Serbia had a bonus four minutes when Aussie SHARK Tim CLELAND was ejected from the pool for brutality, an unusual occurrence at World Championship level and a second player, Aaron YOUNGER, was also excluded for violence but with replacement.
In Group C, Croatia downed Japan 18-7 for three straight wins while Canada finished second with a 13-9 margin over Brazil in the Americas face-off.
In Group D, Italy came from two goals down in the third quarter to overhaul a heavily supported Germany 7-6. The winless United States of America breathed a sigh of relief, defeating South Africa 20-3 to secure third place.
The second round of the women’s competition will be played on Saturday with the four group winners having the day off.
USA vs RSA - credit: Russell McKinnon