Albrighton double fires Villa to Sevens title

Two-goal hero Marc Albrighton was a relieved man as he lifted Aston Villa to their fifth title at the HKFC IP Global International Sevens, beating Glasgow Rangers 3-2 at Hong Kong Football Club last night.

Albrighton, 20, was the catalyst behind Villa's win as his goals secured a well-deserved victory over Rangers, who finished runners-up for the second successive year.

He combined with fellow Villa hotshot Nathan Delfouneso - the scorer of the first goal - to show why the duo are in manager Martin O'Neill's plans for the immediate future.

Delfouneso, who has already made 13 appearances for the senior team, fired home Villa's first goal before Albrighton added a brace to move the team 3-0 ahead after only six minutes of frenetic action.

However, Rangers pulled two goals back through Andrew Shinnie and came agonisingly close to levelling the final as they pushed for an equaliser that would take the game to extra time. 'I'm glad we got through in the end,' Albrighton, who last month made an appearance for the England under-20 side. 'It's so different to playing in England. Thank God it's sevens and 10 minutes each way because the heat is just unbelievable. We got there in the end.

'A few lads wanted to come out here because they love the experience. We've come out and done the job. Last year, they [Rangers] beat us so we know what a good side they are. This year, they put up a good fight. After we were 3-0 up, we were a bit complacent. We saw it out in the end and it was just brilliant to get the victory.'