THE Fiji Airways Fijiana sevens team settled for fourth place after going down 17-26 to the USA in the bronze medal playoff at the HSBC New York Sevens series.
The Fijiana started the match strongly, and within seconds they were deep in the opposition’s half. A clever wrap-around pass freed Reapi Ulunisau, who powered her way over the USA defence to score in the corner.
USA responded swiftly a minute later. An offload while in contact from Su Adegoke to her captain, Kristi Kirshe, created space.
With a sharp left step, Kirshe beat the covering defence and sprinted to score under the posts. With the conversion added by Sariah Ibarra, the USA took a 7-5 lead.
Adi Vani Buleki sparked a Fijiana comeback, capitalising on a kick-off error from the USA before sending captain Ulunisau in for her second try, allowing Fiji to retake the lead at 10-7.
In front of a massive home crowd, Sammy Sullivan shrugged off two would-be Fijiana tacklers and outpaced the sweeper to score a well-deserved try, recapturing the lead for the USA at 14-7 by half-time.
In the 11th minute, speedster Kaylen Thomas used her pace to complete a well-worked set-piece scrum move, extending the USA’s advantage to 21-7.
Adrian Ramsey dashed any hopes of a late Fijiana rally as she sliced through the defence from a 22-metre scrum inside Fiji’s territory, dotting down for a brilliant solo effort.
Despite the substantial deficit, Mere Vocevoce had the final say, sprinting down to score behind the posts after an attacking break inside the USA half.
The Fijiana concluded the series in sixth place with 64 points.
Meanwhile, the New Zealand women’s team edged out Australia 22-21 in an extraordinary women’s final, clinching the series and claiming their fifth title of the season.
