Canada finishes 11th at Cape Town Sevens after 24-14 loss to Argentina

CAPE TOWN, South Africa — Canada finished 11th for the second HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series tournament in a row Sunday, losing 24-14 to Argentina in the consolation Challenge Trophy semifinals at the Cape Town Sevens.

The Canadian men missed out on the Cup knockout rounds after going 2-1 Saturday, beating Wales after losses to Scotland and Australia.

They bounced back early Sunday with a 28-24 win over Zimbabwe thanks to two tries from Isaac Kaay and singles from captain Nathan Hirayama and Pat Kay.

Tries by Matt Mullins and Connor Braid put Canada up 14-5 at the half against Argentina. But two yellow cards to Canada fuelled a Puma comeback with three unanswered tries.

The tournament saw Justin Douglas of Abbotsford, B.C., become Canada’s all-time leading try-scorer with 126, surpassing Sean Duke’s mark of 124. And Hirayama, from Richmond, B.C., upped his career total to 1,509 points, becoming only the fourth player to reach the 1,500-point milestone.

Meaningful Mementos

Remembering Someone You've Lost at Christmas

Dec 03, 2024

Seasonal Sorrow

How Do You Get Through The Holidays When You're Grieving?

Nov 01, 2024

Upcoming Events at Oliver's

Grief & Loss and Estate Planning Seminars

Oct 02, 2024

Called up as an injury replacement, Halifax’s Cooper Coats made his World Series debut.

The World Series resumes Jan. 26-27 in Hamilton, New Zealand.

Fiji capitalized on mistake after mistake by the United States to win the Cape Town World Rugby Sevens 29-15, sending the Americans to a second straight defeat in a final at the start of the season.

The upside for the U.S. is that it leads the series standings by a point.

Fiji scored four tries — and led 22-0 before the U.S. could respond — as it clinched a first title in South Africa since 2005.

Kalione Nasoko was the first over for Fiji in the third minute as no U.S. defender committed and he kept going down the left wing. Vilimoni Botitu intercepted and raced away from deep inside Fiji’s half for the second. Sevuloni Mocenacagi scored off Perry Baker’s error, when he threw the ball away, and Botitu’s second came when he broke through two half-hearted tackles.

The U.S. lost to New Zealand in the final of last weekend’s season-opener in Dubai.

Host South Africa won the bronze in Cape Town, beating New Zealand 10-5.

The Canadian Press