The fourth round of the HSBC Sevens World Series in New Zealand saw a number of shocks on the first day with Fiji failing to reach the quarter-final stage for the first time in the 14-year history of the series while France, currently ranked second in the series, also missed out by losing a crucial match to Argentina.
Wales entered the competition in a confident frame of mind, having won the Plate final in both the Dubai and South African legs, however after beating Canada 26-17 in their opening Pool C clash at Westpac Stadium, they crashed to defeat against Samoa (12-19) and South Africa (21-0) to finish bottom of the group.
John couldn’t hide his frustration after seeing his side stumble to the second tier competition.
“It was a really disappointing end to the day. We put ourselves in a position to qualify but let it slip,” he said.
“We didn’t manage the end of the game against Samoa and we were beaten in the last game against South Africa. We lost the game by more than 10 points and that meant we didn’t qualify.
“We only have ourselves to blame because we had a very good opportunity to get through a difficult group. That means we miss out on the big points on offer and now play France tomorrow in the Bowl instead.”
