Springbok Women show character in hard-fought battle against Black Ferns XV

The Springbok Women may have fallen short on the scoreboard, but their spirited second-half fightback against the Black Ferns XV at Athlone Stadium on Saturday offered plenty of positives as they prepare for next month's Rugby World Cup in England.

Despite trailing 20-12 at halftime and ultimately going down 34-26 to the New Zealanders, performance coach Swys de Bruin was upbeat about the resilience shown by his players after a tough opening 40 minutes.

“We simply did not get going in the first half, but I have to give credit to the team for the way they adapted in the second half, where we created numerous chances,” said De Bruin after the match. “If we did not have one of our tries disallowed at a crucial stage in the second half, who knows what could have happened at the end?”

The Springbok Women conceded four tries in the first half but tightened up defensively in the second, letting in only two more as they began to impose themselves physically and tactically on the match.

“We made a call at half-time to change our approach and play more direct, and that worked for us tonight,” explained De Bruin. “It was a night where we needed physicality and the shortest route forward, and we almost managed to turn the result around.”

With the World Cup looming, De Bruin believes this kind of challenge was exactly what the team needed. He highlighted how different tactical combinations, some of which were successful against Spain earlier this year, were tested again in the heat of battle.

“Earlier in the season, we scored many backline tries, but tonight we needed more direct and physical ball carriers,” he said. “Those combinations worked best against a very skilful Black Ferns XV team.”

He added that the upcoming rematch between the sides at the same venue next weekend will serve as a final testing ground for fine-tuning the squad and strategy before the team boards the plane to England.

Babalwa Latsha, who captained the Springbok Women and also scored one of their four tries, echoed her coach’s sentiments, praising the team’s adaptability and determination to play a more physical brand of rugby when it was needed.

“We don’t mind that at all. We are good at close-range rugby where we can use our physicality,” said Latsha. “But the Black Ferns deserve credit, as they showed good skills on a windy afternoon and really used their scoring opportunities well. Not so much for us – we created a lot of chances but did not take them all, and that will again be a work-on for us this week.”

With just weeks to go before the Rugby World Cup kicks off, the Springbok Women have embraced the steep learning curve and remain focused on growth. If their second-half performance on Saturday is anything to go by, this team is more than willing to go the distance in search of World Cup success.