Olympics the main priority for Blitzbokke

Stand-in captain Snyman has a shoulder injury. File picture:Ahmed Jadallah/Reuters

Stand-in captain Snyman has a shoulder injury. File picture:Ahmed Jadallah/Reuters

Published Feb 6, 2016

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Cape Town - The Springboks would rather preserve Philip Snyman and Kwagga Smith for the Rio Olympics than risk them in the quarter-finals of the Sydney Sevens on Sunday.

Blitzbok coach Neil Powell said that it was “tough” to lose both stand-in captain Snyman (shoulder) and Smith (wrist) for the last two Pool B matches of the Sydney Sevens on Saturday, after the duo were injured in the opener against Scotland.

The South Africans played with great determination, though, with the 10 remaining players seeing off a resolute Kenya side 26-19 in the pool decider at the end of day one.

Star speedster Seabelo Senatla led the way with six tries, while Rosko Specman was also one of the stand-outs on attack and defence as they beat Scotland 33-7 and Russia 40-0 in their other pool matches.

But while winning the Sydney tournament will be the aim on Sunday, the bigger and more important goal is the Rio Olympics in August. So, being without captain Kyle Brown, Cecil Afrika, Rayno Benjamin and others this weekend due to injury, Powell is wary of risking Snyman and Smith in the Sydney Cup quarter-final against Argentina (3.41am SA time).

“It’s tough to lose your two experienced forwards in that first game – losing Kwagga and Philly (Snyman) was definitely tough. But credit to the guys who filled their boots. Obviously still a lot of system mistakes, but those are mistakes that we can fix. That’s how you build experience and depth in your squad,” Powell said from Sydney on Saturday.

Read: More injuries for victorious Blitzbokke

“We will have a look at Kwagga and Philly tonight, and then we will make a decision on whether we will use him or not. We definitely don’t want to sacrifice them tomorrow and then they’re out for the rest of the season or even for the Olympics.

“We will have to sit down and think about it clearly, and if we feel that there’s a slight chance of getting injured further, then we will pull them out of day two.”

After the controversial loss in the Wellington final to New Zealand last week, the Blitzboks are keen to go all the way in Sydney on Sunday. Powell said that his young squad, with newcomers such as Dylan Sage, Sandile Ngcobo and Tim Agaba still making their way at this level, have been toughened up by the examination that Kenya provided on Saturday.

But while they have avoided powerhouses such as Fiji and New Zealand, Powell doesn’t think that they will have a stroll against Argentina.

“The game against Kenya is almost like a derby, as they are always up for games against us and it’s always physical. It was a good win for us, not only to avoid Fiji in the quarter-final, but also to build confidence and experience in the guys who have played only two or three tournaments in the past,” the coach said.

“But having said that, we know that Argentina are not going to be easy. They are a tough team – they never stop working and technically, they are pretty good.”

In a dramatic end to day one at the Allianz Stadium, the All Black Sevens came back in the second half to draw 17-17 with hosts Australia after Ardie Savea scored in the last minute.

This outcome saw New Zealand topping their group on points difference, while the other pool winners were Fiji and England.

Sunday’s Cup quarter-finals (SA times)

2.30am: New Zealand v USA

2.57am: Fiji v Kenya

3.19am: England v Australia

3:41am: South Africa v Argentina

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