The Blitzboks suffered successive losses to Fiji and Samoa in the playoff stages of the LA Sevens, while New Zealand stretched their lead at the top of the standings with back-to-back title wins.
Having finished as silver medalists in the previous stage of the Sevens Series in Sydney, the Blitzboks failed to replicate their performance Down Under at a waterlogged Los Angeles pitch on Sunday.
Quarter-final against Fiji
The Springbok Sevens finished second in their pool after losses to Ireland and Uruguay, which set up a quarter-final clash with old rivals Fiji on Sunday night.
In a physical encounter, Fiji proved too strong for South Africa, claiming a 28-7 victory after leading 14-0 at half time. Ricardo Duarttee scored South Africa’s only try in the final play of the match.
The Blitzboks faced Samoa in the fifth-place semi-final, but once again were dominated by their Pacific Island opponents, who eased to a 45-5 win. Debutant Travis Ismaiel scored his first Blitzboks try for their only points in the contest.
The results meant that South Africa took just 10 log points from LA, dropping down to third place.
New Zealand beat Argentina 22-12 in the final to extend their lead at the top of the Sevens Series standings, with the South Americans tied on 86 points with South Africa.
Next up on the calendar is the Vancouver Sevens from 3 to 5 March.
This story first appeared on sarugbymag.co.za. It is republished here with permission. For the original article click here.
