Springbok Sevens coach Neil Powell praised all 13 members of the Blitzboks squad for their excellent efficiency on the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham this weekend, culminating in a golden consequence at Coventry Stadium on Sunday evening the place they comprehensively beat Fiji within the closing.
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The South Africans scored five tries to one, dominating the Fijians from the outset, with Muller du Plessis dotting down twice, whereas JC Pretorius, Shaun Williams and Mfundo Ndhlovu additionally crossed the whitewash for the Blitzboks of their 31-7 victory.
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Powell stated it was essential for the group to regroup after their disappointing performances on the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series occasions in Toulouse and London, the place they failed to achieve the semi-finals after profitable the primary 4 tournaments of the 2022 season.
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“I’m probably more relieved than anything else and really proud of the boys, they put in a massive effort – not only in the final against Fiji, but all six games over the weekend,” stated Powell.
“It’s amazing to have won the gold medal again, like we did eight years ago in Glasgow, and especially after we finished fourth and didn’t win a medal at the previous Commonwealth Games in Australia, so there is a lot of emotions and the victory brought back memories of what happened in Glasgow in 2014.”
Although they have been excellent with ball in hand, typically breaching the defence of their opponents in the course of the weekend through which the Blitzboks scored 34 tries, they conceded solely 4 five-pointers, one thing that Powell was additionally very pleased about.
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“The guys worked tirelessly on defence, sticking to our systems and putting in a massive effort, especially against the bigger opponents,” he stated.
“After the World Series tournament in London, we had to reset and re-evaluated our goals for the rest of the season and the last three tournaments, the Commonwealth Games, the Los Angeles Sevens and finally the Rugby World Cup Sevens.
“The guys really worked hard in the build-up to this tournament, and I’m glad they got rewarded for it, showing once again that although hard work doesn’t necessarily guarantee success, it’s part of success.
“For our confidence, it was important for us to deliver a good performance here, especially after what happened in London, and to get some momentum and belief back. Hopefully the belief we got from this tournament, will carry us to LA and then the RWC Sevens early in September.”
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Ten of the South Africans’ 34 tries have been scored by Angelo Davids, who returned to the Blitzboks group after an incredible Currie Cup season with Western Province, and Powell was very pleased to have the speedster again.
Angelo Davids scored hat-tricks in three video games – the pool encounters in opposition to Malaysia and Scotland, and once more within the semi-final in opposition to Australia – lots of the five-pointers coming from the intelligent use of kicks, particularly from Selvyn Davids.
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“I think we must bring Angelo permanently back to sevens again,” smiled Powell when requested about Davids’ exploits in Birmingham.
“Firstly, he’s wonderful human being and an incredible rugby participant as properly. He at all times provides 100% effort and he’s actually fast, and we all know if we kick the ball in behind our opposition, he’s going to chase it to one of the best of his capacity.
“He has really had an amazing tournament, just like the other 12 players as well; everybody played their part and I’m happy for each and every one of them.”