CUP FINAL
NEW ZEALAND 10-15 AUSTRALIA
Captain Cheryl Soon (AUS)
On being the Sevens world champions:
"It feels unbelievable. Words can't describe how it feels, it's just amazing. We have worked so hard to get here and to come here and achieve this is just mammoth.
"We believed in each other and we just knew we had to stick it out for the whole 20 minutes or however long. We just knew we could do it in the end."
Shelly Matcham (AUS)
On scoring the winning try:
"It's amazing. I have been sitting on the bench for about three games, got my shot in the semi and the girls had so much belief in me and I just knew when I got that ball I wanted to do it for them. You dream of this."
On the team spirit:
"It's just fantastic. The girls, I love them. They work so hard and they were so positive. We knew we could do it. It was fantastic."
On fitness concerns going into extra time:
"When we huddled we said we all feel great but you just don't - there is no concept of try out there, you just bust a gut to get to every breakdown, get to everything, it's awesome."
On the impact of the yellow card on the match:
"We have had two episodes of yellow cards so I think we just learn to stick together with six players."
On denying great rivals New Zealand a 15-a-side and Sevens world title double:
"Definitely. We love it, we love it."
Debby Hodgkinson (AUS)
On winning the World Cup:
"I can't even describe how this feels. We thought we could do it but actually doing it is a whole other story."
On how well the team performed throughout the tournament:
"We busted our guts this tournament. We came up against the number one seeds (England) and that was our first grand final. We played three grand finals today and won them all."
Captain Hannah Porter (NZL)
On losing to Australia in sudden death extra time:
“It was pretty gut-wrenching, what with going into sudden death and all. We have been training for a long time and it’s pretty tough to take. We didn’t really play to our game plan because we took it into rucks and we knew they were strong there.
"We wanted to get it wide and we did that at times in the second half. A lot of the girls were out on their feet from playing the contact game and that played into Australia’s hands.”
On New Zealand’s game plan for the final:
“The plan was to use our speed as we felt we had more speed on the outside than they did. We wanted to use the width but we unfortunately didn’t do that. We didn’t get Carla Hohepa into the game enough as we were turned over in the rucks too often. We just didn’t get our speed into spaces on the pitch. Australia were very good. They deserved the win because they played to their strengths and did well.”
On the experience of RWC Sevens 2009:
“It’s been awesome. From any World Cup I have ever been to it has been the best. It’s been a great atmosphere being with all the guys and playing in front of the big crowds.
“Hopefully it has sent out a good message to the Olympic people and I hope they make the right decision.”
CUP SEMI FINALS
SOUTH AFRICA 10-19 AUSTRALIA
Bo De la Cruz (AUS)
On whether she doubted the team could come from behind to win:
"No, that's what Aussies are renowned for, their comebacks, so I had all the faith in the girls and we had faith in each other."
On whether she was pleading for the ball out on the wing at the end:
"Yes and no. I strained some ankle ligaments against France yesterday so I've been out for the last two games. I was quite nervous, my legs were quite heavy getting out there, but I thought I've got the opportunity to get out there and make a difference and I hope I did."
On how it feels to be in a World Cup final against old rivals New Zealand:
"It's an atmosphere I've never been in before, it's amazing, and I'm just going to enjoy it while I can - who knows, I'll probably be too old by the next one, but I'm definitely going to take every opportunity that comes to me."
Sel Tranter (AUS)
On whether making it to this World Cup final is extra special for her, the team veteran:
"For any Australian playing in a World Cup, it doesn't matter how long you've been in the game, whether it's your first, like Nicole Beck, or potentially your last like mine, it still means the same to wear your national colours.
"To make a final of this magnitude in such a magnificent arena and such an interesting city, it's a little bit surreal. It's hard to get your head around it."
On the keys to the victory over South Africa:
"The players who came off the bench were sensational and lifted us when they came out there, the fact we held our composure, our three forwards were out there for the whole game running off our feet and making as many tackles as we could - I think the key was that everybody played their role.
"All those little mini-wins - winning every minute, every tackle, every breakdown - it all builds up and that's why we're in the final."
On the support they have received from the Australian men's team:
“That's the fantastic thing about this tournament - having men's and women's games together, we can go and enjoy watching fantastic men's rugby and feed off each other."
Coach Denver Wannies (RSA)
On his disappointment at losing to Australia:
"I thought we had the game. We managed to come back into the game very well, we had a few chances. It is a game of chances - if you don't take your chances, you must not expect anything."
On what his team will take away from the tournament:
"There is one big thing that we must take away from this - you have got to have the right temperament, with the game being so dynamic as it is. I think a lot of us are forgetting the dynamicism of the Sevens game and opting to bring in aspects of 15s.
"But there are those players who are especially designed for this game and if you get that right, get the right calibre of player for this type of game, and we will contiune to do this with the talent you have seen, I think it can only improve for us from here."
On the development of the women's game and the potential inclusion of Sevens at the Olympics:
"I am looking forward to the Olympics. That is the best thing that could happen to the women's game if it is included into the Olympics because automatically you are looking at another opportunity like this one, over two years, and it will just grow the game."
