Blitzboks beat Aussies in narrow final to claim second Dubai Sevens Series title in two weeks

Blitzboks players celebrate after beating France in the semi-final of the Dubai Sevens Series on Saturday. The Blitzboks went on to beat Australia in the final to claim a second title in two weeks. Photo: Ali Haider/EPA

Blitzboks players celebrate after beating France in the semi-final of the Dubai Sevens Series on Saturday. The Blitzboks went on to beat Australia in the final to claim a second title in two weeks. Photo: Ali Haider/EPA

Published Dec 4, 2021

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Durban — The Blitzboks’ glorious run in the World Sevens Series continued in Dubai on Saturday evening when they scraped home 10-7 against a valiant Australia to win their second tournament in a row.

The Boks won at the same venue last weekend and they have now won a fourth straight tournament in the World Sevens Series.

The victory in the final was the 24th match in a row South Africans have won in the Series and they have extended their record of titles in Dubai to nine.

Little wonder they were huge favourites but the Aussies clearly had taken no notice of their underdog status and after the Boks had scored within a minute of kickoff via captain Siviwe Soyizwape, they bounced straight back with a try under the crossbar and the conversion gave them a 7-5 lead that preserved until halftime.

The Boks should have scored early in the second half but a forward pass cost Zain Davids an unmarked run to the line.

An incredibly tense final was beginning to wind down when JC Pretorius wriggled through a gap and raced to the line with a bunch of Aussies in hot pursuit, but he just got there in time for a famous finish for the Blitzboks.

@MikeGreenaway67

IOL Sport

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