The 36-hour trip from Cape Town to Vancouver aside, pretty much everything else were spot on for the Springbok Sevens in Canada thus far and they are heading into the HSBC SVNS tournament at BC Place on Friday with confidence and energy.
That is the view of Blitzboks head coach Philip Snyman as they are preparing for a tough opening day of fixtures in Pool B, with New Zealand and Ireland the first two hurdles to cross, before a final match against Australia on Saturday.
Snyman acknowledged their opponents’ abilities, while pointing to the fact that all of them have been analysed and plans to beat them made accordingly.
“We have done the homework on our opponents, but of course one needs to execute those to be successful,” said Snyman. “So, one part is done, it is now up to the players to go and do the job.”
Snyman complimented the good energy in the squad, with the introduction of Sebastiaan Jobb and Tristan Leyds bringing a breath of fresh air to the team, while the coach also expects their nimble and fast feet to be a factor on the artificial surface of BC Place.
“They slotted in nicely, but nothing has changed from our plan to blood new players and rotate others, so when injuries happen, we just adapt accordingly,” said Snyman.
“We try to have the starting team from the last two matches of the previous tournament to start the opening match of the next one in order to create some momentum and stability, and I am confident that it will work well for us again.
“New Zealand did not perform well in Perth, so they will be hurting and looking for a good rebound, but if we start well against them, the standard for the rest of the tournament will be set.
“Ireland are another dangerous side that always play well against us, while Australia won their last match against us, in the Perth semi-finals. We would love to get one back over them.”
The Blitzboks last played New Zealand in Dubai and lost 24-17 in the quarter-finals. They managed to beat Ireland 37-7 in Cape Town a week later in December, but that Irish side were not at their best due to a stomach bug in the squad.
Snyman said the Blitzboks played a match against Uruguay earlier in the week, which worked well for them.
“It is always good to be tested against different defensive and attacking systems as one gets used to each other in training,” said Snyman.
“So, seeing different pictures on attack and defence from Uruguay was a good thing and the guys sharpened up nicely. The match also took place on an artificial pitch, and it was quite cold, two things we will encounter this weekend, so in that regard, it was the perfect prep for us coming into the tournament.”
Springbok Sevens pool schedule (all matches live on SuperSport, SA times):
Friday, 21 February
22h02: New Zealand
Saturday 22 February
03h29: Ireland
21h36: Australia
Springbok Sevens squad for Vancouver:
#2 Ryan Oosthuizen – 52 tournaments, 225 points (45 tries)
#3 Impi Visser (co-captain) – 42 tournaments, 215 points (43 tries)
#5 Ricardo Duarttee – 15 tournaments, 248 points (19 tries, 75 conversions, 1 penalty goal)
#7 Ronald Brown – 18 tournaments, 394 points (40 tries, 97 conversions)
#8 Selvyn Davids (co-captain) – 38 tournaments, 701 points (92 tries, 119 conversions, 1 penalty goal)
#11 Siviwe Soyizwapi – 56 tournaments, 760 points (152 tries)
#12 Shilton van Wyk – 23 tournaments, 210 points (42 tries)
#14 Quewin Nortje – 9 tournaments, 125 points (25 tries)
#15 Donavan Don – 6 tournaments, 45 points (9 tries)
#16 Sebastiaan Jobb – 2 tournaments, 10 points (2 tries)
#19 David Brits – 6 tournaments, 40 points (8 tries)
#21 Zander Reynders – 2 tournaments, 0 points
#24 Tristan Leyds – 7 tournaments, 106 points (14 tries, 18 conversions)
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