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Scotland retain London 7s title as England finish second in series

Sunday 21 May 2017 20:02, UK

Jamie Farndale celebrates scoring their fourth try against New Zealand to win the game during day two of the HSBC London Sevens at Twickenham
Image: Scotland delivered back-to-back titles at Twickenham Stadium

Scotland retained their London Sevens title with a 12-7 victory over England in the final at Twickenham.

The last stop on the 2016-17 HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series delighted fans at the home of England Rugby and while the final ended in heartbreak for the hosts, they did secure second position in the series overall behind champions South Africa.

The Blitzbokke notched up five first-place finishes over the 10-round season, including at the showpiece opener in Dubai.

Head coach Neil Powell praised his side's culture and the team have turned heads with the consistency of their performances.

Alongside deciding final placings, four teams - Scotland, Canada, Argentina and Samoa - also secured their positions at next year's Sevens Rugby World Cup that will be held in San Francisco.

The final in London produced a high tempo and enthralling clash between two familiar foes.

It was Simon Amor's England who started strongly despite losing Ollie Lindsay-Hague, who scored a hat-trick against Canada in the semi-final, early to injury.

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England's Dan Norton celebrates scoring their third try against South Africa
Image: Dan Norton scored a sensational solo try in the final against Scotland

England went into the break 7-0 up thanks to a piece of magic from Dan Norton, the playmaker splitting four defenders and turning the sweeper inside out before scoring.

After the interval Scotland had their tails up and levelled the match 7-7 through Hugh Blake's try and Scott Wright's conversion.

Captain Scott Riddell was the man who scored the decisive try and the result gave departing head coach Calum MacRae and retiring players Mark Robertson and Scott Wight the perfect send-off.

It proved to be Scotland's second comeback victory of the day, after recovering from 21-0 down at half-time in the quarter-finals to beat New Zealand 24-21 for the first time.

In the semi-finals, they beat the United States 21-14 with a last-gasp try from substitute Joe Nayacavou.

Live HSBC Women's World Rugby Sevens

The men's HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series now takes a break Next season will be a World Cup year and will start again in Dubai.

The women's series has two more tournaments to go starting next weekend in Langford, Canada.

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