Blitzboks battle back to defeat Fiji and claim first Australian title since 2017

The Blitzboks produced a stirring second-half fightback to claim their first title in Australia since 2017, edging Fiji 21–19 in the Perth SVNS final on Sunday morning.

Despite leading 14–12 at halftime, South Africa briefly found themselves five points behind after the break due to some defensive lapses. They responded, however, with strong attacking play and desperate defence to seal the win and avenge their pool-stage loss to the Fijians earlier in the weekend.

The South Africans fought valiantly to the end, although missed tackles threatened to derail their attempt to lift the cup. They conceded three consecutive tries after to trail 19-14 at a stage.

Two quick-fire tries from hardworking forward and Player of the Final Ryan Oosthuizen and speedster Sebastiaan Jobb gave South Africa the upper hand shortly after kick-off, and that positive start laid the platform for their early dominance.

But the Islanders are never a side you can count out, and the Springbok Sevens felt that as they allowed the Flying Fijians to play their high-octane offloading game. Two defensive lapses just before the halftime break saw the Islanders strike back with a pair of tries to narrow the gap to 14–12 at the interval.

Fiji were quickest out of the blocks in the second half, snatching the lead after another missed tackle allowed Terio Veilawa to run from his own half, scoring the try that put his side 19–14 ahead. But two minutes later, a powerful run down the touchline by Oosthuizen saw him bulldoze through a couple of would-be Fiji tacklers.

The trusty boot of Ricardo Duarttee landed the conversion from out wide to restore South Africa’s lead.

Strong defence in the dying minutes, when Fiji pushed hard for the winner, along with composed game management from scrumhalf Luan Giliomee and flyhalf Tristan Leyds, ensured the South Africans held on. Leyds sealed the famous victory by calmly tapping a late penalty and kicking it into touch.

The win saw the Springbok Sevens climb to second place on the standings, four points behind Fiji. Their goal was to remain among the top two teams after the two-week tour to Singapore and Australia — and they achieved exactly that.