Aussie men face Fiji in Singapore quarter-finals

Australia will meet Fiji in a Cup quarter-final at the Singapore Sevens, after a mixed opening day.

The undermanned Aussie side had a slow start to their pool games, going down to Argentina 21-7.

They managed to bounce back, grinding out a win over Japan before trouncing Wales 31-12 in their final match of the day.

Without captain Ed Jenkins and a handful on in-form stars, Australia will face a massive challenge to overcome the reigning World Series champions after losing to the Pacific Islanders in Hong Kong last week.

A slow start is exactly what the side will need to avoid in the final eight, coach Andy Friend said after the day’s play.

"For a team that prides itself at being clinical we were very slow out of the blocks today,” he said.

"We did get better with every game but we need to make sure we are ready for Fiji from the word go tomorrow or we'll be blown away like last week [in Hong Kong].

"We had a chat after the second game against Japan and said that to be winning and not playing particularly well isn't too bad a sign.

“But we won't get away with it against the likes of Fiji.

“That said, tomorrow is a new day, we are through to the Quarter-Finals and we have seen today that Fiji is beatable."

There were a number of major upsets at the Singapore Sevens, with New Zealand also gong down to France in their pool

The Kiwis will take on South Africa in another of the quarter-finals, while Argentina plays samoa and France meets Kenya.

Australia will take on FIji at 1:58pm  AEST on Sunday, for a shot at a fifth consecutive Cup semi-final, LIVE on FOXSPORTS.