De Bruin proud, but rues missed chances
REACTION: The Springbok Women’s performance coach, Swys de Bruin rued several missed opportunities following their heartbreaking 5-33 defeat against Canada in Gqeberha on Saturday.
The Springboks Women produced a better performance following their defeat to the North Americans at Loftus Versfeld last weekend.
Last week, they conceded eight tries, but this only conceded five in this Eastern Cape clash, two of which came late in the game to give the visitors a more satisfying result.
The side failed to get any points on the board, but managed to limit the Canadians to two converted tries in the first half.
After the break, it certainly looked promising, with the Ayanda Malinga dotting down for the Boks and with 15 minutes on the clock, the team was still very much in the contest.
Trailing 5-19, the Bok Women looked promising on attack; however, with two defensive lapses, the North American side closed out the game with two late tries.
Strong defense by Bok Women makes Canada sweat for victoryhttps://t.co/QpDvU3zDsE
— rugby365.com (@rugby365com) July 12, 2025
“At 19-5 and we get three line breaks, scoring chances, with 15 minutes to go, I thought, ‘okay, they’re number two and we’re number 12, we’ve closed the gap’,” De Bruin told reporters after the defeat to Canada.
“I mustn’t let the fact that they scored those two tries at the end pull the wool over my eyes. We had so many line breaks against a top side like that.
“And then we almost get the jitters when someone runs through, we’re not used to it. Because Jakkie [Cilliers] went weak, Libbie [Janse van Rensburg] is through and just lost the ball, Zintle [Mpupha] is through and just drops the ball, where they finished.
“That was the difference. Every one of their points came from great finishing, and we got the line break,s but we didn’t finish. I felt if we could finish, it would have been a totally different story.”
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De Bruin said the growth the team have shown over the last two weeks against the second-ranked team in the world was commendable and made him a proud coach.
“I will be the first one to admit that we are far from the finished product, but the improvement was real and we were in this match for a long time,” said De Bruin.
“We only scored once, but had so many other opportunities, and that was very pleasing. Those are all fixable errors. We needed these two Test matches to see where we are, and I am very happy with the report card thus far.
“We will regroup in a week and then start focusing on the Black Ferns XV matches and tweak and fine-tune as we close our preparation for the World up. We wanted to play the best, and I am happy with the outcomes so far. Make no mistake, this Canadian team is very, very good and we took them to the wire.”
Bok Women captain Nolusindiso Booi said the attitude of her team was a real treat.
“We never stopped trying, we never stopped playing. Our coaches prepared us very well for this, and we responded as best we could.
“It was also pleasing to see the crowds come early for our match. Sadly, we could not secure them the win, but we did them proud, that I know.”
Booi, who is in line to be selected for her fourth World Cup, also complimented Canada.
“They were really composed when it mattered and closed out the game in style. One could see why they are ranked where they are. We are not there yet, but I can honestly say that we are on track with our World Cup prep.”
The Springbok Women will assemble in Cape Town next Sunday, July 20 to prepare for the two Black Ferns XV matches at Athlone Stadium on July 26 and August 2.
Additional source: SA Rugby
