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Unbeaten Boks to tackle Tonga
01/02/2008 12:31 - (SA)
Wellington - The Springboks cruised through unbeaten on Friday at the International Rugby Board's (IRB) Sevens tournament in the Kiwi capital on a day the tiny Cook Islands made many rugby friends.
The Cook Islands, with a population of around 20 000, caused probably one of the biggest upsets in IRB Sevens history when they beat England 21-17 early on a hot and windy day. In their second game the Cooks went down 31-14 to neighbours and Sevens powerhouse Fiji, before taking it to the Welsh, eventually losing 26-7 after a late flurry by the Red Dragons.
The South Africans started the day well enough against tough opponents Australia, winning 24-14. It was the winning start Paul Treu wanted, but it was far from perfect as his team made too many silly errors.
Fabian Juries, who ended the day with five tries, scored two of his team's four tries. Schalk van der Merwe and Marius Schoeman, like Juries very experienced in this version of the game, also crossed for tries.
Juries again scored a brace against France in a game the Sevens Boks won 29-7, even though they took five minutes to get the scoreboard ticking.
Mpho Mbiyozo, playing for injured captain Neil Powell, also looked strong in the contact area and powered over for two tries of his own as Treu's team took a step up from their first game.
The moment of the match was undoubtedly a huge tackle by the diminutive Renfred Dazel that led to a turn-over and ended in another try for Juries.
In the last game Kenya just did not have enough left in the tank. Treu's team won the African derby 33-7, with tries going to MJ Mentz (two), Juries and debutant Juan de Jongh, who is only 19-years-old. The Boks were also got awarded a penalty try by Welsh referee James Jones.
"I am relatively happy. We have not played to our full potential yet, but what really pleased me is we controlled our games well. No-one took silly quick-tap penalties or rushed things - the guys remained calm on the field," said Treu.
"Sure, there were some silly errors in all our games, but nothing too serious. What is also important is that we are building momentum by improving each time.
"I am a bit worried about Neil Powell, who picked up a minor injury, but I think he should be ready for the second day."
The Boks play Tonga in the Cup quarter-finals on Saturday. New Zealand, Fiji and Scotland also won their pools and will face Wales, Samoa and Australia respectively.
Completed results from the opening day of the third round of the IRB World Sevens series played at Westpac Stadium on Friday:
Pool A:
New Zealand 43 Canada 0
Samoa 24 Papua New Guinea 0
New Zealand 41 Papua New Guinea 0
Samoa 34 Canada 10
Canada 27 Papua New Guinea 21
New Zealand 19 Samoa 7
Pool B:
Fiji 40 Wales 7
Cook Islands 21 England 17
Fiji 31 Cook Islands 14
Wales 26 Cook Islands 7
Wales 15 England 5
Fiji 17 England 7
Pool C:
South Africa 24 Australia 14
Kenya 19 France 0
Australia 19 Kenya 0
South Africa 29 France 7
Australia 24 France 14
South Africa 33 Kenya 7
Pool D:
United States 19 Argentina 7
Scotland 26 Tonga 0
Tonga 19 Argentina 17
United States 7 Scotland 7
Tonga 38 United States 7
Scotland 19 Argentina 12
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