One of the experienced heads in the SA Sevens side is former Blitzbok captain Siviwe Soyizwapi who returns to Hong Kong for a sixth time since making his debut in 2016.
Image: Shaun Roy, BackpagePix
The Blitzboks are aiming for another consistent performance when they head to the Far East for the Hong Kong SVNS tournament this weekend.
Grouped with Uruguay, Australia, and New Zealand, the Springbok Sevens will have their work cut out to make the play-offs at the famed tournament. The Uruguayans (11.56am) are up first on Friday, while they also take on the Aussie later in the afternoon (2.39pm). The All Blacks Sevens will wait for them on Saturday morning (7.43am kick-off)
They’ve made the final and semi-final of the last two tournaments but fell short of winning a first title since Cape Town in December last year.
Three players will play for the first time in Hong Kong – Tristan Leyds, Zander Reynders, and Blitzboks debutant Gino Cupido. But, they’ll have plenty of experience around them to thrive in the pressure cooker environment of the prestigious tournament.
It will be hosted for the first time at the Kai Lak Stadium.
One of the experienced heads in the side is former captain Siviwe Soyizwapi who returns to Hong Kong for a sixth time since making his debut in 2016 under former coach Neil Powell.
He’s amassed 57 tournaments on the series since then and as an ‘older head’ he’ll look to help the team to a first title there. It’s the only leg on the circuit where South Africa hasn’t tasted success yet.
For Soyizwapi and his teammates, the mission remains the same, though, to deliver a performance that will not only justify their hard work on the training pitch but also maintain the high standard that is demanded when playing for your country and representing the Springbok badge.
In fourth on the overall log, they are looking to improve with only two more competitions before the league winners are crowned. They are on 62 points with Argentina (68) leading the charge and Spain (66) and Fiji (62) ahead of them.
“We leave here well prepared and determined to succeed,” Soyizwapi said as the team departed Cape Town on Sunday.
“We are aware of our log position and the comfort in that is that it shows our growth as a team. We want to be in the top four in every tournament and we are getting there, so the confidence is growing that we are on the right track.
“The one thing I realised over time is that the performance on the day is what counts, and you must always be ready for those. Hence my comfort for this tournament, as we prepared very well. We are becoming contenders in each tournament we play, and it shows our growth.”