Spain sink All Blacks Sevens again to qualify for first SVNS Series Final

Spain are through to a Cup Final on the HSBC SVNS Series for the first time after knocking off New Zealand for the second time in as many days. Espana had only beaten the All Blacks Sevens on two occasions before this weekend’s season opener in the UAE.

It was a shock for many to see Spain beat the New Zealanders 26-14 on the first day of the 2025 season, but the Europeans proved on the second day of play that the result at The Sevens Stadium was by no means a fluke.

The Spaniards finished second in Pool C behind Fiji after finishing that stage of the competition with two wins from three starts. They got the better of the USA as well as New Zealand and backed up those results with an impressive triumph over Great Britain in the quarter-finals.

Anton Legorburu Anso scored a 15th-minute try as Spain booked their place in their second-ever semi-final on the SVNS Series. With New Zealand sneaking by South Africa in their knockout clash, these results set the stage for an intriguing eliminator under the Dubai sun.

Both Spain and New Zealand seemed to carry a sense of confidence into the final four. The Spanish had of course claimed some bragging rights after getting the job done in pool play, but the All Blacks Sevens are traditionally one of the top teams on the Series for a reason.

Waikato’s backrow-wing hybrid Oli Mathis raced away for his first SVNS Series try in the third minute as the New Zealanders took an early lead. But they wouldn’t add any more points to their score until the 15^th minute – Spain controlled the contest for the majority of the battle.

Manu Moreno scored in the seventh minute, and captain Pol Pla was next to score. Pla celebrated the go-ahead try with a swan dive, both soaking up the significance of those five-point in the context of the game and the fact it was his 100^th SVNS Series try.

Jeremy Trevithick scored the match-sealing try in the 13^th minute as Spain took an unconquerable 19-7 lead with only a minute to play. While the Kiwis were able to hit back through Dylan Collier, the sevens veteran doubled the ball down with the clock in the red.

19-14 is how the full-time score reads.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by HSBC SVNS (@svnsseries)

The All Blacks Sevens’ title hopes were dashed.

New Zealand were left to battle it out for third. In the other semi-final, Fiji piled on 21 points during the first half in a heavyweight bout against last season’s League Winners Argentina who fielded a star-studded side that included Marcos Moneta and Tobias Wade.

George Bose and Joji Nasova scored a try each as the Fijians took a 14-nil lead after about four minutes of play. While Argentina struck back through Santiago Mare late in the first term, Fiji would have the final say in the first term as Jeremaia Matana scored just before the break.

The match wasn’t even close in the end as Fiji continued to add points to their seemingly ever-growing advantage. Fiji ran away with a comprehensive 43-21 win, with Argentina also running in two late tries to reduce the deficit to that margin.