Hosts USA, England and Australia all topped their pools at the end of day one of the Houston Sevens, the second round of the IRB Women’s Sevens World Series.
Facing their nearest rivals Canada in the opening match, the USA went behind early but hit back with a great try from skipper Vanesha McGee which saw her sprint 70 metres to score.
Canada took a 12-7 lead into the break but the home side came back into the game as the second half wore on and grabbed a deserved equaliser with the clock in red, through Kelly Griffin.
Next up for the USA was another cracker of a game against South Africa. USA took a 17-0 lead and looked home and dry but South Africa had other ideas and raced back with three fast tries to lead 19-17 with just seconds left.
USA’s never-say-die attitude paid off as Kelly Griffin skipped past a few defenders to score on the full-time whistle and to send the crowd into raptures. USA ended the day with a big win over Argentina and went through to the quarter finals in style as pool-toppers.
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Elsewhere Australia had a strong day with three wins from three to head into day two with a 100 per cent record, one of two sides to do so. Chris Dry’s side had no problems dispatching Brazil and Japan but their final clash against Rugby World Cup Sevens hosts Russia was a predictably tough affair. They were made to work all the way to a 15-10 win with captain Sharni Williams showing all of her leadership skills to bring the side home.
Russia performed well throughout the day with Baizat Khamidova and Nadezda Yarmotskaya in flying form. That bodes well for the Russians as they prepare to host the Rugby World Cup Sevens 2013 in June. Few teams will be relishing playing them in front of a home crowd in Moscow.
England was the only other side to end day one with a 100 per cent record, which included a thrilling 7-5 victory over the inaugural IRB Women’s Sevens World Series event in Dubai champions New Zealand.
Cup Quater-Finals
England v Netherlands
Canada v New Zealand
USA v Russia
Australia v South Africa
Bowl Semi-Finals
Japan v Trinidad and Tobago
Brazil v Argentina
