Teenage whiz reflects on ‘special’ match-winner against Fiji in Hong Kong

Some of the most incredible highlights in NFL history are last-ditch ‘Hail Marys’ which sees the losing quarterback throws the ball deep upfield in a desperate bid to snatch victory. If there was ever a HSBC SVNS Series equivalent, Sid Harvey’s try at the Hong Kong Sevens was it.

In the third-place playoff between Australia and Fiji, playmaker Maurice Longbottom tapped the ball and began to strive diagonally across the field for a set-play move. The Aussies trailed 17-21 and only had 12 seconds left on the clock when Longbottom’s foot made contact with the ball.

James Turner got the ball from Harvey near the right sideline, and the No. 15 beat a couple of Fijian defenders before throwing a sublime offload back to the try scorer. With a packed house at Kai Tak Stadium watching on, Harvey crossed for the match-winner against the fan favourites.

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At just 19 years of age, Harvey had enjoyed a promising rookie season on the SVNS Series which began last December in Dubai and Cape Town, but this moment is fairly impossible to top and look past as the clear highlight to date.

While holding Wally the Wallaby, the teenage whiz couldn’t stop smiling mere moments after the win over Fiji. As the Australian national anthem began to play ahead of the Women’s Cup Final, Harvey tried to put the feeling and emption into words.

“I looked up and [James Turner], he beat three people like he usually does and he put it on a plate for me, I just had to walk over the line,” Harvey told RugbyPass on Sunday.

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“But that’s special… that’s footy, that’s sevens. That’s exactly what I watched on telly and I’m part of it. I can’t explain how awesome that is, mate.

“They’re superstars Fiji. They’ve been such a big, strong part of sevens… that’s the first time we’ve versed them this year, the first time I’ve versed them.

“It means a little bit more against them as well.”

Australia are one of eight men’s teams who have booked their spots at the World Championship event in Los Angeles on May 3-4. That is a winner-takes-all tournament with every side still a chance of taking out the top prize and being crowned overall SVNS Series champions.

The Aussies appear to be tracking in the right direction ahead of the final regular season event of the 2024/25 season. After some low starts to the campaign in Dubai and Cape Town, the men in gold finished second on home soil in Perth and third in Hong Kong China.

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There was another event in Vancouver which proved to be another tough weekend for the men from Down Under. It’s competitive on the Series but with the World Championship only a matter of weeks away, Harvey insists the team is trending in the right direction.

“It’s uphill. We’re tracking upwards so well,” Havey said.

“New coach came to us before Perth and he’s just got us all working on the same page and everyone’s o clear in their roles.

“We had a little blip against Argentina, a few things didn’t go our way, we didn’t have the ball and you can’t score without the ball and Argentina are such a good team.

“It was a scrappy game against the Fijians there but we’re tracking well.”