Last throw of the dice for Blitzbok duo
Both players are part of the SA Rugby Sevens Academy team. The veteran Horne has been absent from the Springboks Sevens due the ankle surgery earlier this year. While Kok had to undergo a knee operation which left him out of the squad since December 2015.
Not only will all eyes be on Horne and Kok, but it is also a time for the SA Sevens coach Neil Powell to cast his eye on the next generation of Blitzboks who were included in the SA Sevens Academy team.
The SA Rugby Sevens Academy team arrived in Italy on Tuesday to play in the tournament at the Acqua Acetosa Stadium in Rome on June 10 and 11, coach Marius Schoeman has emphasize the importance of keeping Rio 2016.
"We have a number of objectives in this [Roma Sevens] tournament and I am excited to see how it will work out for us," said Schoeman. who will be joined in Rome by Powell, before the tournament starts.
"There are a number of contracted Blitzboks, such as Frankie Horne and Werner Kok, who are making comebacks after being injured for a long time and others such as Branco du Preez, Sandile Ncgobo and Siviwe Soyizwapi who are short of game time.
"The likes of Lungelo Gosa, Dewald Human as well as new selections Luke van der Smit and Ryan Oosthuizen can prove that they are good enough to get contracts. A number of regulars will move on after Rio and will have to be replaced. So there is something in the tournament for every player," Schoeman added.
The SA Sevens Academy has a solid record at the event and won the last three times they played in Rome.
"We have a number of tough opponents to deal with this time around, as other teams are also using this as an opportunity to fine-tune for the Olympics," said Schoeman.
"We are obviously keen to see how Werner [Kok] handles the tournament. He has last played in December, so we need to look after him well. The same applies to Frankie [Horne] and we will manage their workload during the tournament.
"As important for me is the performances of Luke and Ryan. Luke showed great promise playing for UP-Tuks this year and Ryan was a member of our team that won gold at the Commonwealth Youth Games. We have some work to do this week and is determined to leave our mark and achieve our objectives," Schoeman said.
Schoeman will be joined in Rome by Powell, before the tournament starts.
South African Sevens Acadamy: Frankie Horne, Sandile Ngcobo (captain), Luke van der Smit, Ryan Oosthuizen, Stephan Dippenaar, Branco du Preez, Donovan du Randt, Lungelo Gosa, Spamandla Ngcobo, Dewald Human, Werner Kok, Siviwe Soyizwapi.
