In the Olympic Men’s Sevens quarter-final showdown, Ireland witnessed their medal hopes shatter at the Stade de France on Thursday night. The Irish team succumbed to their second consecutive Olympic loss against Fiji who staged a successful onslaught of tries in the second half of the match. Despite their tenacious effort, Ireland fell shy of their pre-contest goal to procure their initial rugby medal at an Olympic event – a feat they were hardly unprepared for.
The match took off on a challenging note against Fiji, with Ireland enduring a less than promising start. The beginning moments of the game saw Iosefo Baleiwairiki swiftly breaking through the heart of the field and sprinting ahead to score a try beneath the Irish posts. The allotted conversion put Ireland at the receiving end of a disappointing 7-0 deficit within the first minute of the game.
Despite the early setback, Ireland retained their calm. A mere three minutes into the competition, Chay Mullins returned the favour, battling his way over the line with a Fijian player on his rear. Though there was an initial suspicion of a knock-on, the referee permitted the try following a second review, putting Fiji ahead by a close 7-5 after an unsuccessful conversion.
Nevertheless, Ireland maintained their resolve. Their fervent contributions ensured Fiji were unable to display their usual flair. With Mullins scoring yet another try in the game, Ireland shone in the match. A commendable effort by Gavin Mullin on the pitch’s left flank forged the opportunity, espousing Ireland’s tenacity as they ended the first half leading by 10-7.
Apart from the palpable shift in the balance of the game, this served as a significant boosting shot for Ireland’s morale and progress. Concurrently, Irish participants displayed an unyielding strategy and continued their assertive effort post the interval, constraining the Fijians into a corner on their left side.
In the competition, Zac Ward stood out, scoring his third try around the defence, even as it seemed the Irish side had run out of numbers. This gave Ireland a 15-7 lead after the referee confirmed no knock-on for the second time. Feeling secure with their lead, Fiji retaliated with two surprising tries from nowhere. The initial one came at the 11th minute, with Joji Nasova evading multiple Irish defences to close an attack starting deep in his own half.
Almost immediately, the Fijians charged again, scoring another try from a loose ball at a restart, despite suspicions of a knock on. Waisea Nacqu was first to secure the ball and crossed the Irish line. The try was converted, setting the scoreboard at 19-15, and Ireland found themselves chasing the game. The match concluded in this state, with Ireland fighting hard but were outshone by Fijian flair in a game that they had very real chances of conquering.
Following the tightly contested defeat to New Zealand in their previous Pool A match on Thursday, the demeanor of the Irish players clarified everything about their Olympic progression. It wasn’t yet over for them, but the trek had become significantly steeper. With Ward and Jordan Conroy’s tries, Ireland had gained a lead over New Zealand by half-time, only for the opponent to retaliate in the second half with a try and conversion as the final hooter went off.
Despite Hugo Keenan’s optimistic demeanour for his team’s capability to defeat any opponent, the chances of Ireland participating in the medal rounds, which they initially aimed to win, dwindled with New Zealand’s last-minute try and conversion and a narrow14-12 win. The sudden shift in the game structure, which seemed to be going in Ireland’s favour initially, was a shock. Ireland’s performance deserved better returns, both on-field and in terms of the draw for the following round- something they were aware of even before stepping onto the field.
The original text tells the story of how New Zealand managed to rally against Ireland, overturning a two-try deficit to triumph by a mere two points. The outcome of this decisive match resulted in Ireland facing twice-Olympic winner, Fiji – a side they’d previously bested – rather than South Africa in the quarter-finals.
Fiji entered the quarter-final with an unmatched golden legacy in the Sevens arena. Their track record, unbeaten for eight years across three Olympics and 15 consecutive matches, speaks for itself. Fiji is famed for their dynamic, engaging style of play, as stunning to watch as it is effective on the field.
Their spectacular performance at the 2016 Rio Olympics, where they obtained the gold medal by winning six successive matches, was replicated in Tokyo where they secured a second gold medal. Furthermore, they victoriously emerged from their three Pool C games and a quarter-final.
Unfortunately for Ireland, there was no miraculous success to speak of at the Paris 2024 games.
The respective line-ups for the Ireland-Fiji match and Ireland-New Zealand match were as follows:
IRELAND vs. FIJI: On the line-up were H McNulty, M Roche, Z Ward, J Conroy, T Kennedy, G Mullin, and Niall Comerford. The substitutes on stand-by were J Kelly, A Smith, C Mullins, H Keenan, and H Lennox. On the Fijian side, the fielding players were J Talacolo, I Baleiwairiki, J Tuwai (capt), I Teba, K Rasaku, S Ravutaumada, and R Josaia. The bench included J Nasova, J Matana, T Veilawa, F Nacuqu, and F Sauturaga. The referee was N Hogan from New Zealand.
IRELAND vs. NEW ZEALAND: The Irish team consisted of H McNulty, M Roche, Z Ward, J Conroy, H Keenan, T Kennedy, and N Comerford. The substitutes were J Kelly, A Smith, C Mullins, H Lennox, and G Mullin. The New Zealand line-up included S Curry, A Rokolisoa, D Collier (capt), F Fineanganofo, M Leo, L Carter, and J Webber. Benched were B Rush, T Ng Shiu, N McGarvey-Black, A Knewstubb, and T Cook-Savage. The match official was J Way from Australia.