England triumph delights Lydon

England boss Joe Lydon heaped praise on his side after they pulled off a shock to win the World Sevens Series in Brisbane today.

Lydon’s side beat Fiji 28-14 in the final having already dumped out New Zealand 19-14 at the semi-final stage.

England’s impressive display was highlighted by Harlequins’ Ben Gollings, who received the man of the tournament award.

But England sevens manager Lydon had praise for all his squad.

He said: “Our players showed a nice balance of experience and power. Simon Amor was a superb captain while Nathan McAvoy, Will Skinner and Ugo Monye were outstanding.

“We didn’t perform well in the early rounds which showed there are no easy pickings in world sevens and any team can produce a shock. Beating Fiji in our final pool game proved to be crucial.

“It was the first time that we have beaten New Zealand in sevens and they were gracious in defeat.

“They were a highly competitive side and we now face them again in our pool in Wellington next weekend.”