NEW YORK – The Blitzboks secured a semi-final berth after finishing second in Pool A on Saturday, recording victories over New Zealand and France before suffering a defeat to Australia.
South Africa beat New Zealand 22-7 and France 12-5 before going down 19-12 to Australia in their final pool match. The second-place finish sets up a semi-final clash against Argentina at 18:50 (SA time) on Sunday.
Fiji, tied with the South Africans at the top of the overall log, finished second in their pool after losing their opener against Argentina 31-12 before recovering with wins over Great Britain 24-19 and Spain 43-12. The Fijians will face Australia in the first semi-final at 18:28.
Against New Zealand, the Blitzboks controlled possession and dominated at the breakdown, which allowed them to dictate the match. The South African defence held firm for most of the encounter, with the Kiwis unable to find a way through until late in the game.
Selvyn Davids opened the scoring before Sebastiaan Jobb crossed for two tries either side of the break. Grant de Jager scored his first HSBC SVNS try in the second half. New Zealand scored a late consolation try through Brady Rush, converted by Sam Clarke, but the result was already decided. Dewald Human added one conversion for South Africa.
The match against France proved a tighter affair with narrow margins throughout. France scored first, but Tristan Leyds crossed after some skilful play. Ronald Brown then scored and converted the match-winning try in the second half to secure a 12-5 victory.
The final pool match against Australia saw the Blitzboks hampered by injuries to Leyds and Human, who were unable to take the field. The absences disrupted South Africa’s attacking rhythm.
Davids scored his 100th try in the series to give the Blitzboks an early lead, but two Australian tries saw the Wallabies ahead at half-time. Davids added his 101st HSBC SVNS career try in the second half, but a late Australian score sealed a 19-12 victory.
James Turner, Ben Dalton and Jayden Blake scored tries for Australia, with conversions from Dietrich Roache and Maurice Longbottom. Davids converted one of his own tries for South Africa.
Results:
South Africa 22 (12), New Zealand 7 (0)
Tries: Selvyn Davids, Sebastiaan Jobb 2, Grant de Jager. Conversion: Dewald Human.
New Zealand – Try: Brady Rush. Conversion: Sam Clarke.
South Africa 12 (5), France 5 (5)
Tries: Tristan Leyds, Ronald Brown. Conversion: Ronald Brown.
France – Try: Celian Pouzelgues.
South Africa 12 (7), Australia 19 (12)
Tries: Selvyn Davids 2. Conversion: Selvyn Davids.
Australia – Tries: James Turner, Ben Dalton, Jayden Blake. Conversions: Dietrich Roache, Maurice Longbottom.
