Ireland boost hopes of Olympics Sevens qualification

Three wins on Saturday in Monaco leave Ireland in line to top their pool

Ireland’s Adam Leavy races clear against Zimbabwe. Photo: Manuel Blondeau /Inpho
Ireland’s Adam Leavy races clear against Zimbabwe. Photo: Manuel Blondeau /Inpho

Ireland Rugby Sevens’ hopes of qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics took a boost on Saturday as they won all three of their matches at the World Rugby Sevens repechage in Monaco.

With the top two teams in each pool moving on to the semi-finals - and the winner of the tournament qualifying for the Olympics - Ireland are in position to top their pool if they beat Samoa at 12.33pm on Sunday.

Kicking off with a 31-10 win over Zimbabwe on Saturday, Ireland ran in five tries including a hat-trick from Terry Kennedy. A 31-0 win against Mexico would follow before Kennedy repeated his hat-trick trick against Tonga while Jordan Conroy also went over three times in that final 43-0 win.