IT took until the last match of the last round to decide the men’s sevens World Series as South Africa retained the title in a final twist in Paris.

Fiji, on the back of winning the last four rounds, had to reach only the final to clinch the series.

But the Fijians lost to England 19-17 in the quarterfinals.

The best they could finish at Stade Jean Bouin was fifth, and duly did, which meant the South Africans, who struggled on Saturday while dealing with injuries, had to win out for the series.

They beat Spain 15-10 in extra time in the quarterfinals, got past New Zealand 24-12 in the semifinals, and overcame England 24-14 in the final.

Seven points behind Fiji in the standings coming into Paris, South Africa pipped Fiji by two points for the series.

“We made it difficult for ourselves on day one. We put it behind us,” South Africa captain Philip Snyman said.

“All credit to the team as we played phenomenal rugby. We stuck to the basics and we’ve put smiles on faces.”

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The day turned when Fiji blew a 17-7 lead against England.

Tom Mitchell finished a 26 pass move to score in the dying seconds to snatch the win for England and suddenly give South Africa hope.

But South Africa almost blew its quarterfinal, too.

Spain overcame two yellow cards, when South Africa scored its tries, to tie their match 10-10 and miss the winning conversion.

In extra time, Justin Geduld made a catch at laces height, stepped round two defenders, and carried a third over the tryline for the winning score.

In the final, England’s Dan Norton set up their first try and scored the second for 14-7.

But after the halftime hooter, England spilled the ball and Ryan Oosthuizen scored to level.

Seconds into the new half, Dewald Human put South Africa in front by winning a race with three defenders.

A Geduld penalty extended the gap to 10 points and South Africa hung on.

South Africa won only the first round and the last, but reached the semifinals in all 10 rounds. Fiji won five rounds but failed to reach three other semifinals.

Australia finished fourth overall despite a disappointing tournament in France where they ranked 11th.

Australia defeated Russia 14-5 on the final day but then fell to Argentina 24-19 in a frustrating match.

“When you win lose or draw you always get to pick up learns, and often when you lose you get to pick up more,” Australia coach Tim Walsh said.

“The players have had a huge, long season, all the way back from Munich to San Jose, Commonwealth Games and all the way to here.

“They’re obviously disappointed, everybody is with the way they performed.

“They can be congratulated for a season that’s full of highs and lows, but I’m sure a lot of them are already thinking about the next one.

“That’s what you tend to do as an athlete, think about where you can improve and where we can be better.”