Australia's men's sevens side produced a stirring comeback to beat South Africa in the Cup final at the HSBC SVNS event in Valladolid, completing a rare double after the Australian women had also claimed gold on the same weekend.
It was the first time since Sydney in 2018 that both the Australian men's and women's sevens teams had won gold medals at the same tournament, a milestone the broadcast marked the instant the final whistle blew.
South Africa, the world's top-ranked side, could hardly have started better. The Blitzboks raced into a 14-0 lead inside the opening few minutes, scoring twice in just over two minutes as Selvin Davids pulled the strings and Sebastian Job finished a slick set move. It was, the commentary noted, "10 out of 10 execution from the Blitzboks" as South Africa threatened to run away with the final.
Australia, though, refused to fold. The Aussies leaned on their power out wide, with the towering James Turner muscling over before Ethan McFarland, a former volleyball player, reached out to score and level the contest. Ben Dowling then darted to the corner to nudge Australia in front, and Henry Hutchison crossed early in the second half to put the green and gold two scores clear of the number one ranked team.
South Africa had done it the hard way all weekend, edging Spain by two points and surviving a tense semi-final against Argentina to reach the decider. They had beaten Kenya in pool play too, but a pool-stage loss to Australia had already hinted at the threat the Aussies carried into the final.
The drama was not done. Australia were reduced to six players when James Turner was shown a red card for a shoulder to the head with under two minutes remaining, handing South Africa a golden chance to snatch the title back.
The Blitzboks pounced, crossing for a late try to set up a grandstand finish and winning the restart with the clock in the red. But their final, frantic attack broke down when the referee ruled a South African pass forward, and Australia held on to spark wild celebrations.
For Australia, the win was a story of composure under pressure. Maurice Longbottom, a veteran of the side that won in Hong Kong in 2023, was at the heart of the fightback, while McFarland and Dowling provided the cutting edge that turned a 14-point deficit into a famous victory.
The result caps a memorable weekend for Australian rugby sevens and underlines the depth of a men's programme that last tasted a Cup title in Hong Kong three years ago. With both squads peaking, Australia's sevens stocks look in rude health as the World Rugby SVNS Series rolls on.
