SA Women Sevens name experienced squad for African qualifiers in Tunisia

CAPE TOWN – Springbok Women's Sevens coach Paul Delport named an experienced squad to travel to Tunisia for the Rugby Africa Women's Sevens qualifier event over the weekend.

The tournament will be played in Monastir on Saturday and Sunday when the team will try to qualify for to the HSBC World Rugby Women's Sevens Qualifying tournament next year.

Zintle Mpupha, the captain, is one of six players that represented South Africa at the Rugby World Cup Sevens in San Francisco last year. There are also three new faces in the squad for the tournament in North Africa.

Mpupha, Buhle Sonomzi, Zinhle Ndawonde, Zenay Jordaan, Nadine Roos and Eloise Webb all travelled to the USA last year and that experience will stand them in good stead when they face Uganda, Zimbabwe and Zambia in Pool B of the tournament.

The Springbok Women Sevens team for the Qualifiers in Tunisia. Photo: Supplied

Mpupha, along with Jordaan, Rights Mkhari, Mathrin Simmers and Webb, are all fully contracted Sevens players and were instrumental earlier this year in helping the Springbok Women 15-a-side team qualify for the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2021 to be played in New Zealand.

Catha Jacobs (Tuks) was also part of Delport's group that won the Centrale Sevens and Nancy Sevens in France earlier this year, while Liske Lategan and Meghan Philips, who will play for the Springboks for the first time, represented Tuks in recent months in various tournaments.

"I am happy with the squad,” said Delport. “We are without Christelene Steinhobel, who is still recovering from an operation, and Alyssa Conley has a foot injury, which is not worth risking for this trip.

"However, there are some very good and experienced players in the team. It is going to be a tough tournament no doubt and we realise what is at stake.”