USA 12-14 NEW ZEALAND
Coach Darryl Suasua (NZL)
On potentially becoming the first team to hold both Sevens and 15-a-side World Cups at the same time:
"That would be nice but the first thing to do was to win this one."
On his speed queen Carla Hohepa:
"She is pretty quick but I think everyone has a quick wing in this game and it is about how long they last that counts."
Captain Christy Ringgenberg (USA):
On how it felt to captain her side in the Cup semi final on Pitch 1:
"It is an amazing feeling. This team is a wonderful group of women. It's full of strong and talented women and it is amazing I am their leader."
On not making it to the Cup final:
"Very disappointed. We came out well. We made the improvements we needed to throughout the tournament and we performed well in the (semi) final and they just had more than we did in the end."
On scoring one try and setting another up:
"It felt good. I am glad I could give that to my team."
CUP QUARTER FINALS
ENGLAND 10-17 AUSTRALIA
Coach Jason Stanton (AUS)
On the victory over England:
"I was really happy with the girls' performance. We have been trying to have a real intrinsic focus through the tournament and through every game and I felt that was another step in the right direction."
On the strategy behind beating England:
"We always try to adapt to who we play against and I felt we were able to come up with a style to play against them which was a bit different to all the other countries and that worked well for us.
"I think our girls really got tough and rolled their sleeves up and that worked. Our self-belief was great, too. When you are playing the number one team in the world you need to have those things and we did."
On whether they are now favourites to win the tournament:
"I don't think we are. New Zealand and England didn't have a point scored against them yesterday while we lost to France. So we really just concentrated on ourselves and if we keep building we will have a good chance of winning the semi final, but we need to keep taking steps forward and go from there."
Captain Sue Day (ENG)
On the defeat by Australia:
“Just gutted. It’s the sort of game which should have been the World Cup final but we ended up with seeds one and two facing each other in the quarter final. We said all along that Sevens is the kind of game where things can turn around. One mistake can change things and unfortunately today it wasn’t our day.
“If you want to win a World Cup you have to beat all of the best teams and that meant we always had to beat Australia and New Zealand, not to mention all the other teams. As number one seeds we knew we had to do that and we have lost to the second seeds, which is really hard to take.”
On picking the team up for the Plate semi final against Spain:
“I’d like to think it wouldn’t be hard at all and that we had enough respect for Spain and enough respect for ourselves as rugby players to show everyone what we can do. It just unfortunately won’t be on the right stage.”
SPAIN 7-15 SOUTH AFRICA
Coach Denver Wannies (RSA)
On making it to the Cup semi finals:
“It is awesome. We had planned to reach at least the knockout stages but we have gone past that and to be in the final four is a real achievement.
"The girls are looking forward to the next game and they will cherish the chance to compete against a bigger nation. We thought that getting into the knockout stages would allow us to reassess our position and go from there. It is a bonus but the girls have worked hard and they really deserve it.
"We lack the international exposure but this is proof of what we can do and what we could do in the future.”
On their winning strategy against Spain in the Cup quarter final:
“We knew that Spain play through one or two players, so if we really put pressure on them we would stand a chance. We knew that would work and we turned it around and used it as a platform to win the game.”
NEW ZEALAND 33-12 CANADA
Carla Hohepa (NZL)
On scoring a first-half hat-trick against Canada:
“It was pretty awesome but it was good to have the girls around me to set up for them.”
On conceding tries for the first time in the tournament:
“I don’t think it will affect us. Defence is our strong point. We obviously lacked a bit of composure there but I think we will be fine.”
On facing the USA next in the Cup semi final:
“We had a warm-up game with them before the tournament so that will help us to know things about them and we will give it a real go.”
On having the New Zealand men’s team around during the tournament:
“It’s been awesome and all the guys have given the girls lots of tips. They have been really willing to help and that has definitely been beneficial. It’s just great to be here at a World Cup and I hope there are lots more to come.”
Ashley Patzer (CAN)
On the disappointment of losing to New Zealand in the Cup quarter final:
“We are really disappointed. We were super pumped up for that game and we let them get ahead early on. We fought back in the second half but it was just too late and that is our fault for sure.
"They played really hard and were busting through gaps and we were unable to respond. The second half worked great as we stuck more to our game plan and really stuck it to them. Coming off the second half gives us some confidence and it is better to go into our next game off the back of that.”
On their next match, the Plate semi final against France:
“They are a great team but we can beat them. Anyone is beatable so we have to make sure that we have our best heads on and play well all the way through the game. I don’t think the girls will find it too hard to pick themselves up and hopefully we can get the win.”
FRANCE 0-19 USA
Jess Watkins (USA)
On scoring two tries to put her side through to the Cup semi finals:
“It’s a good feeling and now the team can advance to the Cup semi finals, which is great. We are all delighted to get to play another game.”
On the number of American supporters in the crowd:
“It is great and it’s a real help. My family are all over here and it is really nice to be supported well.”
On taking part in the first Women’s RWC Sevens:
“It’s awesome to be part of history with my team and we are just trying to enjoy the moment of being here and being part of a great event.”
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