Philip Snyman praised the Springbok Sevens squad for their effort and belief as they claimed the HSBC SVNS Perth title on Sunday, with a close, but well-deserved victory over Fiji at HBF Park.
The 21-19 win in the final was a convincing rebound after last weekend’s fourth place in Singapore and kept the Blitzboks’ HSBC SVNS title dreams alive, as they will travel to the last leg of the series – next month in Vancouver and Los Angeles – only four log points behind Fiji, who are top of the standings.
“It was massive for us to finish the tour like this,” said Snyman, the team’s head coach.
“We brought a couple of youngsters with us on tour, made a semifinal in Singapore and won in Perth, so the results were great and on top of that, we have given more players the experience and exposure on the circuit. So overall, I am very happy and proud.”
While Luan Giliomee and Renaldo Young earned their first Blitzbok caps in Singapore and Perth respectively, Snyman also mentioned Sebastiaan Jobb, who returned the squad after more than a year.
“We talk about competitive excellence and Jobb is a good example of that,” said Snyman.
“He brought a lot of energy and scored some crucial tries for us, while also making important tackles and turnovers. If we can have three players in each position pushing each other, we will be in a good space.
“We had Impi Visser, Dewald Human, Ronald Brown, Selvyn Davids, Quewin Nortje and Gino Cupido either resting or recovering from injury back home, so we needed the younger players to get this experience and all will be better because of it.”
The Blitzbok coach was proud that the issues that hampered their performances in Singapore a week ago and were addressed upon arrival in Perth, were eliminated, something he credited the players for.
“We had to keep the ball for longer, we needed to improve our strike rate in the oppositions 22, and we needed to create pressure points on defence, forcing turnovers and then striking,” he said.
“We did all of those this weekend, so I am happy we could turn it around and played with much more control and precision.”
Snyman said the victory in the final came down to composure, gritty defence and good discipline: “In both our last two defeats, in Singapore and yesterday in the pool, we had two players in the sin bin and that was just not going to help us in a tight match against an attacking team like Fiji.
“In the final though, we kept our composure and kept the pressure up. They did come back after we scored two early tries, but the players stuck to their guns and the bench also made the necessary impact to keep them out for three minutes. That was a special performance, and everyone can be very proud of that effort.
“Our aim for the series is to be consistent and make semifinals. We won two tournaments and made one semifinal, so we are on track with that objective.
“That said, hard work awaits once we get back home to make sure we keep up those standards. It was a good trip, and we are thankful for all the support we received from the crowds and well as the supporters back home.”
Selected Blitzbok stats from Perth:
Leading points scorers:
29 Ricardo Duarttee
20 Sebastiaan Jobb
Most tries:
4 Sebastiaan Jobb
3 Zain Davids
Standings after four rounds:
1 Fiji – 70 points
2 South Africa – 66
3 New Zealand – 62
4 France – 54
5 Australia – 54