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Punch-up in tunnel ends Welsh 7s player's tournament - reports

By Online Editors
Tom Williams of Wales

A Welsh 7s star missed the last day of the Rugby World Cup Sevens in San Franciso after he was involved in a violent altercation with another player.

The BBC are reporting that Tom Williams missed the day as a result of an incident with a Samoan player in the AT&T stadium.

The incident is alleged to have happened in the tunnel following Wales' game with Samoa, which they won 24-19.

According to the BBC the Welsh Rugby Union have issued a statement saying that Samoa have "provisionally suspended one of their players."

"After medical assessment relating to the incident, Tom Williams was ruled out of the match against Ireland," the statement added.

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World Rugby have stated: "World Rugby can confirm that a Samoa player has been provisionally suspended from Rugby World Cup Sevens 2018 following an initial investigation into an alleged incident in the tunnel area after a match between Samoa and Wales at AT&T Park on Saturday.

"The alleged behaviour is not aligned with the sport’s values and the excellent spirit in which this competition has been played by the 40 participating teams.

"World Rugby has instigated an investigation and it would be inappropriate to make any further comment until the conclusion of that process. The Samoa player will remain provisionally suspended until the final conclusion of that process."

Meanwhile there was heartbreak for hosts USA in the quarter-final of the men’s competition as they were beaten in extra time 24-19 by England in a thrilling match which had the whole stadium on the edge of their seats. England’s Phil Burgess scored the match-winning try following a sensational cross-field kick by captain Tom Mitchell.

England will face recently crowned 2018 HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series Champions South Africa in the semi-final after they convincingly despatched Scotland by a score of 36-5 in the first quarter-final of the day.

Fiji rewarded their large contingent of vociferous fans with a scintillating display of attacking rugby sevens to record a 43-7 victory over Argentina to set up a semi-final clash with neighbours New Zealand who overcame France 12-7 in a tight contest.