Sonny Bill Williams rescues New Zealand in Wellington Sevens
Saturday 30 January 2016 15:50, UK
Sonny Bill Williams did not disappoint as the star attraction at the Wellington round of the World Sevens series, as New Zealand and Fiji dominated the opening day.
England also advanced to the quarter-finals - where they will face Argentina - despite losing to Samoa.
New Zealand were on the brink of losing to South Africa when double World Cup winner Williams - playing for the Sevens side for the first time as he bids for a place in the Olympics squad - set up the match-winning try with a superb trade-mark offload.
And it was just as well for Williams that he came up with a moment of sheer magic. The Kiwis led 12-7 going into the final minute when he attempted an offload when surrounded by South Africans.
The ball was snatched away and Cheslin Kolbe scored to put South Africa 14-12 up.
There was just enough time left for the restart in which New Zealand recovered the ball and this time a remarkable Williams offload - in mid-air as he was simultaneously flattened by Francois Hougaard, Rosko Specman and Philip Snyman - put Joe Webber away for the match-winning try.
Earlier, he had scored with his first touch of the ball after coming off the bench as a late replacement in their 38-7 win over Russia. He then played his part in a comfortable 27-7 win over Scotland.
The Kiwis will face Kenya in the last eight, whilst South Africa will take on Australia.
Fiji, co-leaders with South Africa after the first two rounds of the 10-leg series, looked serious contenders as they waltzed through Pool B.
Their closest match was a 31-10 win over their pool runners-up Argentina and they will face the USA next.
The USA, who were also troubled by Samoa with rugby's fastest man - Carlin Isles - producing the winning try after the final hooter.
Live HSBC Sevens World Series
England finished as the fourth top qualifier, winning Pool C on points difference from the USA, who they beat 19-5, after losing their final match against Samoa.
Australia had an anxious moment against Portugal in Pool D when they were down 12-0 at half-time before fighting back in the second half with three unanswered tries to win 19-12.
Watch the Wellington Sevens live on Sky Sports 4 HD from 10.20pm on Saturday via the Red Button, with coverage continuing on the main channel from 11pm.
