The Blitzboks celebrate their crown in New York, but the team knows hard work still lies ahead if they want to claim the SVNS Championship in the next three tournaments.
Image: World Rugby
The gold medals from the New York SVNS tournament still hang fresh around the necks of the Springbok Sevens, and they are chuffed with claiming the World Rugby Sevens Series title. But inside the Blitzboks camp, there’s a sense that the job is not finished yet.
They have just been crowned league winners following an exceptional display at the tournament in the USA. It was a reward for consistency and grit across the season, backing up last weekend’s victory in Canada.
A run of consistent performances has culminated in another series triumph — but for this side, the job is not done.
Head coach Philip Snyman was a pleased man following their back-to-back victories, but warned that the work is far from over. He said they will approach the final three tournaments in Hong Kong, Valladolid and Bordeaux with greater freedom.
“We're never going to celebrate this like it's our last victory or our only victory for the season,” the coach said.
“We want to create habits, and we want to build a winning culture and make it part of our team. Being crowned number one in the league and securing automatic qualification for next year's competition has taken a lot of pressure off us. So, we can go to Hong Kong and the rest of the championship with freedom.”
Freedom, in this case, does not mean relaxing standards. It means trusting the system and culture that have carried the Blitzboks to the top. There was also a quiet nod to their 15-man counterparts, the Springboks, whose success has set the benchmark for sustained excellence in South African rugby.
“100%,” he said when asked about the influence of Rassie Erasmus’s team.
“But I think that’s what we like, and I think we’ve learned that consistency from the Springboks. In the last five tournaments we’ve played in all five semi-finals, reached four finals, won four of them, and were then crowned league champions.
“So, there’s definitely a monkey off our back, but like the Springboks showed us, that’s exactly where we as South Africans want to be.”
Snyman said the team made a mindset shift to maintain high standards throughout the season, rather than focusing on isolated goals. They knew that if they could set and uphold those standards, a strong culture would follow.
“And I think over the last season and a half that’s exactly what we did. We set really high standards for ourselves, and the players bought into it. Now the culture is really strong and the guys live up to it.
“We laid out a plan: we wanted to bring new players into the system during the season, build depth in the squad, but without sacrificing results.
“It is always difficult to find the right balance. I think it comes down to the players — everyone bought into the plan. The competitive excellence at training, and how they push each other for places in the team, has been outstanding.”
But the story does not end in New York. There is still another chapter to be written in Hong Kong, Valladolid and Bordeaux to cap an already remarkable season.
Three tournaments remain — and three more opportunities to turn dominance into a lasting legacy.