HSBC SVNS: Golden glory for Australia’s young guns in Perth

Australia added the Perth title to their Dubai crown as they beat great rivals New Zealand in a pulsating final – thanks to a new generation of players – to send the Perth crowd wild.

France, meanwhile, beat Canada to make it three bronze finishes in as many tournaments, and Japan stunned USA to claim fifth place.

Final: Teen Dennis send Perth crowd wild in end-to-end final

Teenager Heidi Dennis scored a try in each half as Australia edged a thrilling end-to-end final in Perth against New Zealand 28-26.

Australia had their work cut out without the services of two superstars Maddison Levi and Faith Nathan in the second final meeting between the two sides in three HSBC SVNS Series tournaments.

But Dennis and fellow teenage finalist Mackenzie Davis, stepped up and showed composure beyond their years to help guide Australia to a famous final victory. The key ingredient, she said immediately afterwards was: “Just grit, all the way to the end. They really made us fight for that one.”

The match – the first time the women’s final has signed off a tournament – lived up to expectations. It was in the balance from first whistle to last. New Zealand’s Michaela Brake matched Dennis’s final brace – to cut Portia Woodman-Wickliffe’s lead on the all-time try-scorers table to just two. 

Risi Pouri-Lane and Kelsey Teneti also scored for the Olympic champions – but Tia Hinds and Charlotte Caslick, who scored a solo 80m try, kept Australia’s nose just ahead, until Dennis’s second settled matters.

Third-place play-off: Hard-working France claim bronze hat-trick

France fought their way back from behind to claim a hat-trick of third-place finishes on this year’s HSBC SVNS Series.

Carla Neisen darted under the posts early in the second half to cancel out Florence Symonds’ breakaway first-half try. 

France looked flustered on the ball, but were ferocious in defence, and, after a delay following an injury to Hada Traoré,  Alycia Chrystiaens fell on the ball to take Les Bleues into the lead after they had forced Canada into an error on their own try line.

Semi-finals: Brake and Hayes star as New Zealand and Australia set up final

Michaela Brake closed to within four tries of all-time record-holder Portia Woodman-Wickliffe of 256 with four tries – including a first-half hat-trick – as New Zealand made it three wins in as many HSBC SVNS Series semi-finals against France this year with a comprehensive 36-7 win.

Jorja Miller added a fifth for the Black Ferns Sevens after Brake was subbed off, and Dhys Faleafaga ran in from 85m late on. But the match was already long won, as Les Bleues’ struggled to spend any time in their opponents’ half – Anne-Cecile Ciofani’s late try was only ever a consolation.

Australia brushed off the twin absence of Maddison Levi and Faith Nathan due to injury as they avenged their shock defeat in last summer’s Olympic Games’ semi-final as they held off a Canada fightback to win 24-17 and set up an Australia Day final against New Zealand.

Demi Hayes opened the scoring in the third minute, before 19-year-old Heidi Dennis scored on her first start in Perth, and Kahli Henwood touched down for her first international sevens try as they eased out to a comfortable 19-0 halftime lead.

Second-half tries for Asia Hogan-Rochester, Carmen Izyk and Shoshanah Seumanutafa, her first sevens try, saw Canada raw back to within two points with seconds left on the clock – but Henwood’s catch and 70m  break cleared the way for Hayes to score her decisive second.

Play-offs: Japan stun USA to bag fifth

Minako Taniyama curled around the USA defence with the clock in the red as Japan came from behind to win 29-22 and claim fifth place in Perth, their best-ever HSBC SVNS finish.

Ariana Ramsey had scored twice in the first two minutes as USA – even without the injured Nia Toliver – raced away early on. But Mei Ohtani cut the deficit before the break, while Suzuha Okamoto’s second-half double and a try for Mayu Yoshino kept Japan in the hunt.

A hat-trick for Thalia Costa – taking her international sevens try tally to 107 – guided Brazil to a thrilling 21-19 seventh-place play-off win over China as both sides guaranteed their best finishes on the HSBC SVNS series this year. 

The superstar’s third came right at the end of a match that had swung both ways.

Kelerayan Luvu scored two of Fijiana’s four tries as they beat Great Britain to ninth place, after a hard-fought 26-17 victory.

Spain’s first win of the Perth weekend guaranteed them 11th place as they beat new-look Ireland, in heavy rebuild mode a year after claiming the inaugural HSBC SVNS title in Perth, 24-12.