Shakes: Blitzboks on the right track

Siviwe ‘Shakes’ Soyizwapi was delighted with his return to the sevens circuit, as the unbeaten Blitzboks got their Singapore campaign off to a flying start yesterday.

Victories for the South Africans over Pool B rivals Spain (31-7) and Samoa (15-10) effectively booked their spot in the cup quarter-finals.

The Blitzboks defended well at times in both games and used their attacking opportunities to good effect. Philip Snyman’s charges scored eight and conceded three tries, two of which came after the buzzer in their two matches.

“Our first goal for the tournament was to focus on the game against Spain and then take the next one as it comes, so we’re on the right track at the moment and it was good to wrap up day one with two from two,” said Soyizwapi, who made his first appearance of the season after months on the sidelines with a knee injury.

“You’ll always feel nervous coming back from a long spell on the sidelines, but as soon as I made that first contact , it was all guns blazing from there. I really enjoyed being out there today, and taking in each and every moment.”

How good was it to see @ShakeyMILKSHAKE back on the field for the #Blitzboks today? #PoweredByUnity #HSBCSVNS pic.twitter.com/bGnX34R0kp

— Springbok Sevens (@Blitzboks) May 3, 2024

Also read: Blitzboks close in on Singapore quarters

The Blitzboks face France in their final pool game at 08:24, and Soyizwapi warned his teammates to be mindful of the Europeans.

“They are really playing well at the moment, they finished well in the last tournament and brought good momentum here,” he said.

“We weren’t perfect and will have to work on a few things in our own game, even though we went two from two, so we’ll have to analyse the French team for when we face them first.”

A winning return to the #Blitzboks for Dylan Sage #PoweredByUnity #HSBCSVNS pic.twitter.com/mbG8coMAkt

— Springbok Sevens (@Blitzboks) May 3, 2024

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