Wellington Sevens: NZ denies South Africa in dramatic final
Updated
10:28 AM EST, Sun January 31, 2016
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Sonny Bill Williams takes a selfie with fans during the cup final against South Africa at the Wellington Sevens.
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Williams celebrated his debut in the sevens format as the All Blacks won the tournament for the third year in a row to get off the mark in this season's World Series.
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South Africa, which won the previous round in Cape Town in December, rocked the home side from the start and took a 14-0 lead through tries to captain Philip Snyman and Rosko Specman (here tackling Gillies Kaka).
An error by 2015 Rugby World Cup winner Williams allowed fellow 15-a-side convert Francois Hougaard to set up Seabelo Senatla for South Africa's third try.
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With Specman in the sin bin, Ioane's teenage brother Rieko took advantage to cross the line twice as the All Blacks closed to two points.
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Joe Webber then scored a dramatic last-gasp winner after sterling defensive work at the other end of the pitch by teammate Regan Ware, for a final score of 24-21 against the Sevens World Series leader.
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Williams made a strong debut on Saturday as New Zealand won all three group games, and also scored a try in the 25-5 semifinal win over England. The All Blacks thrashed Kenya 36-0 in Sunday's opening quarterfinal.