The main downfall of the Digicel Fiji 7s team in their 10-7 lost to South Africa in the semifinal of the Dubai 7s was that they failed to play to the last minute of the game.
Fiji's leading referee James Bolabiu who controlled the first semifinal where England beat New Zealand 21-19 said if the Fiji boys defended well in that game against South Africa, they could have reached the final.
Bolabiu said watching from the sideline, Fiji had the chance to beat South Africa but they went to sleep in the dying moments to allow South Africa to come from behind to win the game.
He believes from his experience in controlling most of the close-scoring games that the team has to play to the full length of the game to win.
Meanwhile, Dubai 7s winner South African coach Paul Treu said the sudden death 10-7 win against Fiji in the semifinal instilled in his players the fact that they had the capability to win the tournament.
Treu added the win means a lot to his players who had to work overtime to beat a side like Fiji who were leading them throughout the match.
In the final, South Africa scored a last minute try to edge England 19-12.
South Africa will now go to the next leg of the IRB 7s Series in George with a 20 point lead while England is at second place with 16 points.
Defending champions New Zealand and Fiji both have 12 points from Dubai onto the second event next weekend in George in South Africa.
Lack Of Concentration Costly For Fiji
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