An Australian Select side will play for the Coral Coast 7s Shield after a frustrating Day 2 at Fiji's premier sevens tournament.
Hosted over three days in Segitoka's Lawaqa Park, the Coral Coast 7s pits Fiji's top local talent against touring invitational and national sides such as Australia, New Zealand and Samoa.
Watch our Aussies in action at the Coral Coast 7s (January 16-18) via Viti Plus.
The Australian Select men are supported by PacificAus Sports - an Australian Government sports diplomacy initiative developing pathways for Pacific teams and athletes to compete in elite competitions and access high performance coaching in Australia and internationally.
World Series flyer Henry Palmer, playmaker James McGregor and rising Brumbies centre Jarrah McLeod have been among the Australian Select's best with the side going 2-2 from their four games so far.
Palmer (four tries) and McGregor were pivotal in their two opening tight wins while McLeod has shown glimpses of the barnstorming form that earned him a starting centre berth for Australia U20s last year.
However, a 12-5 upset loss to local outfit Devo Baabaas on Friday morning derailed their title hopes before a difficult Plate quarter final ended in defeat to New Zealand.
The Aussie men will play off for the Shield on Saturday - recap their Day 2 results below:
Australia's Day 2 woes were compounded by a difficult Plate quarter final match-up with heavyweights New Zealand.
Dally Bird crossed for Australia but there was no respite with World Series star Joe Webber headlining a stacked Kiwi outfit that romped home four tries to one.
A slow start to Day 2 could prove costly for Australia after local outfit Devo Baabaas spring a seven-point upset to round out their Pool D fixtures.
The Aussies barely touched the ball during a scrappy opening half that ended with a Baabaas try before another against the run of play saw them facing a 12-0 deficit with five minutes remaining.
A Conor Hickey try-saver sparked life into the contest as Australia completed a 90m counterattack with Henry Palmer picking up his fourth try of the tournament but the visitors were twice denied late equalisers.
Palmer's kick and chase with a minute remaining just trickled into touch before McLeod was denied a try on the full-time hooter with the referee ruling a forward pass in the build-up.
Day 1 Results - click here for full match reports
Australia Select 19 (McLeod, Palmer, Gollings tries; McGregor 2 cons) def Taikita Brothers 7
Australia Select 21 (Palmer 2, B Oates tries; McGregor 3 cons) def Mike Friday's Select 19
The Australian Select 7s involvement at Coral Coast 7s is made possible by PacificAus Sport.
PacificAus Sports is an Australian Government sports diplomacy initiative developing pathways for Pacific teams and athletes to compete in elite competitions and access high performance coaching in Australia and internationally.
The program partners with Australian national sports organisations to support a range of Pacific sports, including rugby league, rugby union, netball, football, AFL, cricket and Olympic/Paralympic sports, with funding split evenly between women and men.
PacificAus Sports also partners with the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) to promote Pacific sport through ABC Television’s 'That Pacific Sports Show' and ABC Radio’s 'Fresh Off The Field'.
The high performance outcomes of PacificAus Sports are complemented by the Australian Government’s program, which focuses on sport for development in the Pacific.
For more information about PacificAus Sports and its initiatives, visit https://www.pacificaussports.gov.au/ and follow PacificAus Sports on Facebook and Instagram.
Logan Aldridge, Dally Bird, Saxon Fenwicke, Rocco Gollings, Conor Hickey, James McGregor, Jarrah McLeod, Christopher Mickelson, Kieren Mundine, Braiden Oates, Kye Oates, Henry Palmer, Christian Papa.
Click here for Australian fixtures + Coral Coast 7s tournament information.
