For Donavan Don, last weekend’s season opening tournament in Dubai felt like his Springbok Sevens debut all over again, something the Blitzbok flyer is sure will happen again this weekend in Cape Town, where the DHL Stadium will play host to the second tournament of the 2025 HSBC SVNS series.
Don made his Blitzbok debut as a 21-year-old in Hong Kong in 2023 and played in Singapore a week later for a satisfying start to his sevens career, which then stalled. He looked set for a proper season in 2024, but due to injuries, he only played in Perth in January this year.
Come the new season, Don was keen to grab his opportunities with both hands and did so with aplomb at last weekend’s Emirates Dubai 7s. Playing at outside centre and on the wing in his first appearance at The SEVENS, he scored four well taken tries, including a match winner against France to secure a top finish in their pool on Saturday.
“That was a great feeling and something that will stay for me for a while, as it is always nice to score a try that really matters, in this case us winning the pool, which was a first objective for the tournament,” said Don upon the team’s arrival in Cape Town on Monday.
“Unfortunately, we did not follow through on the second day, something we had time to reflect on coming home. Cape Town will be something else, as I will also make my debut here if selected.”
Don realises it’s is going to be tough for all the teams this weekend, but the Blitzboks are excited to play in front of their home crowd.
“We must make sure they are rewarded for coming out to support the team,” said Don, who hails from Velddrif on the West Coast.
“We are disappointed with our placing in Dubai, but I know we can improve this weekend. The time spent together on tour was great for us as a squad and we bonded nicely. We will be playing for each other this weekend and such for the country as well.”
A new format will be in place this weekend. Each team will play only two pool matches on Saturday, with the four pool winners progressing to the semi-finals, which will make it even more demanding, as teams who lose a pool game will have a very small chance of progressing to the Cup playoffs on Sunday.
“Teams can’t afford to lose, but that will only motivate us even more,” said Don.
“We know that we are good enough to compete against any team, the belief is there. The challenge is to bring it all together this weekend and we will be up for that.”
Meanwhile the schedule for the weekend has been confirmed with the Blitzboks playing Ireland at 11h44 and Argentina at 18h41 in their pool matches on Saturday.
HSBC SVNS Cape Town pool fixtures – Saturday, 7 December
Women:
09h00: USA v Fiji
09h22: Ireland v Spain
09h44: Japan v China
10h06: Canada v Brazil
12h16: Great Britian v Fiji
12h38: France v Spain
13h00: New Zealand v China
13h22: Australia v Brazil
15h42: Great Britain v USA
16h04: France v Ireland
16h26: New Zealand v Japan
16h48: Australia v Canada
Men:
10h38: France v USA
11h00: Australia v Kenya
11h22: Great Britain v Uruguay
11h44: South Africa v Ireland
13h54: New Zealand v USA
14h16: Spain v Kenya
14h38: Fiji v Uruguay
15h00: Argentina v Ireland
17h35: New Zealand v France
17h57: Spain v Australia
18h19: Fiji v Great Britain
18h41: Argentina v South Africa
Gothic Gucci
The highest-scoring Rugby World Cup match occurred in 1995 when New Zealand defeated Japan 145-17, setting a record for the most points scored by a single team in a World Cup match.
phoenix sparrow
Lala Amarnath is the only bowler to dismiss Don Bradman in Test cricket – This happened in the 1948 Brisbane Test.