The Blitzboks began the defence of their Cape Town Sevens crown with a pulsating win in the final seconds against Fiji on Saturday.
South Africa snatched a 24-21 victory after trailing 21-12 in the second half on a hot but blustery day in the Mother City.
The never-say-die Blitzboks sent the home crowd wild when Shilton van Wyk completed his hat-trick in the final play of the match to overhaul Fiji. It was payback after the Pacific Islanders overcame South Africa in Dubai a week ago.
The match had started in frenetic fashion. A break on their own tryline saw Fiji move upfield before a switch sent Apete Narogo in unopposed.
But the home side hit straight back with a length-of-the field team try finished off by Christie Grobbelaar.
More poor slipped tackles by South Africa saw Terio Veilawa run in from deep inside his own half for a 14-7 lead, before Van Wyk hit back for the Blitzboks.
After the restart, a mesmerising run by sevens star Joseva Talacolo saw Fiji stretch the lead to 21-12 to silence the passionate home fans.
But the Blitzboks were not done and a smart bit of improvisation by Donavan Don led to another scintillating score by Van Wyk to reduce the lead by two with around 90 seconds left.
A trademark Shilton handoff!
The #Blitzboks are on the board in Cape Town 😍#PoweredByUnity #ComingInHot pic.twitter.com/dDJvMREaCT
— Springbok Sevens (@Blitzboks) December 6, 2025
Don then orchestrated a brilliant late turnover to give the home side a sniff. A sniping run from a penalty by Ronald Brown almost saw him touch down but he managed to offload for Van Wyk to score his hat-trick and seal a brilliant win.
The Blitzboks’ face Dubai winners New Zealand (4pm) and Great Britain (7:41pm) in their remaining pool matches on Saturday.
Meanwhile, New Zealand blew Great Britain away 29-12 to take the early lead in Pool A.
Photo: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images
