HARRISON, New Jersey (AP) – South Africa won the 2026 Men's World Rugby Sevens Series on Sunday against Fiji's late rally to win the final in the last tournament of the regular season.
Fiji and South Africa were on top of the season standings before the New York Sevens, making the final also a series decider.
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South Africa scored the only try of the first half through Selwyn Davids and increased their lead to 10–0 with a try by Tristan Leydes two minutes into the second half.
Fiji tried to reduce the gap to 10–7 with a try from Terio Wailava with two minutes remaining. The Fijians had the last possession of the match and were five meters from the South African line when a knock-on ended their attack and ensured South Africa won the final and the series.
“It was a huge, comprehensive defensive effort,” South Africa captain Impey Visser said. “Fiji brought out the best in us.”
“It's ridiculous it all came down to the finals,” said Visser, who played in his 50th World Series game in the finals. “It's like someone wrote a script, and it couldn't have been a better script.”
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In the women's final, New Zealand overcame Australia 22–21 after trailing 21–5 in the second half. All six World Series finals this season have been contested between Australia and New Zealand, with New Zealand winning five of them.
New Zealand had already won the Women's World Series title when they qualified for the semi-finals and had gained enough points to take an unassailable lead. The New Zealand Black Ferns still wanted to end the regular season with a win and did so in remarkable circumstances.
Teagan Levy scored two tries for Australia and her sister Madison Levy scored one try to give their team a 21–5 lead just two minutes into the second half.
New Zealand rallied with tries to Elena Celli and Kelsey Tinetti, who also scored in the first half, making the score 21–15 and giving themselves a chance to win.
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Jorja Miller won a penalty from a breakdown turnover in the final minute and Caitlin Vahkolo scored an effort near the post which was converted to give New Zealand the win.
New Zealand captain Rissie Pouri-Lane said, “I think we knew before the game even started that it was going to be all by heart.” “The final stages can go either way and we all know that. But when the odds are not in your favour, it's all about finishing.
“But the confidence within every single person next to you is huge.”
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AP Rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby