It took him nine tournaments and two seasons – during which he was part of two HSBC SVNS tournament wins – to finally come to terms with rugby sevens and his Blitzbok role, and now, David Brits cannot wait for the new season to start for him to give it his best shot.
Springbok Sevens head coach Philip Snyman expressed his satisfaction with the progress of his squad’s HSBC SVNS pre-season preparations on Thursday, as they finished their final condition block before the 2026 season kicks off.
As a Blitzbok, he has won the HSBC SVNS world series, gold at the Commonwealth Games and bronze at the Olympic Games, but for Christie Grobbelaar, an appearance at his home tournament in Cape Town has remained rather elusive.
Ricardo Duarttee and Mfundo Ndhlovu, who were members of the Blitzboks’ HSBC SVNS World Championship winning squad, have been included in the Springbok Sevens ‘A’ squad for the Rugby Africa Sevens Cup in Mauritius, where Springbok Sevens head coach Philip Snyman will get a glimpse of what the future holds for the sevens programme.
Springbok Sevens head coach Philip Snyman heaped praise on his squad after a commanding weekend of sevens rugby displayed at the HSBC SVNS World Championship in Los Angeles, with the Blitzboks finishing as the only undefeated side and crowned winners on Sunday.
It will be a tournament with no second chances, of clinical execution and most importantly, an opportunity where the Springbok Sevens team can deliver a performance that will do their season justice.
The Springbok Sevens’ 2025 season had it all: a rare home win in Cape Town, a losing final appearance in Vancouver, a fourth-place finish in Perth and some less flattering results in Dubai, Hong Kong and Singapore.
SA Rugby mourns the passing of Norman Mbiko, the last captain of the African Springboks and a former head coach of the Blitzboks, who passed away in the early hours of Tuesday morning at the age of 79 after a long illness.
Springbok Sevens head coach Philip Snyman still believes his squad can beat any other team on the HSBC SVNS, so their ninth-place finish in Hong Kong Sevens was a bitter pill to swallow.
The splendour of Singapore means it is considered a popular shopping destination, but Springbok Sevens co-captain Impi Visser insists that is the very last thing on their minds this week.