South Africa advance to Challenger semifinals

DAY ONE WRAP: The Springbok Women’s Sevens topped Pool A of the World Rugby HSBC Challenger at Athlone Stadium in Cape Town on Saturday after beating Hong Kong China 36-0 and Czechia 26-0, and will face African foes Kenya in the semifinals on Sunday.

The semifinal match will kick off at 15.18 (local time), with the first semifinal, between Argentina and Colombia, scheduled for 14.56.

South Africa’s two victories came in commanding fashion, with the Bok Women finding good early form, which bodes well for the big dance on Sunday.

In their opening match, the Springbok Women’s Sevens team started like a house on fire, playing with pace and precision. They scored early when Ayanda Malinga stepped into space and when Maria Tshiremba scored a minute later, the home side were 12-0 up in no time.

Another Tshiremba try earned her a brace, while Shiniqwa Lamprecht also carried a couple of defenders over the line to score her first try for the team.

Leading 24-0 at the break, SA coach Renfred Dazel made early changes off the bench and both Kayla Swarts and Alicia Willemse made their debuts in green and gold.

Nadine Roos used her pace to secure a fifth try, while Felicia Jacobs also dotted down before the final hooter.

Nothing but strength from Maria Tshiremba 💪

It was a try scoring masterclass from the @WomenBoks against Hong Kong China 🇿🇦 #7sChallengerSeries pic.twitter.com/E1Fhgqiqtw

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— HSBC SVNS (@SVNSSeries) March 1, 2025

Tshiremba opened the scoring against Czechia with a great burst of speed down the line, beating her opponent with pace down the left-hand side. Malinga then finished a great move with a run down the other side of the field to extend the host team’s lead to 12-0.

Adding to their attacking strengths, the defensive pressure by South Africa forced Czechia into mistakes and they conceded several penalties at the breakdown. They conceded a yellow card for a high tackle as well and Roos ran 50m to score after Mathrin Simmers switched play to the blind side.

The momentum was all South Africa’s and after a quick tap penalty, Jacobs quick tapped and scored, with Roos converted for a 26-0 win.

The match against Kenya will be a fiercely contested affair, according to Zintle Mpupha: “They are a good side and they always demand the best from us in any game we play and tomorrow [Sunday] will be no different.

We will have to bring our best tomorrow.”

Day One results:

Men:

Hong Kong 19-21 Madagascar
Uganda 24-14 Brazil
Tonga 17-10 Portugal
Japan 21-19 Georgia
Canada 38-0 Madagascar
Samoa 19-14 Brazil
Chile 19-17 Portugal
Germany 31-0 Georgia
Canada 21-12 Hong Kong
Samoa 32-17 Uganda
Chile 24-19 Tonga
Germany 26-14 Japan

Women:

Kenya 20-5 Samoa
Uganda 7-24 Colombia
Thailand 41-0 Mexico
Czechia 26-19 Hong Kong
Poland 31-19 Samoa
Belgium 17-22 Colombia
Argentina 60-0 Mexico
South Africa 36-0 Hong Kong
Poland 7-29 Kenya
Belgium 5-31 Uganda
Argentina 22-7 Thailand
South Africa 26-0 Czechia