New Zealand is in a celebratory mood as they have been awarded the men’s and women’s World Sevens Series titles after the remaining rounds were cancelled amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The All Blacks won three of the six men’s rounds, and the London, Paris, Singapore, and Hong Kong tournaments were called off, leaving the New Zealand men’s team as decisive champions.
As for the women’s series, the Black Ferns won four of the five completed rounds leaving the remaining games for Langford, Paris and Hong Kong cancelled.
England finished fifth in the men’s standings and eighth in the women’s, while Ireland was ranked 10th in both the men’s and women’s standings. Scotland finished 11th, and Wales settled in the 15th position.
World Rugby today confirmed the Series titles would be awarded to the All Blacks Sevens and Black Ferns Sevens teams, making it their first combined victory since the 2014 season.
The season was halted early due to Covid-19, with four men’s and three women’s tournaments cancelled. The New Zealand teams were leading the standings at the time they were awarded the titles.
“While it is very disappointing for players, fans, organisers and everyone involved to have to cancel these events due to the global Covid-19 pandemic, the health and wellbeing of the rugby community and wider society remains the number one priority,” said World Rugby chairman Sir Bill Beaumont.
“Rugby sevens is a key driver of global growth for our sport, particularly in emerging nations, and it firmly remains a top priority for our organisation. As we begin to see light at the end of the tunnel, 2021 has the potential to be a very exciting year for rugby sevens with the Tokyo Olympic Games on the horizon.”
New Zealand scoops World Series title for both men’s and women’s teams
This makes it the 13th title for the All Blacks Sevens, who had won three of six tournaments played this season, taking titles in Cape Town, Hamilton and Vancouver. It should also be noted that the team had only lost three matches across all six events giving it an impressive lead with 115 points, 11 ahead of South Africa in second.
As for the Black Ferns Sevens, they were in top form winning back-to-back Series titles before the games were cancelled. The team had won four consecutive tournaments in Dubai, Cape Town, Hamilton and Sydney giving them a 16-point lead in the standings. It is their sixth Series title in eight seasons of the Women’s competition.
Also read: Liverpool Claim the English Premier League Title 2019/20
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