Wales started the second day of competition contesting the Bowl quarterfinals against Argentina but were unable to stop the Pumas from taking a 24-10 win. Wales were in contention when they trailed the Pumas midway through the second half by 12-10 after tries from Jonathan Edwards and Rhodri McAtee.
When Edwards was sent to the sin bin by the referee for a trivial offence Argentina were able to take advantage of their greater numbers with two quick tries to finish winners 24-10.
“The sin-binning was a critical refereeing decision. What was disappointing was that the referee chose not to apply zero tolerance to Argentina when they kicked away the ball after a penalty award to us,” stated Coach Dai Rees.
Wales then had to play Celtic cousins Scotland in the Shield semi-final. Wales left it late; a second try by Edwards in the last play of the tie drawing the sides level at 12-12. Then in extra time a try by promising youngster Tom James sealed it for Wales.
Overall this has been a valuable experience for the young Wales side who will travel to South Africa for next weekend’s second IRB World Sevens Series tournament in George with confidence lifted after a number of good performances in Dubai.
