DUBAI // In the final play in the final of the Women's Sevens World Series Cup, and with the referee holding a whistle to her lips, Australians were poised to celebrate. Then everything suddenly turned black – All Black.
New Zealand had thrown away a 20-point advantage to Tim Walsh’s Australia last year, so despite trailing 17-0 at half-time on Friday, they knew a comeback was not impossible. Together, spirited, they sought it, claimed it and secured revenge.
“It’s always good against Australia,” captain Sarah Goss said with a smile.
It was Goss who, with the clock reading 00:00, collected a smart pass from Tyla Nathan-Wong, powered forward and sent her team into raptures with a 19-17 victory.
“It’s a bit of redemption, but this year is all about Olympic qualification, so we have started off really well,” she said.
Australia looked comfortable in the opening exchanges as Emma Tonegato scored with her side’s first attack. They doubled their lead six minutes later through Amy Turner and Tonegato added a third in the final play of the first half.
The Kiwis, however, proved a different proposition in the second period, and following an early try from Goss, Nathan-Wong set up a fittingly grandstand finish, touching down with three minutes to play and taking the score to 17-14. With Australia trying to wind down the clock, Nathan-Wong made them pay when she found Goss on the left flank and watched as her teammate sealed the victory.
Kiwi coach Sean Horan instructed his side at half-time to go back to what they do best.
“In the first half, we let them through and missed some tackles,” Goss said.
“So we wanted to tighten up and go from there, which we did. Sometimes games come and go our way, but that didn’t happen this time, so it’s great.”
The Australian players walked off the pitch with tears streaming down their faces, but Sharni Williams, the Australian captain, said she was proud of her team and had no complaints.
“The final was pretty tough, but we played some great footie this weekend,” Williams said. “From where we were last year, we have definitely stepped up. We were a bit unlucky at the final whistle, but that’s footie and that’s sevens. Flip a coin and it can be heads or tails; try or no try. That’s how it was.”
Walsh said he believed his side were “the best team over the weekend”, but conceded they should have dealt better with the Kiwi attack in the final seconds.
“In the final play, your stomach just drops and your arms are in the air as you call for someone to tackle, but that’s sport,” he said.
“We have just got to be better in those tight situations.”
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On the menu
First course
▶ Emirati sea bass tartare Yuzu and labneh mayo, avocado, green herbs, fermented tomato water
▶ The Tale of the Oyster Oyster tartare, Bahraini gum berry pickle
Second course
▶ Local mackerel Sourdough crouton, baharat oil, red radish, zaatar mayo
▶ One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest Quail, smoked freekeh, cinnamon cocoa
Third course
▶ Bahraini bouillabaisse Venus clams, local prawns, fishfarm seabream, farro
▶ Lamb 2 ways Braised lamb, crispy lamb chop, bulgur, physalis
Dessert
▶ Lumi Black lemon ice cream, pistachio, pomegranate
▶ Black chocolate bar Dark chocolate, dates, caramel, camel milk ice cream
SQUADS
Bangladesh (from): Shadman Islam, Mominul Haque, Soumya Sarkar, Shakib Al Hasan (capt), Mahmudullah Riyad, Mohammad Mithun, Mushfiqur Rahim, Liton Das, Taijul Islam, Mosaddek Hossain, Nayeem Hasan, Mehedi Hasan, Taskin Ahmed, Ebadat Hossain, Abu Jayed
Afghanistan (from): Rashid Khan (capt), Ihsanullah Janat, Javid Ahmadi, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Asghar Afghan, Ikram Alikhil, Mohammad Nabi, Qais Ahmad, Sayed Ahmad Shirzad, Yamin Ahmadzai, Zahir Khan Pakteen, Afsar Zazai, Shapoor Zadran
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Country: Galway, Ireland
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Uefa Nations League: How it Works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
Arabian Gulf League fixtures:
Friday:
- Emirates v Hatta, 5.15pm
- Al Wahda v Al Dhafra, 5.25pm
- Al Ain v Shabab Al Ahli Dubai, 8.15pm
Saturday:
- Dibba v Ajman, 5.15pm
- Sharjah v Al Wasl, 5.20pm
- Al Jazira v Al Nasr, 8.15pm
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Asia Cup Qualifier
Final
UAE v Hong Kong
TV:
Live on OSN Cricket HD. Coverage starts at 5.30am
EGYPT SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Ahmed El Shennawy, Mohamed El Shennawy, Mohamed Abou-Gabal, Mahmoud Abdel Rehem "Genesh"
Defenders: Ahmed Elmohamady, Ahmed Hegazi, Omar Gaber, Ali Gazal, Ayman Ahsraf, Mahmoud Hamdy, Baher Elmohamady, Ahmed Ayman Mansour, Mahmoud Alaa, Ahmed Abou-Elfotouh
Midfielders: Walid Soliman, Abdallah El Said, Mohamed Elneny, Tarek Hamed, Mahmoud “Trezeguet” Hassan, Amr Warda, Nabil Emad
Forwards: Ahmed Ali, Mohamed Salah, Marwan Mohsen, Ahmed "Kouka" Hassan.
