USAs Marcus Tupuola, #14, scores a try during the USA vs Japan match on the second day of the Los Angeles 2023 World Rugby Sevens Series event at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California, on February 26, 2023. (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon / AFP) (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES – Sunny Southern California didn’t always fulfill its name during the two-day 2023 HSBC Los Angeles Sevens tournament, but that didn’t hinder the quality of rugby on display.
The tournament resulted with New Zealand emerging as champions for the second straight year in Los Angeles, having defeated Fiji in 2022. In 2023, the All Blacks topped Argentina 22-12 to claim gold and all 22 points in the hunt for automatic qualification to the 2024 Paris Games.
The next tournament on the schedule will see the nations head to Vancouver, Canada from March 3-5 as the stakes amplify, with New Zealand hoping to make it three gold medals in a row this season having won in Sydney last time out.
But before the action starts up north, let’s rewind with the winners and losers from Southern California in 2023:
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Winner: Great Britain
Great Britain/England has been on a steady downfall the last few years following the departures of key players, such as Dan Norton, but it finished Los Angeles with a solid tournament.
The side came into California in 10th place on the table with 35 points, but went undefeated in group play by beating Argentina (a finalist), France and Spain before falling to another finalist in New Zealand in the quarters.
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It ended the tournament with an extra-time loss over Samoa in the fifth-place playoff game, giving the squad a platform to build off of.
Loser: Homecomings
Team USA entered their homecoming tournament in seventh place, just two points off a top-four spot for automatic qualification to the 2024 Paris Games.
However, the Eagles left their home with a 13th-place showing in the tournament after beating Japan 31-7 to prevent a further fall down the ladder.
They were eliminated from medal contention after losing to Samoa and New Zealand in the opening two pool games. It wasn’t a favorable draw for them, but it doesn’t make it an easier pill to swallow considering they also lost to Spain 14-12 in a ninth-place quarterfinal matchup.
Winner: New Zealand
Of course, the winners in Los Angeles deserve a rightful spot on this list.
The All Blacks had quite the run in the two-day tournament, having lost just once en route to the Cup trophy. They beat Chile 26-7 in the opener, USA 36-15 in the second pool game and lost to Samoa 14-7 in the pool finale to finish second as Manu Samoa won all three group games.
Then during knockout games on Sunday, they triumphed over the aforementioned Pool D winners Great Britain 24-12 in the quarters, Australia -- last season's league champions -- 33-17 in the semis and Argentina 22-12 in the final.
Their spot atop the season table is now even stronger. They have 107 points in first place, 21 more than second-place Argentina with five tournaments left in the season. First place is theirs to lose here on out.
Loser: South Africa
Los Angeles just seems to be South Africa’s Kryptonite. The Blitzboks struggled mightily in the States in 2022, and that continued in 2023.
They started the tournament with an unconvincing 12-0 win over Canada, then lost 10-5 to Uruguay and 14-5 to Ireland to sneak into the quarterfinals.
But they were always a longshot to cause any real damage from that point on, trailing Fiji 28-0 before scoring a last-second try. Then in the fifth-place semifinal, they lost 45-5 to Samoa and got on the scoreboard with yet another last-second try.
South Africa came into the tournament in second place with 76 points and a silver medal in Sydney in the previous competition, but it was another disastrous showing in the U.S.
Winner: Iowane Teba
Fiji took home bronze in a game where Iowane Teba didn't play due to injury, but there's no doubt he was the individual player who made a significant impact for his nation.
The 30-year-old topped the DHL Impact Player leaderboard for most of the tournament before falling out at the end, as he impacted the game beyond just scoring tries -- which he did in abundance.
Teba was responsible for 26 of Fiji's 50 points in the 50-0 drubbing of Japan in the Pool C opener and also delivered with crucial scores against Kenya and later in the knockout rounds against South Africa.
The Flying Fijians will hope he's available for the next tournament in Vancouver, Canada this upcoming weekend from March 3-5 as the display in Los Angeles saw him etch his name in bold on the rugby map.
