally suspended one of their players.”

“After medical assessment relating to the incident, Tom Williams was ruled out of the match against Ireland,” the statement added.

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World Rugby have stated: “World Rugby can confirm that a Samoa player has been provisionally suspended from Rugby World Cup Sevens 2018 following an initial investigation into an alleged incident in the tunnel area after a match between Samoa and Wales at AT&T Park on Saturday.

“The alleged behaviour is not aligned with the sport’s values and the excellent spirit in which this competition has been played by the 40 participating teams.

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“World Rugby has instigated an investigation and it would be inappropriate to make any further comment until the conclusion of that process. The Samoa player will remain provisionally suspended until the final conclusion of that process.”

Meanwhile there was heartbreak for hosts USA in the quarter-final of the men’s competition as they were beaten in extra time 24-19 by England in a thrilling match which had the whole stadium on the edge of their seats. England’s Phil Burgess scored the match-winning try following a sensational cross-field kick by captain Tom Mitchell.

England will face recently crowned 2018 HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series Champions South Africa in the semi-final after they convincingly despatched Scotland by a score of 36-5 in the first quarter-final of the day.

Fiji rewarded their large contingent of vociferous fans with a scintillating display of attacking rugby sevens to record a 43-7 victory over Argentina to set up a semi-final clash with neighbours New Zealand who overcame France 12-7 in a tight contest.

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cw 8 hours ago
The coaching conundrum part one: Is there a crisis Down Under?

Thanks JW for clarifying your point and totally agree. The ABs are still trying to find their mojo” - that spark of power that binds and defines them. Man the Boks certainly found theirs in Wellington! But I think it cannot be far off for ABs - my comment about two coaches was a bit glib. The key point for me is that they need first a coach or coaches that can unlock that power and for me that starts at getting the set piece right and especially the scrum and second a coach that can simplify the game plans. I am fortified in this view by NBs comment that most of the ABs tries come from the scrum or lineout - this is the structured power game we have been seeing all year. But it cannot work while the scrum is backpeddling. That has to be fixed ASAP if Robertson is going to stick to this formula. I also think it is too late in the cycle to reverse course and revert to a game based on speed and continuity. The second is just as important - keep it simple! Complex movements that require 196 cm 144 kg props to run around like 95kg flankers is never going to work over a sustained period. The 2024 Blues showed what a powerful yet simple formula can do. The 2025 Blues, with Beauden at 10 tried to be more expansive / complicated - and struggled for most of the season.

I also think that the split bench needs to reflect the game they “want” to play not follow some rote formula. For example the ABs impact bench has the biggest front row in the World with two props 195cm / 140 kg plus. But that bulk cannot succeed without the right power based second row (7, 4, 5, 6). That bulk becomes a disadvantage if they don’t have a rock solid base behind them - as both Boks showed at Eden Park and the English in London. Fresh powerful legs need to come on with them - thats why we need a 6-2 bench. And teams with this split can have players focused only on 40 minutes max of super high intensity play. Hence Robertson needs to design his team to accord with these basic physics.



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