Rugby
Springbok Sevens stalwart Impi Visser is back at the helm of the Blitzboks for the HSBC SVNS North American leg, with the regular captain closing in on his 50th world series tournament, while an experienced playmaking trio return with the inclusion of another uncapped player in the squad.
The next two world series tournaments are on consecutive weekends in Vancouver (7-8 March) and New York (14-15 March).
Whilst the experienced Visser will lead the squad for the final two events of the regular HSBC SVNS Series, where Selvyn Davids, Ronald Brown, and Dewald Human are set to return from injury, there is also a potential debut for Grant de Jager.
De Jager, who hails from Mpumalanga, is set to become another product from HTS Middelburg to play for the Blitzboks, following in the footsteps of Kwagga Smith and JC Pretorius.
Blitzbok head coach Philip Snyman made six changes to the squad that returned victorious from Perth at the start of the month. Apart from welcoming back Selvyn Davids, Brown, and Human, Gino Cupido also returns.
Davids and Brown have recovered from injuries sustained in Cape Town in December, Cupido is back after being a late withdrawel from the Singapore/Perth leg, and Human returns to the fray for the first time this season.
Snyman said it was a tough call to make the changes, but that their main objectives – to broaden the playing depth and to have as many fit players as possible for the HSBC SVNS World Championship tournaments later in the season – have not changed.
“Players like Zain Davids and Ricardo Duarttee are getting a break on this trip as part of the workload management, while Zander Reynders was not available for selection as he has not fully recovered from a shoulder strain picked up in Perth, and he is replaced by Grant,” said Snyman.
“I am happy to include Grant, he is an extremely talented player who really works hard in the training sessions and he deserves this chance.”
De Jager, who studies B.Sc at Stellenbosch University, earned a Blitzbok contract at the start of the season following a string of strong performances for FNB Maties in the 2025 FNB Varsity Cup. He also played for the Springbok Sevens ‘A’ squad in Mauritius and the Shogun International RFC in Dubai last year.
The return of the old firm also adds punch to the squad, said Snyman: “Selvyn, Ronald and Dewald are senior playmakers in the squad and to have them all back is great, especially as Luan Giliomee is with the Junior Boks in Georgia.”
The Blitzbok coach added that it was a tough selection call and some players were very close to making the trip to the northeast.
“Players such as Quewin Nortje and Jaydon Nell missed out as we did not want to bring back too many players back from injury for this trip,” Snyman laid out the broader vision, which resulted in Nabo Sokoyi and Renaldo Young also missing out this time.
“Overall, it is an experienced and exciting squad that will travel and knowing that those players staying behind are pushing hard and creating an environment of competitive excellence, is a good place to be at for this group.”
The Blitzboks will leave Cape Town on Sunday with a clear objective, the coach said: “This is a new group playing in a new tournament and we take nothing for granted. We will start from scratch, knowing that previous results do not count in our pool matches against New Zealand, Spain and Great Britain.”
HSBC SVNS Vancouver pools:
- Pool A: South Africa, New Zealand, Spain, Great Britain
- Pool B: Fiji, Australia, Argentina, France.
Springbok Sevens squad for Vancouver and New York:
#1 Christie Grobbelaar – 26 tournaments, 215 points (43 tries)
#2 Ryan Oosthuizen – 60 tournaments, 260 points (52 tries)
#3 Impi Visser (captain) – 48 tournaments, 230 points (46 tries)
#7 Ronald Brown – 22 tournaments, 453 points (47 tries, 109 conversions)
#8 Selvyn Davids – 44 tournaments, 739 points (97 tries, 127 conversions, 1 penalty goal)
#10 Dewald Human – 31 tournaments, 320 points (30 tries, 85 conversions)
#11 Siviwe Soyizwapi – 62 tournaments, 795 points (159 tries)
#12 Shilton van Wyk – 31 tournaments, 330 points (66 tries)
#15 Donavan Don – 13 tournaments, 113 points (21 tries, 4 conversions)
#16 Sebastiaan Jobb – 6 tournaments, 45 points (9 tries)
#19 David Brits – 13 tournaments, 55 points (11 tries)
#24 Tristan Leyds – 15 tournaments, 170 points (22 tries, 30 conversions)
#28 Grant de Jager – uncapped
#35 Gino Cupido – 1 tournament, 20 points (4 tries)
ShadowDancer
Sport Trivia: Graeme Pollock is considered to be one of the greatest batsmen of all-time. What was his test batting average when he retired?Answer: 60.97. He made his Test debut at the age of 19, and in just 41 tests he scored 2484 runs at an average of 60.97, with five centuries and 15 fifties. He also captured 47 wickets at an average 39.55 runs per wicket. Sadly, his test career was cut short when, at the age of twenty six, an international sporting ban was imposed on South Africa as a result of Apartheid. He was arguably the greatest left-handed batsman the world has yet seen.
Tart Voodoo
Muttiah Muralitharan holds the record for the most wickets in ODI cricket (534) and the most number of Test wickets (800). Murali is the only cricketer to capture over 100 Test wickets at three events. He has also been awarded the most number of Man of the Series in Test cricket.