Ngcobo pleased with ‘clinical’ Blitzboks

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Sandile Ngcobo was happy with how the Blitzboks bounced back to secure fifth place at the Perth Sevens, but said the quarter-final loss to Fiji shows there is plenty to work on before the next tournament in Vancouver.

The Springbok Sevens finished their Perth campaign on a high note by outplaying France 24-5 to finish the tournament in fifth place.

Argentina won their second successive tournament to retain their place at the top of the standings, while the Blitzboks are now tied in fourth spot with Ireland, behind Australia and Fiji after three tournaments.

“It was clinical,” Ngcobo said on the win against France. “The guys showed a lot of hunger for this win and courage for the jersey. That was very pleasing to see.

“They also executed (the game plan) well. Everything we talked out before the game and how we wanted to approach it played out like that, which was great for everyone.”

Ngcobo added the performance against France on Sunday morning doesn’t make up for the 14-12 defeat to Fiji in the quarter-final on Saturday.

“That result against Fiji just again showed the realities of this series – if you are only one percent off your game, your opponent gets a chance to beat you,” said Ngcobo.

“Against Fiji, that is exactly what happened. It was a tight one and we did not get the bounce of the ball, but instead of letting our heads down, the guys bounced back today. There was a lot of pride in that performance against France.”

Ryan Oosthuizen, the most experienced player for the Blitzboks in Perth, said they did not want to play for fifth place, but commended the team performance.

“We came here to make semi-finals and better, so it was disappointing coming off second against Fiji in a game that could have gone either way,” said Oosthuizen.

“That said, we did well today. Every point count in this format and we will take those for fifth place. We will go back home and prepare well and then we are off to Vancouver and Los Angeles, so we are lucky to have another opportunity so soon.”

The Blitzboks will have a month to prepare for the next leg of the Sevens Series in Vancouver from 23-25 Februrary. South Africa have been drawn alongside New Zealand, Ireland and Great Britain in Pool C for the tournament.

Photo: @Blitzboks/Twitter

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