■By ANDRE THOMAS

Hand-off: Phil Burgess of England is challenged by Ireland’s Harry McNulty

ENGLAND were dumped out of Cup contention at their London Sevens homecoming after suffering a shock 21-17 defeat to Ireland in their Pool C opener.
R2D2, Freddie Mercury and Godzilla were in attendance at Twickenham as New Zealand and Ireland ended up progressing to the quarter-finals at the expense of the hosts, who will face Samoa in the Trophy this morning.
Ireland will become a core team on the Sevens circuit next season and showcased their credentials at RFU headquarters when Ia...