The Springbok Women's final alignment camp for the year at the Stellenbosch Academy of Sport got the nod of approval from performance coach Swys de Bruin, who said they made good progress during the monthly camps which started in January.
The camps were held during the 2025 Women's Premier Division and according to De Bruin, all the stakeholders who made this possible deserve much credit to avail players to the camps, where the main focus was on getting the players aligned to their Rugby World Cup blueprint needed in August and September this year.
“I really want to thank the stakeholders and especially the unions for making their players available to us,” said De Bruin.
“It certainly helped to have them in camp every couple of weeks and a lot of good work has been done, so credit to the coaching staff and management as well.”
The squad's next assembly, on 2 April, will signal the start their international season, with a tour to France and Spain kicking off the national's team international preparations, while announcements on a number of home test matches and more warm-up fixtures in July will be announced later.
“We are going to France for a week and will train against the French national team and will also play a match against England's Under-23 side, before concluding the tour the following week in Spain with a test against our hosts on 19 April,” De Bruin explained.
“That will be a good eye opener to see how much progress we have made during these alignment camps.”
HIGH INTENSITY, HOT CONDITIONS
This week's camp was high in intensity and concluded in hot conditions and De Bruin said they finished off on a positive note: “These camps were really important for us and this one concluding today, also had our UK-based players back, as well as those who played in the two sevens tournaments in Cape Town recently.
“The UK players slotted right back in, and I was impressed by their attitude. Their presence lifted the skill set and commitment levels for all.”
The four UK-based players, Lindelwa Gwala, Babalwa Latsha, Danelle Lochner and Catha Jacobs, slotted right in, although Gwala, who had her second season at Ealing Trailfinders Women, admitted that the Stellenbosch heat was a factor.
“I love the sun and that is one of the first things we miss when going to our clubs, but it was really hot this week and tough at times,” said Gwala, who has 35 test caps to her name.
“But the local players made us feel right at home from the start and I think we did well during the week.”
Gwala said while she did not have the greatest of seasons abroad, she is determined to right the wrongs, now that she is back with the national squad.
“I was not happy with my season, to be honest, but from now on, the focus will move towards the Rugby World Cup and how we can deliver our best performances over there,” she said.
“One misses the culture, sun and the singing in the squad, so to be reunited with this group is really nice. We are sharpening our weapons for the World Cup from now on and that is an exciting part of the journey.”
Lochner, who plays for Harlequins, supported that view: “One misses the things you associate with home. The heat was brutal this week, as we were still in the low tens last week and at times my head was on fire, but in the end, one had to push through. Once you get back with this group, it does not take long to feel very welcome again.”
The players returned to their provincial unions on Friday. A final round of fixtures in the Premier Division will take place next weekend, before the final takes place on 29 March in Pretoria, where either DHL Western Province or Sanlam Boland Dames will take on the Bulls Daisies.