A largely inexperienced Qantas Australian Men's Sevens squad has finished the inaugural HSBC Canada Sevens in a highly creditable third place.

New Zealand won the first-ever Canada Sevens at BC Stadium, seeing off South Africa 19-14 in the Cup Final. Samoa, meanwhile, finished fifth after beating the USA 31-14 to take the Plate.

Coming into the tournament with seven players in its squad with five World Series caps or less, Australia defeated Scotland 24-17 in the Cup Quarter-Finals, before losing to New Zealand 28-19 in the Semis. However, Australia roused itself to stun current world champions Fiji in the 3rd Place Play Off 19-12.

"We had to show unbelievable character in that last game [against Fiji]," Australian Men's Sevens head coach Andy Friend said. "I'm not too sure how we stayed in the contest, but you either have that level of courage, or you don't, and we had it in spades.

"It was another good tournament for us and very encouraging with the level of depth we have in the program. The only way players are going to get experience is by exposing them to the top level and we managed to do that this weekend.

"It's the little moments that count. Conor Mitchell, on debut, taking the restart in the final seconds that led to us winning a crucial penalty against Scotland. John Porch scoring two against Fiji. These are the moments that count and it's so good to see players stepping up. At the other end of the experience spectrum, I thought Con Foley was immense today. He was outstanding and led the way in that final game."

"We've got to look at why we leaked points early on in all of the games today and try to ensure this trend doesn't continue."

In a brutal 3rd Place Play Off match against the flying Fijians, Australia conceded the first two tries as they had done in the previous two games of the day. Masivesi Dakuwaqa and Emosi Mulevoro gave the islanders a deserved early advantage but against the run of play Stefan van der Walt evaded the clutches of the opposition defence to bring the Australians back into the game at the break.

In an energy-sapping second half, with bodies laying strewn all over the pitch on numerous occasions, it was John Porch's double - his first tries in the HSBC Sevens World Series - that proved the difference. A turnover from Con Foley set the platform for Porch's first while Allan Fa'alava'au's tenacity won the ball back late on. Fa'alava'au found Sam Myers who released the 26-year-old Sydneysider to seal a hard-earned win.

Against New Zealand, the Australians were hit once again by an early double strike. Skipper Tim Mikkelson and Gillies Kaka gave the Kiwis an early lead but the men in gold hit back through Con Foley and Henry Hutchison before half-time to bring the score to within two.

However, Sione Molia powered through the Australian defence to rack up another two converted scores for the New Zealanders to dent Australia's ambitions of a third-straight Cup Final. A brilliant grubber from veteran playmaker James Stannard with two minutes left proved no more than a consolation.

Tries from Dougie Fife and Gavin Lowe gave Scotland an early advantage in its Cup Quarter-Final clash against Australia. Australia then hit back just before the break through captain for the weekend Lewis Holland while Allan Fa'alava'au drew his side level early in the second period.

Holland led from the front once again when he took a quick penalty to cross the whitewash and Con Foley put the seal on the tie when he powered over from close range. James Fleming gave Scotland late hope when he held off two challenges to dot down in the right corner but it was Australia that ultimately prevailed.

Lewis Holland was unavailable for the 3rd Place Play Off as a precautionary measure due to a tight hamstring. Coach Andy Friend reported no other injuries in the camp following the tournament.

After six rounds of the 2015-16 HSBC Sevens World Series, Fiji remains top of the standings by the slenderest of margins (106 points), just one clear of South Africa (105 points). New Zealand is a further point back (104 points) in third with Australia in fourth spot (90 points).

The 2015-16 HSBC Sevens World Series takes a three-week break before heading to Asia for the 41st edition of the Hong Kong Sevens.

Qantas Australian Men's Sevens results in Vancouver, Canada, 13-14 March

Australia 43-5 Russia, Pool B

Australia 12-14 Canada, Pool B

Australia 49-14 Wales, Pool B

Australia 24-17 Scotland, Cup Quarter-Finals

Australia 19-28 New Zealand, Cup Semi-Finals

Australia 19-12 Fiji, 3rd/4th Place

Final placings for the HSBC Vancouver Sevens (Top 6): 1. New Zealand (22 World Series points), 2. South Africa (19 points), 3. Australia (17 points), 4. Fiji (15 points), 5. Samoa (13 points), 6. USA (12 points)

Current 2015-16 HSBC World Series standings (Top 6 - after six rounds): 1. Fiji (106 World Series points), 2. South Africa (105 points), 3. New Zealand (104 points), 4. Australia (90 points), 5. USA (76 points), 6. Argentina (69 points)