England Women through to Rugby World Cup Sevens Quarterfinals
England Women booked their place in the quarter-finals of the Rugby World Cup Sevens (Friday) with an impressive run of wins in the pools stages of the inaugural women's tournament in Dubai.
England will now play Australia after defeating the USA 17-0, Russia 29-0 and Japan 47-0. France, the USA, New Zealand, Canada, Spain and South Africa are also through to the final eight.
England Head Coach Simon Amor said: "We are very pleased with the way today has gone. The performances we put in were the most important thing over the actual score-lines. The players showed that they have made the step-up in a very dangerous pool.
"It's especially pleasing not to have conceded a single point. We have worked very hard on our defence and that certainly showed. Now it's a matter of getting our recovery right tonight and resting up for a big day tomorrow.
"Australia in the quarter-finals will be an interesting game. We know little about them, but they come here with a very good reputation in touch rugby. They look like a physical team also, so it will no doubt be a competitive game."
England captain Sue Day led by example in the fist two games, scoring a brace of tries and opening England's score-sheet after just 50 seconds in England's opener against the USA. Saracens' Claire Allan also touched down against the USA, with Richmond's Alice Richardson adding one conversion.
In England's match against Russia, England powered to the win, and again stopped their opponents from crossing their line. This time Saracens' Charlotte Barras opened with an early try before Day and Michaela Staniford added tries before half-time. Barras then added her second after the restart with Richardson also touching down. Burford and Richardson also added a conversion each.
In England's final game of the day, they stepped up again inflicting an impressive 47-0 defeat on Japan. Kat Merchant and Danielle Waterman (2) all touched down in the first-half, with Burford, Staniford, Maggie Alphonsi and Barras then adding a further four tries. Burford and Richardson were also consistent with the boot adding six conversions between them.
England Women's Rugby World Cup Sevens Squad
Sue Day Wasps Captain Maggie Alphonsi Saracens Heather Fisher Wasps Emma Layland Richmond Charlotte Barras Saracens Jo Yapp Worcester Danielle Waterman Blaydon Team Northumbria Alice Richardson Richmond Rachael Burford Saracens Claire Allan Saracens Michaela Staniford Wasps Katherine Merchant Worcester
