They arrived in Hong Kong as the 11th-ranked team out of 12, had some misfortunes on the injury front and four players who will experience the intensity of the world stage for the first time but if you asked Ayanda Malinga, you write off the Springbok Women’s Sevens at your own peril. The hard-running wing, who has scored 14 tries in eight tournaments at this level, said the absence of regular captain, Nadine Roos, and experienced players like Liske Lategan and Simamkele Namb

The start of their journeys to make their Springbok Women’s Sevens debuts, at the HSBC SVNS World Championship, could not have been more different but for Owami Mohuli and Jane Mulder, their destination was the same – the Kai Tak Sports Park in Hong Kong. Mohuli (19) and Mulder (20) will hold no fear or favour in Hong Kong on Friday, shared by a firm desire to deliver their best effort, knowing that a sound performance for their country could ease the way for their age-group

Half a century since the tournament's inception in 1976, Hong Kong remains the heartbeat of international sevens rugby. This year's edition marks not only a golden anniversary but the start of a three-tournament World Championship race that will crown the sport's ultimate champions in 2026. The historic tournament has transitioned from its original home at Hong Kong Stadium to the state-of-the-art Kai Tak Stadium, ushering in a new chapter for sevens in Hong Kong while honour

Two familiar Springbok Women’s Sevens players have been recalled to the squad for the first HSBC SVNS World Championship tournament, to be played in Hong Kong next weekend. Zintle Mpupha and Eloise Webb, who played for the Isuzu Bulls Daisies and Sanlam Boland Dames in last weekend’s Pick n Pay Women’s Super League 1 final in Pretoria, return to the shorter version of the game as SA coach Cecil Afrika named his squad for the trip to the Far East. Mpupha played for the nationa

Expect the Springbok Women’s Sevens to play with an abundance of flair and freedom when the final HSBC SVNS 2 tournament kicks off at Estadio Nicolau Alayon in Sao Paulo on Saturday. And big smiles on their faces in the third and final event of the series, as they have already guaranteed a ticket to the big dance, the three-tournament HSBC World Rugby Championship. The also enter this weekend’s action without any travel dramas, having settled in Sao Paulo on Monday – a far cr

The stage is set for a thrilling conclusion to the inaugural HSBC SVNS 2 Series as the final leg arrives in Sao Paulo this weekend, with the race for World Championship qualification reaching its climax. Taking place on Saturday and Sunday at the Estadio Nicolau Alayon, the Brazilian stop marks the third and decisive round of the competition, following action-packed tournaments in Nairobi and Montevideo. With just one round remaining, everything is still to play for as teams

Having qualified for the HSBC SVNS World Championship series with one tournament left to play was a huge relief to the Springbok Women’s Sevens squad but according to Maria Tshiremba, they are not done and still want to win this weekend when the final HSBC SVNS 2 tournament takes place in Estadio Nicolau Alayon in Sao Paulo. Tshiremba, who has scored 11 tries in the three qualifying events prior to the Brazil finale, in Dubai (HSBC SVNS 3), Nairobi and Montevideo, said the Wo

The Springbok Women's Sevens qualified for the HSBC SVNS World Championship by finishing in second place of HSBC SVNS 2 in Montevideo on Sunday, confirming a top four finish in the overall series with a tournament left to play, in Brazil next weekend. With the top four sides gaining entry into the three tournament World Championship, the Bok Women’s second placing in Uruguay, like they did in Kenya a month ago, means they will finish in the top four alongside Argentina, who d

The HSBC SVNS 2 Series swings back into action this weekend in the Uruguayan capital Montevideo for the first of two crucial back-to-back weekends in South America to decide which sides will head to the HSBC SVNS World Championship Series. Following their heroics in February’s opening round of the HSBC SVNS 2 Series in Nairobi, Argentina’s women and Germany’s men lead the way in the race to qualify for the competitions in Hong Kong, Valladolid and Bordeaux in April, May and J

It started with a social touch rugby event in 2023, followed by an invite to try sevens with a club team in Hermanus, where amongst others, the Springbok Women’s Sevens also played in an invitational tournament and that resulted in a brief call-up to train with them in Stellenbosch. In a blink, Maceala Samboya was snapped up by the Sanlam Boland Dames and some impressive performances later, she was named in the Springbok Women’s team, making her Test debut aged 23 in Hermanus

