PARIS (AFP) – Antoine Dupont helped France to a semi-final showdown against South Africa on Saturday while Fiji survived an Irish scare to set up a last-four match-up against Australia in the Olympic rugby sevens tournament.
AFP Sport looks at five takeaways from Thursday’s high-octane quarter-finals going into the semis, with no play on Friday because of the opening ceremony of the Paris Games.
At the end of a hard-hitting quarter-final Fiji won 19-15 over Ireland, the players from both teams were left scattered around the pitch in sheer exhaustion.
Fiji, who have never lost an Olympic rugby sevens match, are the two-time defending champions, but were made to put in an enormous round of defensive sets against an Irish side for whom playmaker Terry Kennedy shone once again.
A Waisea Nacuqu try two minutes from time sealed the win for the misfiring South Sea Islanders.
New coach Osea Kolinisau, who captained Fiji to gold when sevens made its Olympic debut in Rio, will no doubt have some ideas about how his side can improve for their semi-final against Australia.
France superstar Antoine Dupont was on the bench for Thursday’s final pool match and the quarter-final against Argentina which the Olympic hosts won 26-14.
The France 15s captain had started both pool matches on Wednesday, scoring a decisive try to help secure Les Bleus’ place in the quarters.
But coach Jerome Daret fell back on familiar faces for the start of the crunch match against Los Pumas, the impressive Stephen Parez-Edo Martin, a sevens specialist, slipping seamlessly into the playmaker role.
When Dupont did come on, with five minutes to go, the partisan, 69,000-capacity crowd at the Stade de France erupted in a deafening atmosphere rarely, if ever, matched in the stadium.
In a fairytale ending to the last-eight match, who else could it have been but Dupont to jink away and produce an acrobatic dive for an injury-time try to ensure France a place in the semi-finals against South Africa.
South Africa captain Selvyn Davids was irrepressible in his team’s rip-roaring 14-7 victory over New Zealand.
The veteran barged through for the opening try and then conjured up the second.
Chasing down his own fly-hack, he cleverly slid and smothered the ball, turning and popping it up into the hands of Tristan Leyds.
The 30-year-old Davids then produced two try-saving tackles in a tight second period in a consummate display of leading from the front.
“People back home did not think we had a chance but where there is a will, there is a way. And the guys put it together and got the ‘W’ against New Zealand,” said Leyds in reference to the fact the Boks only qualified for the Olympics through a repechage tournament.
Australia topped their pool B with wins over Samoa, Kenya and Argentina.
They ran out 18-0 victors over the United States in their quarter, never looking like conceding any points to the toothless Americans.
The Wallabies’ tight pressing game and strong defence will prove a real test for Fiji.
Los Pumas were roundly booed and whistled at each of their games at the Stade de France.
The country’s football team were also given a hostile reception in their opening match against Morocco on Wednesday after a recent racism scandal following their senior side’s Copa America triumph.
FIFA has announced an investigation into the chants sung by Argentina players after they won the Copa America with a 1-0 final victory over Colombia.
The Argentinian rugby players have been left bemused by their reception, insisting they play a different sport.
“If the crowd is with us, it is very motivating, but when they are against us, as we could see they are here, it is also something to enjoy,” said Gaston Revol.
