LOS ANGLES, USA — New Zealand became the first men’s team to win two tournaments in the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series 2023, beating Argentina 22-12 in the Cup final in Los Angeles.
Leroy Carter was the hero for the All Blacks Sevens on a much more dry day two, scoring five tries – including two in the showpiece match – to help his side to their second successive title.
In winning in the USA, the All Blacks Sevens avenged their defeat to Argentina in their home Cup final in Hamilton last month and solidified their position at the top of the standings.
With six of 11 2023 Series tournaments played at the end of the HSBC Los Angeles Sevens, New Zealand have amassed 107 points, 21 more than Los Pumas Sevens, who are now second.
“We’ve been working hard for a few years now,” New Zealand captain Sam Dickson said. “We made a few finals last year and now we’re finally clicking, that hard work’s paying off.”
Moses Leo opened the scoring in the Cup final, outpacing Marcos Moneta to score in the left corner and give the All Blacks Sevens a 5-0 lead.
That soon became 12-0 as Carter crossed for the first time, converted by Akuila Rokolisao, who had notched his 60th Series try in the 33-12 Cup semi-final win against Australia.
The All Blacks Sevens had conceded a 12-point lead in losing the Hamilton Cup final to Argentina in January, but any nerves were eased in first-half stoppage time as Carter went over again.
Los Pumas Sevens hit back with tries from Tobias Wade and Agustin Fraga to set up a tense final two minutes, but it was New Zealand who held their nerve.
Brady Rush made sure of the victory and the tournament as he produced a stunning dummy to fool the Argentine defenders and canter over.
New Zealand forward Dylan Collier said: “It was a different weekend than normal with the delays on the first day due to lightning, so we just had to adjust on the go and we got through the first day and we managed to come here today and play pretty well.
“This season is extremely competitive. There’s eight teams in the running to get in the top four and full credit to all the teams for how much everyone has improved. Every game is tough, and we knew that if we did well this weekend, and next weekend, we can pull away a little bit and create a bit of a buffer and it will go a long way to winning the World Series.”
Media Release: World Rugby
Photo credit: World Rugby
