Debutant Inigo Cruise O'Brien struck for the decisive try as the Ireland Men's Sevens team (sponsored by TritonLake) recorded a hard-fought 19-17 play-off win over the USA in Perth earlier today.
Results proved hard to come by in the Western Australia heat, but James Topping's charges halted a four-match losing run to beat the USA and finish 11th at the HSBC SVNS Perth event.
The Ireland Men remain 12th in the overall standings, level on five points with the USA, and Great Britain, in eighth place, have 20. There are stops in Vancouver, Hong Kong, and Singapore to come before May's HSBC SVNS World Championship in Los Angeles.
The teams in the bottom four after the final regular season leg in Singapore will be part of the high-stakes promotion and relegation play-off competition in LA, which will decide the final qualifers for next season's HSBC SVNS Series.
Only six players who helped Ireland to win bronze in Perth last year were part of this weekend's squad, including current captain Bryan Mollen. The 20-year-old Cruise O'Brien won his first Sevens cap, and UCD flyer Dylan O'Grady made his seasonal debut.
Topping's young side, with six players aged between 20 and 22, made sure to close out their first tournament of 2025 with an important victory. They bounced back from finishing bottom of an all-European Pool A and losing heavily to New Zealand, their opening play-off opponents.
The USA, who had beaten Argentina, the eventual Perth champions, in pool play, took a second-minute lead when a mistimed Irish lineout was gobbled up by Jack Wendling for an opportunistic unconverted try.
Sidestepping runs from Hugo Lennox and Cruise O'Brien got Ireland over halfway until a pass went astray. On-field captain Mark Roche and Lennox then made a couple of crucial tackles as the US team sought to double their tally.
Ireland kept that pressure on in defence, forcing handling errors to move play back into the American half. A quickfire first-phase move off a scrum saw the lead change hands after five minutes.
Roche drifted across to suck in defenders and released O'Grady on the cut, and the 22-year-old flew through a gap to scorch over from 45 metres out. Lennox added the conversion.
Niall Comerford and Cruise O'Brien's breakdown work ensured it remained 7-5 for half-time. The lead was increased inside a minute of the restart as Josh Kenny's brilliant 20-metre burst saw him get past three defenders, including stretching out of Lucas Lacamp's tackle to score.
Jordan Conroy had made the initial incision on the opposite wing, and a third Irish try soon followed. Lennox and Roche's dovetailing in defence forced an American pass to ground, and Cruise O'Brien neatly broke in between Lacamp and Tala Talapusi for a slick seven-pointer.
Mollen's hard work to hunt down the restart almost led to a try for fellow replacement Nicky Greene. However, the US regrouped and countered from deep, with Cruise O'Brien shown a yellow card by referee Nick Hogan for throwing the ball away after a penalty was awarded.
The Eagles' Adam Channel crossed in the right corner to close the gap to 19-10, but Mollen foiled a subsequent break with a crucial turnover penalty. It allowed Ireland to wind down the clock and get O'Brien back on the pitch, albeit that Lacamp scored past the final hooter.
The HSBC SVNS Series will continue in Vancouver in just under four weeks' time (February 21-23). For more information, please visit www.svns.com. Tickets for the Vancouver Sevens are available to purchase here.
Topping's young side, with six players aged between 20 and 22, made sure to close out their first tournament of 2025 with an important victory. They bounced back from finishing bottom of an all-European Pool A and losing heavily to New Zealand, their opening play-off opponents.
The USA, who had beaten Argentina, the eventual Perth champions, in pool play, took a second-minute lead when a mistimed Irish lineout was gobbled up by Jack Wendling for an opportunistic unconverted try.
Sidestepping runs from Hugo Lennox and Cruise O'Brien got Ireland over halfway until a pass went astray. On-field captain Mark Roche and Lennox then made a couple of crucial tackles as the US team sought to double their tally.
Ireland kept that pressure on in defence, forcing handling errors to move play back into the American half. A quickfire first-phase move off a scrum saw the lead change hands after five minutes.
Roche drifted across to suck in defenders and released O'Grady on the cut, and the 22-year-old flew through a gap to scorch over from 45 metres out. Lennox added the conversion.
Niall Comerford and Cruise O'Brien's breakdown work ensured it remained 7-5 for half-time. The lead was increased inside a minute of the restart as Josh Kenny's brilliant 20-metre burst saw him get past three defenders, including stretching out of Lucas Lacamp's tackle to score.
Jordan Conroy had made the initial incision on the opposite wing, and a third Irish try soon followed. Lennox and Roche's dovetailing in defence forced an American pass to ground, and Cruise O'Brien neatly broke in between Lacamp and Tala Talapusi for a slick seven-pointer.
Mollen's hard work to hunt down the restart almost led to a try for fellow replacement Nicky Greene. However, the US regrouped and countered from deep, with Cruise O'Brien shown a yellow card by referee Nick Hogan for throwing the ball away after a penalty was awarded.
The Eagles' Adam Channel crossed in the right corner to close the gap to 19-10, but Mollen foiled a subsequent break with a crucial turnover penalty. It allowed Ireland to wind down the clock and get O'Brien back on the pitch, albeit that Lacamp scored past the final hooter.
The HSBC SVNS Series will continue in Vancouver in just under four weeks' time (February 21-23). For more information, please visit www.svns.com. Tickets for the Vancouver Sevens are available to purchase here.