Commonwealth Games champion back for BlitzBoks
SQUAD ANNOUNCEMENT: Double series winner and Commonwealth Games gold medallist Mfundo Ndlovu will make a welcome return to the Blitzboks squad this weekend.
There’s also a debut in line for the uncapped Zander Reynders to become Blitzbok No.196 after he was included in the HSBC SVNS squad.
The duo’s inclusion marks the only changes made by head coach Philip Snyman from the side that played in Dubai last weekend, where Ryan Oosthuizen and Christie Grobbelaar suffered injuries which ruled them out of the home leg of the World Series.
Ndlovu’s last appearance for the Blitzboks came in London 2023, while his 18th appearance in the green and gold will also be his first in Cape Town.
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Pretoria-born Reynders, a graduate in computer engineering from the University of Pretoria, will become the first rugby international produced by by Midstream College.
Impi Visser and Zain Davids will co-captain the side again.
Snyman said the reality of injuries in rugby, as well as the decision to blood new players during the new 2024/5 season, made it easier to select a side that will try to win the tournament for the first time since 2015, when the head coach still ran out as a player.
“Mfundo [Ndlovu] came really close to selection for Dubai, so he was always in contention for Cape Town, while Zander [Reynders] impressed from the very first day since joining us after completing his exams in early November,” said Snyman.
“It is tough to lose two stalwarts like Ryan [Oosthuizen] and Christie [Grobbelaar], who would have dearly loved to play in front of their home base, but this creates a great opportunity for the two new players.”
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The 23-year-old Reynders was part of the Springbok Sevens ‘A’ side that won the international invitational tournament last weekend in Dubai where Ndlovu was captain.
“Zander has been on our radar for a while now and played for us in a pre-season tournament in Middelburg in September,” said Snyman.
“He joined us as soon as he had finished his final exams in November. He roomed with Impi [Visser] this week, which was great as he could learn a lot and as fellow engineers, I am sure they not only talked about rugby all the time, which is good.”
Snyman said he was pleased with Ndhlovu’s form as well: “Mfundo settled down nicely in recent months, also completing his degree and training really well.
“His career has been hampered by injuries and to see him fit and ready is a great thing for me as coach. Both players will bring it this weekend, I am sure of that.”
Snyman said new players joining the squad bring energy and it was similar for Ndhlovu and Reynders, who slotted in with ease this week.
“The excitement in the camp is high,” he said.
“We all realise that the things that tripped us up in Dubai can be fixed and we worked hard on that during the week. We will arrive at the stadium on Saturday with good confidence, not only in our players and preparation, but knowing that we have a stadium full of supporters wishing us well.”
Springbok Sevens squad for Cape Town (with HSBC SVNS stats):
3 Impi Visser (co-captain)– 40 tournaments, 205 points (41 tries)
4 Zain Davids (co-captain) – 48 tournaments, 210 points (42 tries)
5 Ricardo Duarttee – 13 tournaments, 221 points (16 tries, 69 conversions, 1 penalty goal)
9 Shaun Williams – 18 tournaments, 157 points (25 tries, 16 conversions)
10 Dewald Human – 26 tournaments, 291 points (25 tries, 83 conversions)
11 Siviwe Soyizwapi – 54 tournaments, 780 points (152 tries)
12 Shilton van Wyk – 21 tournaments, 185 points (37 tries)
13 Mfundo Ndhlovu – 17 tournaments, 115 points (23 tries)
14 Quewin Nortje – 7 tournaments, 105 points (21 tries)
15 Donavan Don – 4 tournaments, 35 points (7 tries)
19 David Brits – 4 tournaments, 25 points (5 tries)
21 Zander Reynders – uncapped
24 Tristan Leyds – 6 tournaments, 97 points (13 tries, 16 conversions)