Maceala Samboya and Shanidiné Bezuidenhout are in line to make their Springbok Women’s Sevens debuts later this month when the final two HSBC SVNS 2 tournaments take place in Uruguay and Brazil after SA coach Cecil Afrika confirmed a group of 14 players to travel to South America on Sunday. The tournaments will be played in Montevideo (21-22 March) and São Paulo (28-29 March). Afrika also recalled the experienced Catha Jacobs, who made her debut in 2019, to the squad, which w

The Springbok Women's Sevens team had a mixed bag of results in Nairobi on Saturday, winning two of their three HSBC SVNS 2 matches at Nyayo National Stadium. An opening 14-12 win over Spain was followed by a 12-0 defeat to Brazil, before they finished the day with a 12-10 win over Kenya, resulting in South Africa finishing the day second on the log behind Argentina, who will be one of their two opponents on Sunday, with China being the other. The tournament did not start wel

Rested and ready to go again after their heroics in Dubai last month, HSBC SVNS 3 qualifiers South Africa, Canada, Argentina and Belgium join eight established sevens nations in Kenyan capital Nairobi this weekend at the start of a six-week, three-tournament continent and ocean-crossing quest to reach the HSBC SVNS Championship. South Africa, Spain and Argentina’s women are bidding to join their male counterparts later this year, while Canada and USA’s men are aiming to follo

The Springbok Women’s Sevens have a real belief and desire to reclaim their seat at the main table of HSBC SVNS and that commitment will be on display at Nyayo Stadium in Nairobi on Saturday and Sunday. That is the view of Liske Lategan, one of the stalwarts who has experienced all the ups and downs the team had gone through since her debut in 2019, when the world series combined the men and women’s circuit for the first time. On debut, at DHL Stadium in Cape Town, Lategan sc

Shannon-Lee Windvogel is in line to make her international debut for the Springbok Women’s Sevens this weekend after the former SWD Eagirls speedster was named in the South African squad for HSBC SVNS 2 in Nairobi but for the rest, Cecil Afrika has retained the tried and tested core of players that will depart for Kenya on Tuesday evening. Ten players were part of the victorious squad last month in Dubai, where South Africa’s victory in HSBC SVNS 3 saw them progress to the ne

The Springbok Women's Sevens were crowned champions of the inaugural HSBC SVNS 3 tournament in Dubai on Sunday after they beat Argentina by 12-5 in a tightly contested final. The victory also underlined their undefeated status at the Sevens Stadium, where the South Africans won all five their matches this weekend. Victory in their semi-final over Poland earlier on Sunday also meant the Bok Women qualified for the HSBC SVNS 2 series, which will be played in Nairobi (14-15 Febr

The Springbok Women’s Sevens are one victory away from their HSBC SVNS 3 objective at The Sevens Stadium in Dubai after winning all three their Pool A matches on Saturday in a commanding display of attacking rugby. By doing so, they qualified for the tournament semi-finals to be played on Sunday and they will face Poland at 9.28am (SA time), with a win over the Europeans securing not only a place in the finals but qualification for the HSBS SVNS 2 series to be played in the n

As if the pressure of making it into the final of the HSBC SVNS 3 tournament at in Dubai this weekend is not enough, the Springbok Women’s Sevens team will also face three opponents with very different approaches to the game in Pool A on Saturday. But for SA coach Cecil Afrika, that added challenge is something they prepared for and apart from looking at what their opponents will do, their focus will also be inward to execute their style of play. “It is going to be an interes

HSBC SVNS 3 brings sevens rugby back to Dubai less than two months after the top-tier HSBC SVNS Series kicked off at the Sevens Stadium. This weekend, eight men’s and eight women’s teams will take to the field, aiming to make their mark and move closer to the HSBC SVNS Championship later this year. Women’s teams from Argentina, Colombia, Czechia, Mexico, Poland, Samoa, South Africa and Thailand, and men’s teams from Belgium, Canada, Colombia, Hong Kong China, Italy, Madagasca

The confirmation of the squad of 12 to travel to Dubai was a tough decision for Cecil Afrika but the Springbok Women’s Sevens coach is confident that all the boxes have been ticked for this weekend’s HSBC SVNS 3 tournament at the Sevens Stadium. The South Africans depart for the Middle East on Monday evening knowing that they need to reach the final of this standalone tournament in the World Rugby Challenger Series on 17 and 18 January to qualify for SVNS 2, the next hurdle f