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Crowd's support boost to English

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NICK Greenstock yesterday scored England's first try at the Hong Kong Sevens as the world champions swept into today's Cup quarter-finals at the Hong Kong Stadium.

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Greenstock, of English club side Wasps, touched down one minute and 48 seconds into his team's opening Pool G match against Papua New Guinea.

England won the game 26-7 and then defeated Canada 19-5 to win the group and set up a quarter-final clash against Australia - a repeat of the 1993 World Cup Sevens final which England won.

Greenstock paid tribute to the English supporters in the estimated 30,000 crowd, who waited for 29 years to see a national team from England at the Hong Kong Stadium.

'It feels very good to be here and to score the first try for England,' said Greenstock.

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'We've waited a long time to come to Hong Kong. There were quite a few Anglophiles in the crowd and their support was appreciated.' England manager Andrew Harriman, who skippered the 1993 World Cup-winning squad, was delighted with his young team's opening-day performance, but realises there are still tough times ahead in the Cup knockout phase.

Apart from boasting a few speedsters in their squad, England were particularly impressive in defence - a key factor in their World Cup success two years ago at Murrayfield, Scotland.

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