In a challenging outing at the Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens, the South Africa Springbok Women’s Sevens team endured further disappointment as they remained winless in the tournament, culminating in a 15-14 defeat to Great Britain in the ninth-place playoff match.
The Springbok Women’s Sevens faced a tough test against Australia in their final pool match, succumbing to a 28-0 defeat against the formidable Australian side, who currently lead the HSBC SVNS Series standings.
Despite resilient defense from the South Africans, Australia managed to secure two tries in each half to seal a convincing victory.
The disappointment continued for South Africa as they faced Great Britain in the subsequent playoff match.
The Springbok Women’s Sevens took an early lead through Ayanda Malinga’s impressive individual effort, but Great Britain responded strongly with three unanswered tries, taking a 15-7 lead into halftime.
In a spirited second-half performance, Nadine Roos provided a glimmer of hope for South Africa with a dazzling solo try, which she converted herself to narrow the deficit to just one point.
With time running out and Great Britain down to only five players due to sin-binnings, South Africa had a golden opportunity to snatch victory.
However, despite their numerical advantage, they were unable to capitalize on the crucial moments, ultimately falling short by a narrow margin of 15-14.
Reflecting on the team’s performance, assistant coach Cecil Afrika acknowledged the positive signs of growth and improvement displayed by the players but expressed frustration over the missed opportunities and lapses in decision-making during critical phases of the matches.
“These are moments that cost us dearly,” Afrika lamented. “We had a clear chance to turn the game around against Great Britain but failed to execute when it mattered most.
Despite the scoreboard not reflecting it, we showed improvement game by game, and the coaching staff are pleased with the progress made.”
With their hopes of finishing in the top eight of the overall HSBC SVNS Series dashed, South Africa will now focus on their upcoming clash against Spain for 11th place at the Hong Kong Stadium on Sunday.
Regardless of the outcome, the team’s attention will turn to the play-off tournament in Madrid in May, where they will look to bounce back and conclude the series on a positive note.
PHOTO: SA Rugby
