Fiji beat New Zealand 33–5 in a men's Pool C match at the 2025 HSBC SVNS Perth at HBF Park on January 25, 2025 in Perth, Australia. Photo: Alex Ho / World Rugby
The Fiji men's sevens rugby team failed to make the final of the HSBC SVNS Perth Sevens at the weekend.
However, they still retain their lead at the top of the points table, although they are now tied with Argentina and Spain, on 48 points each.
The three teams have 48 points each, with the Fijians conceding their previous lead after the first two tournaments of the 2024/2025 series in Dubai and Cape Town.
Fiji fell at the quarterfinal stage of the Perth leg of the competition, beaten 19-nil by South Africa.
Argentina claimed the men's title at the event and made the biggest gains, jumping from third spot previously.
The loss at the hands of South Africa shocked Osea Kolinisau's men and sent them crashing out of the last four on Saturday night, much to the dismay of their fans, who had turned up in numbers to cheer them on since Friday afternoon.
Kolinisau, who had stated earlier on Thursday that they aimed to keep winning in Perth and retain their lead, has not made any media comment yet.
The team ended up finishing fifth, beating France 17-5.
There was marked improvement for the women's team though, with the Fijiana women's team defeating Great Britain 26-17 to claim ninth spot.
That win was their second in Perth, having beaten Ireland 24-7 in the play-offs on Saturday.
Coach Timoci Volavola, who has been under fire at home following the team's 12th spot finishes in Dubai and Cape Town in early December, led the team to beating both Ireland and Great Britain and moving up the rankings, with four tournaments remaining in the current series.
The New Zealand men's team finished ninth at the tournament, beating Kenya 19-12, failing to make it into the Cup quarterfinals earlier on Saturday.
Australia defeated New Zealand 28-26 to claim the women's title at the event, early Monday morning (NZ Time) while the Australian men's team were thrashed 41-5 by Argentina in the final.
New Zealand currently lead in the women's competition, with 56 points, two clear off Australia.
Sevens action resumes in Vancouver over the weekend of 21-23 February.
That will be followed by Hong Kong, Singapore and Los Angeles, completing the series in May.
