Blitzboks down Canada, into quarters

Cape Town - The Springbok Sevens team opened their defence of the Dubai Sevens on a positive note, finishing top of pool A on day one of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series opener.

The Blitzboks defeated Canada 28-0, after leading 14-0 at half-time.

Earlier in the day, the Blitzboks looked rusty in their first match when they beat Uganda 19-10, but bounced back with an emphatic 48-5 win against Kenya.

The South Africans face Samoa at 09h00 (SA time) in the Cup quarter-finals on Saturday.

Springbok Sevens coach Neil Powell had mixed emotions following the clean sweep, but admitted that it was job done.

"We were sloppy against Uganda in the opener, then played much better against Kenya and conceded no points against Canada in the final pool match. We improved as we progressed, but overall it was a day with mixed emotions," Powell indicated.

"It is a given that that we need to step up from the first game to the next and credit to the guys, they did that, something that makes me proud. It was not easy out there, but we kept on improving and I cannot ask for much more."

The team knows very well that day two will determine the success of their efforts in Dubai, said Powell.

"We need to step up. Samoa showed they are a team progressing all the time and we have to pitch up with our best effort. If not, we will not be defending our title," Powell said.

The average score between the sides are 18-14 and the Blitzboks won 43 of 69 matches played.

Scorers:

South Africa

Tries: Branco du Preez, Cecil Afrika, Kwagga Smith, Werner Kok

Conversion: Branco du Preez (3), Justin Geduld