Fiji to Face France in 3rd Place Playoff After 24–21 Dubai 7s Semifinal Loss

The Fiji Airways Men’s National 7s side will play France at 3.03am tomorrow after suffering a narrow 24–21 defeat to New Zealand in the second Dubai 7s semifinal.

Dubai 7s Hattrick Not Enough for Naduvalo

Vuiviwa Naduvalo delivered a man-of-the-match performance, scoring all three tries for Fiji.
However, even his brilliant hattrick wasn’t enough as New Zealand overloaded the wide channels with attacking pressure.

New Zealand’s Scorers

The Kiwis crossed the line through:

• Akuila Rokolisoa

• Brady Rush (2 tries)

• Dylan Collier

New Zealand led 14–7 at halftime and maintained the edge with more clean breaks despite Fiji recording more passes, carries, and offloads.

Late Yellow Card Hurts Fiji

Fiji’s hopes faded in the final moments of the match as Ilikimi Vunaki received a yellow card for shoulder-to-head contact, leaving Fiji a man down at a critical moment.

Fiji’s Pool Stage Results

Osea Kolinisau’s men showed excellent form early:

• Defeated Argentina 26–19

• Beat South Africa 28–10

• Narrow loss to France 24–19

🏆 Cup Final Fixtures

• Men’s Cup Final: 4.11am tomorrow

• Women’s Cup Final: 3.35am tomorrow

👩‍🦰 Fijiana 7s Also in Third-Place Playoff

The Fijiana 7s will battle Japan at 2.35am for third place after losing 31–10 to Australia in their Dubai 7s semifinal.