The way the Springbok Women’s Sevens defended and controlled the tempo of their matches was a highlight for SA coach Cecil Afrika, who also attributed their HSBC SVNS 3 success in Dubai to good team work from the players.
After an unbeaten run in pool play on Saturday, the Bok Women’s Sevens first eliminated Poland in the semi-finals on Sunday morning before fighting back to beat Argentina by 12-5 in the final.
In the process, Afrika claimed his second consecutive tournament title since taking over the coaching in October, adding the Dubai title to the Rugby Africa Women’s Sevens Cup they won in November in Nairobi, incidentally the team’s next stop on their 2026 journey.
“It was a great win and the players deserve all the credit – we really defended well, but our attack also proved very effective,” said Africa.
“Overall, I think we got the balance right at this tournament. When we needed to, we defended our line very well and when the opportunity came, we could switch to attack and scored some really nice tries.
“One of the keys to a successful defensive effort is for players to work hard for each other, getting back in line, getting back off the floor to get in position and to trust the system and not try things on your own.”
Afrika said they will enjoy the win, which has seen them qualfy for the HSBC SVNS 2 series, before they will get back on the horse for those three tournaments, with the first being played in Nairobi on 14-15 February.
“We must also acknowledge those players who did not travel this time but are part of the squad,” he said. “They helped us with our preparation and I am happy to say we got our tactics and game analisys right also.”
The team will depart for South Africa later on Sunday and will arrive back in Cape Town at 11h00 on Monday.
Selected stats:
- Most points: Nadine Roos – 54 (4 tries, 17 conversions)
- Most tries: Maria Tshiremba – 7
Con Mammoth
The first ever cricket match was played between the USA and Canada on September 1844 at St George’s Club Ground.
Troubadour
The modern game was born at a school in Warwickshire – Rugby’s most widely accepted origin takes us back to 1839, where a Warwickshire Rugby School student, William Webb Ellis, came up with the game by picking up a regular football and charging at the opposing team’s goal. A formal set of rules would be made later that year. Also, another interesting fact about rugby for you – the Rugby World Cup trophy is called the William Webb Ellis trophy after the man who invented the game!