The Australian women\’s rugby sevens team lost in the final of the Los Angeles tournament, with New Zealand taking the victory and closing the gap in the world series rankings.
Rugby Sevens
Current standings for World Series women’s rankings (after round five)
1: Australia — 90 points2: New Zealand — 863: France — 744: United States — 645: Canada — 626: Ireland — 487: Fiji — 428: Great Britain — 29
Despite the loss, Australia still leads the standings with a four-point advantage over New Zealand after five rounds.
New Zealand’s Michaela Blyde scored three tries against Australia’s two, securing the win for her team.
New Zealand has won the last two tournaments, positioning them and Australia as favorites for the gold medal at the upcoming Paris Olympics.
The two nations have collectively claimed victory in four out of the five tournaments held this season.
In the final, New Zealand’s Jorja Miller suffered an injury early on, but her team managed to secure a convincing win with Blyde scoring three tries.
Australia fought back, but New Zealand maintained their lead and emerged victorious with a final score of 29-14.
\”I’m so proud of the girls,\” Blyde said. \”We’ve been looking for that kind of consistency over the whole season so to do that over the past two weeks feels good.\”
Rugby Sevens
Current standings for World Series men’s rankings (after round five)
1: Argentina — 90 points2: Ireland — 703: Fiji — 644: France — 565: Australia — 556: New Zealand — 537: South Africa — 488: United States — 36
France claimed their first title in the rugby sevens world series in 19 years by defeating Great Britain 21-0 in the men’s final.
Antoine Dupont’s presence has bolstered the France team, propelling them to fourth place in the standings ahead of the upcoming Olympics in their home country.
Australia’s men finished in seventh place after defeating the United States.
AAP
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