The format of HSBC SVNS is tough enough, with five tight games between the top eight sides in the world on any given weekend, so the Springbok Sevens are determined to not also “play against themselves” at the HSBC SVNS Perth this weekend.
They will face Spain, Argentina and Fiji in Pool A of the tournament at HBF Park in the Western Australian capital.
The Blitzboks arrived in Perth on Monday evening following a disappointing fourth-place finish in Singapore last weekend, and for Ryan Oosthuizen, it was a tournament he didn’t enjoy that much, given his standards and competitiveness.
“When we flow, we are very tough to beat, we know that, but playing against ourselves like we did last weekend, created the opposite for us,” said the 30-year-old forward after a productive team meeting in Perth.
“We have seen in Cape Town how tough it is for other teams to beat us when we get it right, so delivering a 40 or 50 per cent effort compared to that was disappointing.”
Most of the focus since arrival was on reviews, with recovery another early week priority, and for Oosthuizen, it was good to clear the heads and gremlins that crept into their game with some upfront discussions during video sessions and team talks.
“We are hard on ourselves, we work hard to get to a certain standard, and when we do not reach those during a tournament, we don’t take kindly to that,” explained Oosthuizen, who will play in his 60th World Series tournament and return to Perth for a third consecutive visit.
“There are honest conversations, with egos being put to the side and team demands and responsibilities ruling the conversations. It is good that the focus was on off-field stuff, recovering and getting the weekend out of the system. The coaches have the right game plan; we just did not execute.”
Oosthuizen said he was pleased with the outcomes of all the discussions: “The nice thing about the meetings was that everyone accepted their mistakes, there were no excuses for individual errors, and it turned into a very productive meeting.
“Everyone realised we played against ourselves and were unhappy about that. We have moved past the finger-pointing, and we all took responsibility. This is a good sign for the group.”
Oosthuizen, who played once in the Sydney leg of the series, is hoping Perth will deliver a first win on Aussie soil: “We missed some experienced players in Singapore, but the younger guys will be better this weekend, that is how you gain experience, to learn from your mistakes, something we all know now. That said, we are very eager to get to the training field tomorrow, get rid of the gremlins and arrive Saturday as the team we know we are.”
Blitzboks’ Pool A fixtures:
Saturday 7 February (SA times – all matches live on SuperSport)
05:58: Spain
09:14: Argentina
12:52: Fiji