By Renate Rivers

Sevens

Samoa’s first New Caledonia Games gold was delivered via a superb victory by the men’s Sevens team over Fiji last night at the Numa Daly Stadium in Noumea.

The Samoan defense was impenetrable for most of the first half and a frustrated Fiji team were blocked or tackled down with every attempt to break the line, leading to on-field scuffles that delayed play for a short while.

Satisfied with the win and medal, coach Stephen Betham acknowledged that the game could have gone either way.

“It was fortunate that the ball bounced our way and we took the chances that were given to us and converted them in to points.�?

Converted tries from Falemiga Selesele, Uale Mai and Tom Iosefo cemented Samoa’s determination to bring home the gold. Fiji, almost missing out on a finals berth due to a tough semi-final against Papua New Guinea (19 All), did not gel together as a team, further compounded by Samoa’s strong defense.

“We’ve known for a couple of years now that the Fijians tend to veer away from their game-plan when you disrupt their flow. They resort to individual play which means they are not as strong… they also have a young team so their frustration really showed through with the overly-aggressive play last night.�?

On the gold medal,

“The boys played their hearts out. Bringing home that first gold was heavy on their minds. They wanted to do it for the Team and for Samoa,�? said Stephen.

“The team was confident going in to the final but we knew it was going to be tough.�?

Samoa were too strong in the end, defending incredibly well to avoid a last ditch effort by the Fijians to move ahead with only 35 seconds on the board and the score at 21-19.

“On behalf of the team, I’d like to thank the people back home for supporting Team Samoa here in New Caledonia, and we wish the Manu Samoa well in their games at the Rugby World Cup,�? said Stephen.

Injuries include a broken finger for Tom Iosefo and Simaika Mikaele sustained a popped AC joint.

The women’s team wrapped up their competition by winning silver, losing to Fiji 41-7 in a final where the girls were outplayed by an agile and experienced Fijian side. A hat-trick of tries by Ana Maria Roqica was one of the highlights of the match, with the unbeaten Fijians proving too strong for Samoa.

Boxing

Two boxers, Filimaua Hala and Petelo Matagi have made it through to the Finals today after cruising through the semis at Salle Omnisports Anse Vata yesterday.

Filimaua's reach during his semi-final bout against Tonga's Falekaono Sosefo

Filimaua’s height and reach worked to his advantage as he fought Tonga’s Falekaono Sosefo for the finals placing. He will face Nicolas Dion of New Caledonia today for the gold, while Petelo will final with Santana Halstead of Nauru after beating New Caledonian Luke Hema easily. Team Samoa is assured of at least two silvers in this discipline.

Samoa, still 6^th on the leaderboard with a medal count of 12, have one Gold, five Silver and six Bronze.
The athletics competition begins today, with gold medal hopes for the Hammer Throw finals of Margaret Satupai and Shaka Sola. .

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Renate Rivers

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