Treu's Boks out to make a statement
Sat, 05 Apr 2008 18:11
They wanted to make a statement to the other contenders and he believes they did, said South African Sevens coach Paul Treu after his side finished unbeaten on the first day of the IRB's sixth sevens tournament in Adelaide on Saturday.
The South Africans were far too good for Australia in the final pool game of the day, running out convincing 19-7 winners.
This victory took them to the top of their pool, and they will now face Kenya in the quarterfinals on Sunday.
"We did not play well against Canada, so we needed to lift the intensity against the Aussies.
"We suffocated them on defense and held on to our own ball very well. We also used our leg speed very well," Treu said.
The Cook Islands produced the performance of the day to qualify for the Cup quarterfinals along with the top seeds. They will play Samoa, New Zealand play Tonga, and Fiji play Australia in the other Cup quarters.
Earlier South Africa advanced to the quarterfinals by beating Canada 21-17, but the victory was far too close for comfort for Treu's men.
The South Africans had to come from behind three times against a determined Canadian side and then had to defend with all they had to keep their opponents out.
Mpho Mbiyozo scored the winning try for his side. Earlier, two tries by Fabian Juries helped his side to a convincing 43-0 win over the US in their opening pool C clash.
Juries, second on the all-time try scoring list of the International Rugby Board's Sevens series, had too much pace for the American side.
SAPA
