Sparkling New Zealand women notch five in a row at Hong Kong sevens

HONG KONG, AFP: Dominant New Zealand made it five wins in a row at the women’s rugby sevens in Hong Kong on Sunday, beating Australia 26-17 in the final to get one hand on the overall series trophy with one round to go.

Their victory was the first of a Kiwi double, with the All Blacks winning in the men’s tournament immediately afterwards.

The Black Ferns had cruised their way through the weekend, swatting away early opponents and looking mostly untroubled by Fiji in the semi-final, which they won 31-5.

But in Australia, they found their most credible opposition, and both southern-hemisphere giants were in the game for most of it. Stacey Waaka’s second try of the match, in the fourteenth minute, made sure of the win, as well as making her the weekend’s second-top scorer, after Aussie star Charlotte Caslick.

New Zealand are 16 points clear of Australia in the series standing, and almost certain to secure the title in the French city.

They took gold at the previous four tournaments, in Cape Town, Hamilton, Sydney and Vancouver. They took home silver in the Dubai season opener, losing the final to Australia ‒ their sole defeat all season. In the lesser finals on Sunday, the bronze medal went to Great Britain, France claimed fifth place and US finished seventh.

Hosts Hong Kong lost the 11th-place playoff to Brazil a day earlier.