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'Flush it and move on': ABs 7s star 'gutted' after loss to RSA
By Finn Morton
The All Blacks Sevens have failed to top their pool at the Sydney Sevens after losing to South Africa 17-14 in a thriller.
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But it doesn’t change anything, at least not for them – that’s just sevens.
New Zealand and South Africa were both undefeated after two games at Sydney’s Allianz Stadium, which set up a titanic tussle between two fierce rivals.
It’s impossible to be disappointed when these two proud rugby nations go head-to-head; their rivalry is box office, and rugby fans witnessed another classic on Saturday.
After a tense start to the match, sevens veteran Joe Webber danced his way through the South African defensive line to open the scoring for the men in black.
But the Blitzboks weren’t done. The South Africans hit back before the end of the half through Shilton van Wyk, before Ricardo Duarttee slotted a conversion attempt from the right sideline.
Incredible.
The teams traded another try each throughout the second half, before the most dramatic finish possible was written into the script.
With the scores level, South Africa were awarded a penalty – which Dalvon Blood slotted from close range to give his side a 17-14 win.
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Another classic clash between the two rugby-mad nations was written into history, as the All Blacks Sevens were left to rue what could’ve been.
Playmaker Joe Webber walked off the field with a stich, having pushed himself to limit throughout 14 minutes of unmissable rugby action.
But the 29-year-old was still able to give a raw reaction to the three point loss, immediately after heading down the tunnel at the North-West corner.
“Pretty gutted. I thought we had it and it was just our own errors that let us down,” Weber told RugbyPass.
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“But always a great rivalry against South Africa, they always come out (with) their best against us.
“It’s always physical on the field but they’re actually all good as dudes off the field. We get along quite well off the field but once the whistle goes it’s all on.
“We believe we could’ve won that and you’ve still got to keep that belief in yourself.
“Sevens is b***** hard these days, you could trip up to anyone, so the faster you flush it and move on to the next job, the better you back it up for the next game.”
But New Zealand’s Sydney Sevens campaign is far from over. In fact, it’s the start of a new beginning.
To an extent, how teams performed in pool play goes the window as knockout matches take centre stage.
For the All Blacks Sevens, they’re set to face another one of their sevens rivals Samoa in a quarterfinal on Saturday evening.
And it’s a match they’ll be desperate to win following last weekend’s heartbreaking defeat in the Hamilton Sevens final.
Earlier today, All Blacks Sevens captain Sam Dickson told RugbyPass that the loss Hamilton had “added fuel to the fire” ahead of their trip across the Tasman.
Weber, who played in his 50th tournament last weekend, described it as an “emotional week.”
“It was tough, especially Monday but when we watched the game again it just got us more excited for this weekend,” he added.
“It was a huge emotional week.
“Then just the real hype around the tournament and the games, so to back it up this week has been a bit of a challenge but I think we’ve pulled up alright.”
