Hong Kong didn't disapoint. It has been a pretty exciting weekend: Dan Norton secured the all-time record for most scored tries, Fiji is back at it's best and Spain re-joins the World Sevens Series in 2017/2018. Here are the best tries plus the top-performers.
Source: World Rugby
Fiji beat South Africa 22-0 at the Cathay Pacific / HSBC Hong Kong Sevens and claimed their first tournament victory of the season.
The Olympic Champions, unbeaten all weekend, scored four tries in the final as a weekend of pulsating rugby came to a thrilling end on Sunday. The result means Fiji jump to second place in the rankings ahead of England while the Blitzboks remain on top with three tournaments left this season.
Fijian coach Gareth Baber admitted his team were happy to finally get a tournament win under their belts: "With the quality of players we have here I'm very aware that we should be winning Cups. I'm also aware that Ben (Ryan - fomer coach) did a great job and that we needed to keep the pressure on South Africa at the top of the table. I knew they could do it - it was just a matter of time before we could get it done."
Meanwhile, Spain secured their spot on next season's HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series after beating Germany 12-7 in the World Rugby series qualifier final at the Hong Kong stadium. Scotland won the Challenge Trophy while Australia claimed bronze after beating USA.
The series moves to Singapore for the eighth round of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series next weekend, 15-16 April.
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Australia, South Africa, USA and Fiji remained unbeaten at the Hong Kong Sevens after day two.
With Madness entertaining the sold-out crowd at the break, madness also reigned on the pitch as Russia shocked Scotland, Wales drew with Fiji and the series qualifier tournament had fans on the edge of their seats.
Australia will be happy with their performance on Saturday as they followed up their day one win over Samoa with victories against South Korea and England to ensure their place in the quarter-finals against Argentina.
The other quarter-finals on Sunday will see Fiji play Canada, USA face England and a mouth-watering encounter as South Africa take on New Zealand.
Elsewhere in the World Rugby series qualifier competition, Chile, Germany, Papua New Guinea and Spain progressed to the semi-finals on Sunday.
Pic: World Rugby
He has done it! England’s star winger Dan Norton became the world’s all-time top try-scorer in Hong Kong after day one. Norton has no scored 245 tries, one more than Kenya’s Collins Injera.
Speaking of breaking the record, Norton said: "It was a nice feeling. The hardest thing was trying to control my brain this week and concentrate on the process that got me here in the first place. It was always nice to get it out of the way.
"There's a lot more to come but obviously Collins (Injera) is still out there playing so now it's about doing as well as we can for our country and win as many tournaments as we can."
Dan Norton’s was one of many records at a remarkable day in Hong Kong. England’s captain Tom Mitchell claimed his 100th series try, while Australia's Ed Jenkins, Canada's Nathan Hirayama and South Africa's Cecil Afrika all appeared in their 50th tournament.
The three-day competition kicked-off with the match between Australia and Samoa which Australia could win 22-19 while England beat South Korea 52-0. In Pool B, Canada overcame Kenya in a tight, physical affair 17-14 while series leaders South Africa took on France, a game which the Blitzboks won 17-10.
In Pool C, New Zealand had to start the tournament without captain Scott Curry, who pulled out due to illness. However, the All Blacks Sevens team under replacement skipper DJ Forbes still managed to snatch a 19-7 win over Wales on Day 1. In the group of death, Fiji defeated Japan 36-0.
Finally, in Pool D Argentina won 22-14 against Scotland, while the USA beat Russia 14-7 in another close encounter.
The action continues on Saturday when the final qualifier pool games kick-off the action at 09:00 (GMT +7), before the series resumes in front of a sold-out crowd in Hong Kong.
Pic: World Rugby
Following a four week, well-deserved break, the HSBC World Sevens Series continues with a thrilling and tasty three-day tournament when the 16 teams meet once again at the legendary Hong Kong Sevens this weekend.
