Blitzboks primed for podium finish

Following one of their worst seasons on the sevens circuit, Selvyn Davids says the Blitzboks are focused on winning South Africa’s first medal at the 2024 Olympics.

The South Africans face familiar rivals Ireland (5:30pm) and New Zealand (9:30pm) on the opening day of the competition at Stade de France on Wednesday, before a final Pool A clash against Japan less than 24 hours later at 4pm.

Philip Snyman’s charges qualified for the quadrennial sporting spectacle via the Sevens Repechage in June, after finishing seventh on the overall Sevens Series standings in 2023-24.

One of six players with previous Olympic Games experience, Davids emphasised the importance of flying out the blocks for Team SA in France while acknowledging the Blitzboks’ struggles this season.

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“It would be great if South Africa can [win a] medal on the opening day,” the skipper was quoted by TimesLIVE. “That would set the tone for the other teams and the other players, the other athletes that still have to play.

“It hasn’t been a great season for us. [But] the past few tournaments we came closer together as a team.

“We played the type of rugby we wanted to play though the results didn’t go our way, but we came closer. We played much better rugby than the middle part of the season.”

“At the qualifiers we played the best rugby of our season,” Davids added. “So it’s been a rough season for us, but we are a much closer team now.

“We started to play for each other in the past few tournaments and we are getting where we want to be – playing for each other, playing for the country and playing for the badge.”

Photo: @Blitzboks/Twitter