EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) – South Africa finished the Rugby Sevens World Series title undefeated and advanced to the group stage in the quarter-finals of the Edmonton tournament on Saturday.
After winning the tournament in a short series last week in Vancouver, British Columbia in 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic, South Africa only need to reach the final in Edmonton to become league champions.
The Twins are missing several top-ranked teams, including Tokyo 2020 Olympic gold medalists, silver medalists from Fiji, New Zealand, and Australia and Samoa due to COVID-19 travel and quarantine restrictions.
South Africa started from where they left off last week, beating Mexico 56-0 and Hong Kong 43-5 in their first two pool games on Saturday. The Blitzboxes registered a 49-0 win over third-placed Canada in the final game of the day and advanced to the quarter-finals in which Hong Kong qualified as one of the top two third-place finishers on Sunday.
The United States again unbeaten their pool game with a 29–17 win over Spain, followed by an easy 33–5 win over Chile, with two attempts by Malachi Esdale. In retaliation after losing to the Africans in the quarterfinals in Vancouver last week, the United States beat Kenya 19:14 in their last game today.
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