HSBC SVNS: Las mujeres de Nueva Zelanda agregar el World Championship a su título de la Liga

Olympic champions New Zealand added more silverware to their collection as they beat Australia for the fourth time in a row to win the women's World Championship at the Dignity Health Sports Park in Los Angeles.

Already League champions, they proved too strong for a young but immensely talented Australia team. HSBC Player of the Match Jorja Miller scored a marvellous try to get her team going, picking up from her own 22 to score her 29th of the season.

Australia just could not get a run at the Black Ferns Sevens and succumbed to the pressure when Michaela Brake crossed over to make it 12-0.

Mackenzie Davis provided a spark for Australia at the start of the second half, collecting from the back of a ruck deep in her own half and proving too fast for anyone in a black shirt.

New Zealand's response was a touch of class. Brake was tackled twice on the left wing but managed to throw left handed for Miller who herself was brought crashing down but, while sitting on the turf, popped up a pass to Risi Pouri-Lane to score.

Skipper Sarah Hirini played in Mahina Paul for a score and Miller did likewise for Hirini who jumped for joy after dotting down for an unassailable 31-7 lead.

"Man, that feels good," said Hirini before collecting the trophy. "After the Olympic gold medal we wanted to show we are a great team and to us that was winning the League and winning the [World Championship] Series and we did it."

3rd PLACE PLAY-OFF

Canada claimed the bronze medal thanks to a 27-7 win over USA for whom Sariah Ibarra had set the scoreboard moving with the first try.

However, Ibarra was soon sin binned for going into the ruck from the side in a dangerous manner and Canada turned the screw through tries by Charity Williams, Carissa Norsten and an Asia Hogan-Rochester hat-trick.

SEMI-FINALS

World number two Australia came out on top against Canada to seal their place in the final, but the 33-7 scoreline does not reflect how hard they had to work to overcome Olivia Apps and her teammates.

Faith Nathan and Canada star Hogan-Rochester traded early tries and it was the underdogs who looked the more likely to score next. However, just as Alysha Corrigan was contemplating how to celebrate her imminent try she was stopped by Maddison Levi who tackled, jackalled then attacked, and moments later Nathan was in for her second. Small margins and all that.

Even when Davis saw the space to sear away from Canadian jerseys to score, Canada just missed out on capturing a loose ball in midfield from which they could have caught out Australia. Instead, it was the fresh mind and legs of sub Ruby Nicholas who seized on it and she hared up the wing to make it 26-7.

And Nathan got her hat-trick when, with the hooter sounding mid-attack, she sent a challenger crashing to the turf and arrowed towards the posts.

In the second semi, New Zealand set up the final most expected to see when they defeated an initially stubborn USA team 34-7. The hosts had the crowd on their feet as they pinned back the famous black jerseys, but against the run of play Miller scored her fifth of the weekend, running home from her own half.

Three Brake tries put the result beyond question, and Jazmin Felix-Hotham scored before local favourite Nia Toliver gave the bulk of the fans in LA Galaxy's stadium something to roar about. Hirini scored the sixth and final of her team’s tries.

5th PLACE PLAY-OFF

Fiji beat Great Britain 46-14 to finish fifth in the World Championship rankings in LA.

Katie Shillaker had run in a try from distance for Britain but as half-time approached she was sin binned for knocking the ball down as her team trailed 22-7. Vika Nakacia took immediate advantage, inviting challenges confident - and correct – in her ability to find a way through.

Fijiana were motoring and try number six arrived when Sesenieli Donu galloped up the left to dot down. Verenaisi Ditavutu and Mere Vocevoce completed the scoring for Fiji.

7th PLACE PLAY-OFF

Two first half tries by Alycia Christiaens wasn’t enough to keep Japan at bay who scored through Seika Ohashi and Minako Taniyama, the latter coming in the first play after the tournament’s top tackler Lili Dezou had been sent to the sin bin for not lowering her body enough in a tackle that resulted in a head-on-head collision.

Himawari Matsuda made it 19-10 for the indomitable Japanese after the break but although the red jerseys looked well set in defence they had no answer to Carla Neisen’s power as she bustled through to score with a series of hand-offs.

At 19-17, France were back in it but Taniyama and Hana Nagata ran in tries from 30m to clinch a deserved 29-17 win and seventh place.

PLAY-OFF COMPETITION

Brazil and China qualified for next season's Division 2 by topping their respective pools. There they will be joined by Kenya, 17-14 winners against South Africa in their play-off final, and Spain, who got the better of Argentina 28-0 in their final that was played against a backdrop of the Kenyan players and fans dancing with joy at their famous win minutes earlier.

"It really means a lot for me and my team," said Kenya's double try-scorer Freshia Oduor. "We have come from far to here. It was really good."