The Blitzboks still top the Sevens World Championship log, despite losing the Spain Sevens final against Australia.
Jayden Nell in action for the Blitzboks during the final of the Spain Sevens against Australia in Valladolid on Sunday. Picture: David van der Sandt/Gallo Images
Springbok Sevens head coach Philip Snyman was adamant that the Blitzboks were their own worst enemies in the HSBC SVNS Valladolid final, where they were outplayed 26-19 by Australia in a pulsating match.
For Snyman, the slow start earlier in the tournament contributed to the result in the final, as the South Africans never played the rugby that they are capable of playing.
“Australia were deserved winners tonight. They used their opportunities better in the final and deserved the win – they played very good rugby all tournament long,” admitted Snyman.
Snyman believed the TMO call at the end of the match, which disallowed what would have been a try by the Blitzboks to level the scores, was par for the course.
“Sevens is brutal and so are the margins sometimes. We also had other opportunities which we did not use. That one pass was not the reason we did not win.”
Snyman said the Blitzboks played some of their best rugby on Sunday, but he was not happy with some of the performances over the first two days.
Played well in stages
“Yes, we did very well at stages (on Sunday), but we will have to revisit those areas where we did not do as well as we should have,” explained Snyman.
“Earlier in the tournament We were not at our best and will have a look at that. We still made it to the final though, as tough as it is to get to that stage of the competition, so from that perspective, I am pleased.
“You are supposed to set the standard on day one and pick up the momentum from there, but we did not quite do that and in fact struggled on the first two days.”
Snyman said they were just not clinical enough and that they needed more possession: “We need to look better after our ball. In the final, we missed too many tackles and that got them back into the game.
“Playing in six consecutive finals is great, but this one was not our best, so we need to come back stronger.”
Next weekend in Bordeaux, the final tournament of the World Championship, the Blitzboks are in a tough Pool A with Fiji, Kenya and Great Britain.
Australia, Spain, USA, and Uruguay are in Pool B, and Pool C consists of Argentina, New Zealand, France, and Germany.
The Blitzboks top the standings ahead of Argentina in second and Australia in third, and reaching the final of the France Sevens will see them clinch the title, regardless of whether they win the tournament or not.
HSBC SVNS World Championship standings:
1. South Africa – 38 pts
2. Argentina – 34
3. Australia – 30
4. Fiji – 26
5. Spain – 26
6. New Zealand – 26
7. France – 14
8. Kenya – 14
