The Springbok Sevens’ performance on the final day of the HSBC SVNS Perth was not what he expected, but Blitzbok coach Philip Snyman was still happy about their fourth-place finish as that was one of their objectives at the start of the season.
The Blitzboks won their first two games on Friday before slipping in their final pool game on Saturday, but they were spot-on in execution as they beat current series leaders Fiji in the quarter-finals later on the same day.
Sunday’s two results were disappointing though – first Australia denied the Blitzboks a spot in the final with an extra-time victory in their semi-final, before Spain denied the South Africans a spot on the podium.
“We want to be consistent and if you finish in the top four in each tournament, it will not only show consistency but will ultimately put you in contention to be top of the log at the end of the series,” Snyman said on Sunday.
“The performances today were a bit of a mixed bag, and we did not achieve our standards we set for ourselves.”
Snyman feels that the team’s discipline was not up to scratch, and they also did not execute when the big moments demanded it.
“We conceded nine or ten penalties against Australia and then three yellow cards against Spain,” said Snyman.
“That is not good enough and you will not be successful if that becomes a trend. We will have to work harder in those areas and is definitely something we will focus on once we get back home and start preparing for the next tournament in Vancouver.
“In some tournaments you will get a good bounce of the ball and others a bad call or two, but that was not why we did not win. We were just not clinical enough when it mattered.
“We finished strong last night with what was a very good performance against Fiji – probably our best of the season – but we were just not as clinical today. That is something we can work on, and we will.”
The Blitzboks started the final match without Zain Davids, Dewald Human and Zander Reynders, but Snyman said that is par for the course and no excuse: “Obviously you want to finish with all 13 players, but most teams suffer an injury or two along the line. The important thing is that we get those guys back fit and ready as the next tournament is not far off. Luckily for us, there are some players back home who will be ready for selection for the Canada trip.”
Selvyn Davids was the top points’ and try scorer for South Africa (30 points; six tries) while Ronald Brown (15 points) was next.
● Argentina retained their Perth title by beating Australia 41-5 in the final, becoming the third team in as many tournaments to win after Fiji (Dubai) and South Africa (Cape Town) were crowned champions in the opening two events.
Fiji, Argentina and Spain are top of the log after three events, followed by South Africa and France. The next tournament, in Vancouver, will be played from 21-23 February.
HSBC SVNS standings:
- Fiji – 48 points
- Argentina – 48
- Spain – 48
- South Africa – 44
- France – 40
Moon Radar
Sport Trivia: At the 1992 Olympics held in Barcelona, Ghana took a bronze medal in which team event? Answer: Soccer. Ghana topped their group (D) during the preliminary rounds, when they beat Australia 3-1, and drew 0-0 with Denmark and 1-1 with Mexico. They then beat Australia again 1-0 in the playoff to win the bronze medal.
Granola
The historic first rugby match was a contest between England and Scotland, marking the beginning of international competition in the sport. Scotland emerged as the victors in this inaugural game.