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Another feature of sevens is that there are several approaches that can be taken in terms of playing the game and achieving success. This was very evident in the comparison of the styles of men’s gold medal match participants Fiji and Great Britain. Fiji’s strategy was to avoid contact, and distribute and retain the ball, while Great Britain’s game was heavily based on a well-organised and committed defence, illustrated by their unbeaten route to the gold medal match.DIFFERENT PATHS TO THE FINALAustralia’s women also carried their series-winning form into Rio 2016 and were the dominant team across all areas of performance.They entered their opposition’s 22m area on average 6.2 times per match, converting 76 per cent of these entries into tries. Conversely, their opposition could only convert 29 per cent of their entries into Australia’s 22 to tries.AUSTRALIA DOMINANTmore points per match than the competition average72% 3:22They only conceded a try every three minutes and 22 seconds of their opposition’s possession time, the best defensive record in the competition89% possession retention in rucks and mauls – the highest retention rate in the competitionIN COMPARISON: MEN’S FINALISTSTries scoredFiji 26GB 14 Tries concededFiji 10 GB 15Average winning margin (points)Fiji 16GB 7Matches in which they scored more tries than opponentsFiji 100%GB 40% RIGHTGreat Britain won three of their matches by just two pointsYEAR IN REVIEW 2016 WORLD RUGBY 79GAME ANALYSIS | EDUCATE