New South Wales has claimed a double triumph after its Boys and Girls teams took out the Cup Finals at the National Youth Sevens Championships at the Sydney Academy of Sport in Sydney this afternoon.
Inspired by eventual Player of the Tournament Tom Wright, New South Wales Blue saw off ACT (38-0) in the Cup Semi-Finals before beating surprise packets Victoria in the Cup Final (38-0).
Tom Wright said: "It was not so much good for myself but also for the team. It was a really good event run by the ARU. There was heaps of tough competition out there but we had great camaraderie and we have come together really well as a team."
In the Girls competition, Raecene McGregor captained New South Wales Blue to Cup Final success at the expense of the fancied Queensland Red side. NSW led from front and despite a second-half revival from the Queensland Red led by Amber Pilley, the Blues hung on to take the trophy.
Girls Player of the Tournament, NSW skipper Racene McGregor, said: "We started strong but we perhaps relaxed a little bit too much, Queensland picked up their game and we got a touch stressed, but we got our heads up and finished strong. We came here to win this weekend and I think we showed today that we were the better team."
All eyes now turn to the all-age Men's and Women's Sevens Championships next weekend (7-8 March) which take place at Sevens HQ at the Sydney Academy of Sport in Sydney. To keep up-to-date with all of the results from the National Youth Championships follow @Aussie7s on Twitter.
The ARU’s Sevens talent development and national teams program is valuably supported by the Australian Commonwealth Games Association’s (ACGA) 2015 NextGEN AUSComGames Squad program – assisting the next generation of national Rugby Sevens stars to attend and achieve at the 2018 and 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Results: National Rugby Sevens Youth Championships at the Sydney Academy of Sport, Narrabeen, 1 March
BOYS:
Plate Semi-Finals - Queensland White 10-22 NSW Country, NSW White 24-14 WA; Cup Semi-Finals - NSW Blue 38-0 ACT, Queensland Red 14-17 Victoria;
9th/10th Place - National Indigenous 31-12 NT; 7th/8th Place - Queensland White 27-12 Western Australia; Plate Final - NSW Country 19-24 NSW White; 3rd/4th Place - ACT 15-14 Queensland Red.
Cup Final - NSW Blue 38-0 Victoria
GIRLS:
Plate Semi-Finals - NSW White 34-0 National Indigenous, Western Australia 24-0 South Australia; Cup Semi-Finals - Queensland Red 26-10 Queensland White, New South Wales Blue 35-0 ACT
9th/10th Place - NT 5-0 Victoria; 7th/8th Place - National Indigenous 12-17 South Australia; Plate Final NSW White 12-14 Western Australia; 3rd/4th Place - Queensland White 0-17 ACT
Cup Final - Queensland Red 17-28 NSW Blue
