Blitzbokke face Fiji showdown

Cape Town - The Springbok Sevens team finished second in Pool D of the London Sevens at Twickenham on Saturday and will now face Fiji in the Cup quarter-finals on Sunday.

With Fiji leading the Springbok Sevens team by five points on the overall log, this clash could go in a long way in determining the final series standings.

A defeat for the second-placed South Africans would mean the end of their quest for a second ever series title, but if they can get past Fiji in the last eight, their title hopes will still be very much alive.

South Africa’s Blitzboks started the day well, beating Portugal 19-0 in the opening match of the tournament. A Stephan Dippenaar try gave the team a 7-0 lead at the break, before a second from Dippenaar and a Rosko Specman effort secured the win, with the remaining points coming from Branco du Preez and Justin Geduld conversions.

Du Preez was instrumental in their second pool match, a 28-7 win over France. The sweeper scored a try and kicked three conversions, with the remaining points from Seabelo Senatla (two tries), Kyle Brown (try) and Justin Geduld (conversion).

This set-up a pool decider against the USA. Tries by Dippenaar and Werner Kok had the Blitzboks in command with a 12-0 lead at the break. A yellow card to Brown was exploited by the USA though, who scored two converted tries in two minutes to take the lead. In the last minute, Carlin Isles could the Springbok Sevens defence napping for the final score of the match and a win for the Americans.

Cup quarter-finals:

11:28: Fiji v South Africa

11:50: Scotland v Australia

12:12: USA v Canada