Australia have upset world series leaders South Africa and will play New Zealand in an ANZAC final at the Sydney rugby sevens.

The Aussies will be looking for their first tournament success on home soil since 2002 after holding on for a tense 12-7 semi-final victory over the Blitzboks.

Wily playmaker James Stannard put the home side up 12-0 at halftime but South Africa hit back soon after the break with a try to Kwagga Smith.

When Smith was yellow-carded for a high tackle on Henry Speight with two minutes left, the Aussies were in the box seat and didn’t relent.

New Zealand booked their place in the final thanks to a thrilling 14-12 win over a fast-finishing Fiji in a spiteful semi-final.

Sonny Bill Williams was singled out for plenty of attention by the defending world series champions but also gave as good as he received.

Akira Ioane, rated by many as the most-dangerous player in the game, put the All Black Sevens up 14-0 early in the second half with a bruising run to the line.

But the Fijians hit back with two tries and had the ball in the last minute but the NZ defence pressured them into error to survive the late onslaught.