Moving on from North America to Asia, the teams are progressing towards the last four tournaments of the season. As so often this year, the Blitzboks are the top favorites, but England will arrive with plenty of confidence after winning the last tournament in Vancouver, which leaves 23 points between the two teams.
However other 7s heavyweights such as Fiji and New Zealand are desperate to secure the very first Cup trophy in a year which is all about South Africa. Both teams have dominated in the last six years. Olympic champions Fiji, currently in third place, finished top in the previous two years at Hong Kong and are determined to add another trophy to the record.
The All Blacks Sevens, Hong Kong champions in 2011 and 2014 also share many happy memories of the prestigious mega event, which is often referred as the best 7s tournament in the world. Coach Clark Laidlaw and skipper Scott Curry are facing a tough task as they go head-to-head with rivals Fiji in Pool C together with Wales and Japan.
Traditionally Hong Kong always offers plenty of upsets and sensations. It is not just a very special weekend for the current series, but also an extremely exciting opportunity for 12 teams who are battling for to become the 15th core team for the following year's series.
Last year it was Japan who made it after beating hosts Hong Kong 24-14 to secure their spot on the 2016-17 series. It will be once again a tight affair with many strong contenders for the victory.
The Hong Kong Sevens take place at the Hong Kong Stadium (Capacity 40,000) in So Kon Po, from Friday 7th to Sunday 9th of April. The matches kick-off on Friday at 18:00 local time (GMT +8) Saturday 11:18 local time (GMT +8) and Sunday 09:30 (GMT +8). The final is scheduled for 19:00 local time on Sunday (GMT +8).
In the UK, Sky Sports will cover the tournament on all three days. For a full TV guide click here, for any other country check out this useful guide.
This could be a very special weekend for England’s Dan Norton who is set to become the series top scorer. Norton currently shares the record of 244 tries together with Kenya’s Collins Injera. One more try and the 29-year-old speedster from Gloucester will become a record-breaker.
However, Injera's selection for Kenya will make for exciting viewing over the three days as he and Norton go head-to-head to finish up top of the try scoring charts.
Australia, England, Samoa, South Korea
Canada, France, Kenya, South Africa
Fiji, Japan, New Zealand, Wales
Argentina, Scotland, Russia, USA
Germany, Jamaica, Tonga, Uganda
Chile, Hong Kong, Namibia, Sri Lanka
Guyana, Papua New Guinea, Spain, Uruguay
Australia v Samoa – 18:00
England v South Korea – 18:22
Argentina v Scotland – 18:44
USA v Russia – 19:08
New Zealand v Wales – 19:32
Fiji v Japan – 19:54
Canada v Kenya – 20:18
South Africa v France – 20:40
Papua New Guinea v Uruguay – 12:00
Spain v Guyana – 12:22
Tonga v Uganda – 12:44
Germany v Jamaica – 13:06
Chile v Sri Lanka – 13:28
Hong Kong v Namibia – 13:50
Papua New Guinea v Guyana – 14:56
Spain v Uruguay – 15:18
Tonga v Jamaica – 15:40
Germany v Uganda – 16:04
Chile v Namibia – 16:28
Hong Kong v Sri Lanka – 16:50
Pic: World Rugby
For the second time this season, England beat South Africa in the final to win Gold at the Canada Sevens in Vancouver. The 19-7 victory helped England to move to second position in the table and reduce the gap to leaders South Africa to 23 points.
Back-to-back series champions Fiji drop to third in the standings (100 points) after a close 28-24 win over USA in the Bronze final.
Once again it was Gloucester-born Dan Norton who lead England to the Cup win with an outstanding performance, resulting in the DHL Impact Player award, HSBC Player of the Final award and also levelling Kenya’s Collins Injera record for all-time tries on the series.
Earlier in the Cup semi-finals South Africa beat a strong USA team 14-10, while England overcame Fiji 40-7 in an impressive display.
The series continues with the Hong Kong Sevens on 7th of April.
