7 Apr 2014

NZ women's sevens team wins in China

12:18 pm on 7 April 2014

The New Zealand women's rugby sevens team has moved to top spot on the IRB World Series standings after winning the China penultimate tournament in Guangzhou.

In the pouring rain and difficult conditions, the New Zealanders beat Australia 26-12 in the final.

It means New Zealand now go top of the Series standings by two points from the Australians, with just one round left to play next month in Amsterdam.

New Zealand had a point to prove following the last round in Brazil, when Australia beat them in the final.

Captain Huriana Manuel was delighted with the win, saying she's very proud of her players who worked so hard and the conditions were really tough out there.

Manuel says they really wanted to concentrate on their defence because they weren't happy with it after Brazil.

New Zealand's Portia Woodman also claimed an IRB Women's Sevens World Series record this weekend, when she became the first player to score 12 tries in one round of the Series.

The record was previously held by her team-mate Kayla McAllister.