ENGLAND MEN SEVENS ADVANCE TO RUGBY WORLD CUP SEVENS QUARTER-FINAL
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Loading...England Men Sevens defeated Samoa 19-15 in their opening game of the Rugby World Cup Sevens in San Francisco and progress to the quarter-final stage of the competition.
England will now face hosts USA at 12.38am (BST) on Sunday 22 July.
Early abrasive running put Samoa on the front foot with the first try of the game, but England struck back from the restart as Dan Norton put Phil Burgess in at the corner to level the score.
England took advantage of a Samoan yellow card by spreading the ball the width of the pitch which allowed Mike Ellery to dot down for England’s second try. Mitchell’s conversion made it 12-5 at half-time.
Samoa cut the deficit to just two points at the start of the second half thanks to a Tuatagaloa try, but a second yellow for the Samoan meant they would go the remainder of the match with six men.
Ollie Lindsay-Hague was the catalyst behind England’s third try. Breaking from his own 22 with some neat footwork, his pass found Richard de Carpentier who duly went over for a 19-10 lead.
Malu Falaniko scored a consolation try for Samoa in overtime, but it would prove too late for a comeback as England sealed their spot in the Championship quarter-final.
“You don’t get any easy games against Samoa – they’re a strong side. We also knew that our first game was going to be tough after a long build-up since our last tournament in Paris,” said England Men Sevens captain Tom Mitchell.
“A lot of good preparation went into that game and the boys rose to the challenge and really fought for each other. We’re really pleased to have come out on the right side of that result.
“There’s a great atmosphere in the stadium and there are a lot of England flags which is great to see as we’re always grateful for that support; it’s a brilliant experience which we’ll be savouring over the next couple of days.”
England Men Sevens’ Rugby World Cup Sevens schedule:
Round of 16:
England 19-15 Samoa
Tries: Phil Burgess, Mike Ellery, Richard de Carpentier
Championship quarter-final – England v USA (Sunday 22 July – 12:38am BST)
England Men Sevens squad for Rugby World Cup Sevens:
Phil Burgess
Alex Davis
Richard de Carpentier
Will Edwards
Mike Ellery
Harry Glover
Ollie Lindsay-Hague
Ruaridh McConnochie
Tom Mitchell ©
Will Muir
Dan Norton
James Rodwell
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