Ireland men secure famous upset win: Day 2 at the Rugby World Cup Sevens

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THE RUGBY WORLD Cup Sevens is being held in Cape Town this weekend, where a combined total of 40 teams are taking part in the men’s and women’s competitions.

Thanks to TritonLake – the proud title sponsor of the Ireland Sevens teams – The42 will be keeping you up-to-date with a round-up of the action each day.

Here’s what happened on Saturday…

Today’s Results

Men’s Tournament

Championship Quarter-Finals

New Zealand 12 Argentina 5
Australia 14 France 5
Fiji 21 Samoa 10
Ireland 24 South Africa 14

Challenge Quarter-Finals

England 35 Chile 0
Uruguay 19 Canada 12
USA 33 Wales 5
Kenya 24 Scotland 5

Challenge 13/16 Place Semi-Finals

Chile 24 Scotland 21
Canada 33 Wales 19

Challenge Semi-Finals

Uruguay 21 USA 19
England 36 Kenya 0

Bowl Quarter-Finals

Germany 21 Portugal 14
Hong Kong 28 Zimbabwe 0
Uganda 12 Korea 0
Tonga 17 Jamaica 0

Bowl 21/24 Place Semi-Finals

Portugal 31 Jamaica 7
Korea 21 Zimbabwe 19

Bowl Semi-Finals

Germany 17 Tonga 12
Uganda 14 Hong Kong 5

Women’s Tournament

Championship Quarter-Finals

Australia 35 England 5
New Zealand 28 Ireland 0
France 19 Fiji 14
USA 10 Canada 7

Challenge Quarter-Finals

Spain 12 Madagascar 0
Brazil 33 Colombia 0
Japan 14 South Africa 12
Poland 20 China 14

Challenge 13/16 Place Semi-Finals

China 36 Madagascar 5
South Africa 27 Colombia 0

Challenge Semi-Finals

Poland 19 Spain 10
Japan 19 Brazil 10

The Big Story

While their southern hemisphere counterparts New Zealand are the title holders of both tournaments from the 2018 finals, there is no denying that big things were expected of the Australian men and women in advance of this year’s World Cup.

Given their joint statuses as champions in the 2021-22 World Series, it was anticipated that both squads would be in the shake up for top honours in Cape Town.

The pressure was ramped up on the Wallabies players ahead of today’s knockout action, but they delivered in spades and consequently marked themselves out as genuine contenders for the World Cup crown. Having scored an astonishing five tries against Madagascar on Friday, Faith Nathan bagged a stunning hat-trick for the Australian women in a Championship quarter-final encounter with England.

Charlotte Caslick and Tegan Levi also crossed over as the Aussies comfortably progressed to the penultimate rounds with a 35-5 victory.

Their male compatriots found France to be a much tougher proposition in the last-eight of the Men’s Championship, but impressive scores in either half from Henry Paterson and Maurice Longbottom got them over the line with nine points to spare (14-5).

Further tests await tomorrow, but Australia have put themselves in the reckoning for a double success.

How did Ireland do?

Producing arguably the performance of the tournament to date, the Ireland men’s side sent host nation South Africa crashing out of the Championship at the quarter-final stage.

Despite having a partisan home support behind them, the Springboks fell behind to a Mark Roche try just three minutes into their evening time duel with the Irish. A converted Muller Du Plessis effort got South Africa back on level terms (7-7) at the break, but James Topping’s underdogs delivered a stellar display on the resumption.

After Harry McNulty had dotted down to squeeze them back in front, Jordan Conroy raced over for a brace of tries that propelled Ireland towards a magnificent 24-14 success.

There was disappointment for the Irish women, however, at the hands of defending champions New Zealand in their Championship quarter-final. Despite the best efforts of team captain Lucy Mulhall and Beibhinn Parsons, tries from Niall Williams, Portia Woodman, Alena Saili and Shiray Kaka powered the Black Ferns home on a 28-0 final scoreline.

Although Championship glory is now out of their reach, the Ireland women’s side will take on Fiji in a 5/8 Place semi-final tomorrow morning. For their male counterparts, it is a shot at the all-conquering New Zealand as they bid to secure a coveted place in tomorrow’s World Cup decider.

Try of the Day

With a score that was significant and dramatic in equal measures, Malgorzata Koldej decided the outcome of a gripping Women’s Challenge quarter-final between Poland and China in the final play of the contest.

Picking up possession on the Chinese 10-metre line, Koldej evaded a covering tackle to race over the whitewash and propel the Poles towards their maiden victory at a Sevens World Cup.

Stand-out Player

As someone who spent his childhood in Bahrain, the USA, England and eventually Ireland, Harry McNulty was already well travelled before he embarked on the Sevens circuit with the Irish men’s team. He was one of three try-scorers for the Green Army in their remarkable quarter-final win over South Africa, but the former Munster Academy star’s all-round game was on full display throughout.

In addition to a series of powerful carries that forced the Springboks on the back-foot, McNulty executed a succession of line-out steals to give Ireland attacking momentum at a time when their opponents appeared to be settling into their stride.

Tomorrow’s Fixtures

Men’s Tournament (Kick-off Irish Time)

Championship Semi-Finals

Match 39: Ireland v New Zealand (11.35am)
Match 40: Australia v Fiji (12.33pm)

Championship Final

Match 52: Winner Match 39 v Winner Match 40 (7.54pm)

Championship Bronze Final

Match 51: Loser Match 39 v Loser Match 40 (6.25pm)

Championship Cup 5/8 Place Semi-Finals

Match 37: South Africa v Argentina (10.02am)
Match 38: France v Samoa (10.24am)

Championship 5/6 Place Final

Match 50: Winner Match 37 v Winner Match 38 (5.37pm)

Championship 7/8 Place Final

Match 49: Loser Match 37 v Loser Match 38 (5.15pm)

Challenge Final

Match 48: Uruguay v England (4.04pm)

Challenge 11/12 Place Final

Match 47: USA v Kenya (3.42pm)

Challenge 13/14 Place Final

Match 46: Chile v Canada (3.20pm)

Challenge 15/16 Place Final

Match 45: Scotland v Wales (2.58pm)

Bowl Final

Match 44: Germany v Uganda (8.36am)

Bowl 19/20 Place Final

Match 43: Tonga v Hong Kong (8.14am)

Bowl 21/22 Place Final

Match 42: Portugal v Korea (7.52am)

Bowl 23/24 Place Final

Match 41: Jamaica v Zimbabwe (7.30am)

Women’s Tournament (Kick-off Irish time)