The Springbok Women may not have played any Test rugby against the top 20 sides in the world since returning from the Women's Rugby World Cup in September last year, but for Franzel September (assistant coach), the intensity at training over the last couple of weeks could offset that advantage the USA will have when the two sides meet in Johannesburg on Saturday, in what will be a first Test between the two countries in South Africa.
While the Bok Women successfully defended their Rugby Africa Women’s Cup in Kenya recently, the USA Eagles Women have faced New Zealand (ranked second in the world), Canada (third) and Australia (ninth) during the Pacific Four Series a few months ago.
“Yes, they played at a high level, and we did not, but having said that, we tried to push the intensity at our training sessions in recent weeks to emulate what one can expect in test matches,” said September on Monday after the Bok Women were put through their paces at St. Johns College in Houghton.
“It is not quite the same, but we will be ready for them, should they want to engage in a fast and flowing match.
“Most of our players were exposed to the Pick n Pay Women’s Super League, some played overseas, and a handful just returned from sevens, and something we needed to do was to get everyone on the same page and intensity, and I think it went well this far.”
The fact that 22 of the 30 players who trained on Monday were in England at the RWC last year did make things easier, as the squad merged into a unit without any issues.
September said it did not take long for the players to find their groove on the training field: “Today’s session was all about communication and reminding the players of our fundamentals and principles of play.
“With a coach like Swys (de Bruin) you can also expect something new somewhere, but for now it was about us finding our rhythm as a squad, and I am happy about the outcomes so far.
“We know what the USA can do as a squad, and we have a good idea of how they will play, but ultimately it will be about us and what our output will be this weekend.”
Meanwhile, Byrhandré Dolf, who scored a record-breaking 27 points for the Springbok Women at the RWC last year, said due to her exploits with the Springbok Women’s Sevens team in recent months, she will most likely delay her return as kicker for the fifteens team.
Dolf kicked 12 conversions and a penalty goal in England but admitted that due to sevens duties during the HSBC SVNS World Championship tournaments in Hong Kong, Valladolid and Bordeaux, she did not spend enough time around the kicking tee.
“I am not too worried about that, though, as we have other very capable kickers in the team as well,” said Dolf. “Players like Libbie (Janse van Rensburg) and Jakkie (Cilliers) are kicking very well.”
Janse van Rensburg has kicked 55 conversions, 12 penalty goals and a drop goal in her 30 Tests, while Cilliers was successful with 38 conversions and six penalty goals in 24 Test matches.
Dolf laid down another marker last year in England, where she was one of the players who gained the most running metres. Playing at fullback and on the wing, Dolf’s counterattacks saw her make the most ground, covering 293m during the tournament.
“One thing I am most happy about from recently playing sevens again was the habit and need of creating and finding space,” said Dolf.
“I felt my footwork and acceleration benefited from that. Coming back to fifteens now, the space is obviously much less, but I am happy that I added some stepping and elusiveness to my game because of the sevens. So, I am ready to use that to my advantage when I play in a test match again.”
Dolf also urged the Ellis Park crowd to come early and watch their Test match against the Eagles at 13h30: “We thrive off the crowd; they give us extra energy, and we are going to need that support against a top-ranked team like the USA. So please come early and support the Springbok Women. We worked hard for this, and it will be fantastic if we can beat the USA in front of our compatriots.”
The match-day squad will be announced on Thursday.