Preview: Hong Kong Sevens
The Springbok Sevens team marks 35 tournaments as a special milestone and since the inception of the World Series in 1999, only Fabian Juries, Marius Schoeman, Mzwandile Stick, Frankie Horne, Kyle Brown, Chris Dry, Cecil Afrika and Branco du Preez have reached this landmark.
The versatile Snyman, who has scored 206 points in the Blitzbok jersey since his debut for the team in Dubai in 2008, is playing in his fifth Hong Kong tournament and said the 35 tournament marker is a significant one for him.
"Every tournament is special and to share this milestone with such an amazing bunch of guys and with this team makes it even more so. I am not only proud to be playing in my 35th tournament, but to be able to play it with this brotherhood of men makes me even prouder. I will cherish this for the rest of my career and enjoy every moment of it.
"To play 35 tournaments is a special milestone in this team and I am proud to join that group who done it in the past. Hopefully we can make this one a special one for the record books as well," Snyman said.
South Africa is yet to win the Cup at this iconic venue, but this did not add any pressure on the team, according to Snyman.
"Looking at Hong Kong, special as is, it is just another tournament in the bigger series. We will focus on England in our first match on Friday and not look past that. Once that is done, we will move on to the next match. This is the seventh tournament of the season and we know that we need to establish the foundation first and build on that," he added.
Meanwhile, Series leaders Fiji face the prospect of yet again playing in a Sevens leg while their homeland is bracing for another cyclone after Cyclone Winston struck the island with fury on February 20. The country was shaken to its core. Houses and lives were torn apart and Fiji's sevens players were not spared.
"Some of the boys lost their homes. Pio Tuwai's house is uninhabitable at the moment and one or two others lost their roofs.
"This one will be a category three – not on the same scale – and hitting the other side of the island this time. So just when you thought it was starting to work out you get hit by another cyclone," added Ryan," coach Ben Ryan explained.
With power cuts leading to curfews on power usage, many people in Fiji will be forced to do the unthinkable this weekend and miss watching the Sevens. Instead, coverage of their most beloved tournament may be confined to the radio.
"Lots of people are going to go back to the old days of listening to the Sevens on the radio this weekend and harp back to those glory days when those first teams played in Hong Kong," he added.
The secret of Fiji's affinity with Sevens, and the people's love of the players, is that they are at one with the players. The players may be admired, even revered, for what they do for their country, but they come from the same jobs and villages as the people watching them.
One player, Masivesi Dukuwaqa, who incredibly manages to excel with one eye, usually works as airport security and for this latest trip was given a garland of honour by his colleagues as he boarded the plane for Hong Kong.
"The team is the nation's team and it means so much when we do well. They feel as though they have invested in the team and when the team is doing well everyone feels good. For the boys, with all that had happened before the trip to North America, the emotion and energy carried them through to win in Las Vegas.
"Here there's always a motivation to do well in Hong Kong but there's an added motivation from back home and it's pumping our tyres up," Ryan stated.
Pools:
Pool A: New Zealand, Samoa, France, Kenya
Pool B: South Africa, Scotland, England, Russia
Pool C: Australia, USA, Argentina, Portugal
Pool D: Fiji, Wales, Canada, Korea
Schedule – Friday, April 8
(Kick-off is local time – GMT plus eight hours)
Samoa v Kenya – 18.10
Wales v Korea – 18.32
USA v Portugal – 18.54
Scotland v Russia – 19.16
New Zealand v France – 19.44
Fiji v Canada – 20.06
Australia v Argentina – 20.28
South Africa v England – 20.50
Schedule – Saturday, April 9
(Kick-off is local time are local – GMT plus eight hours)
Samoa v France – 11.18
New Zealand v Kenya – 11.40
Wales v Canada – 12.02
Fiji v Korea – 12.24
USA v Argentina – 12.48
Australia v Portugal – 13.10
Scotland v England – 13.32
South Africa v Russia – 13.54
France v Kenya – 15.18
New Zealand v Samoa – 15.40
Canada v Korea – 16.02
Fiji v Wales – 16.24
Argentina v Portugal – 16.48
Australia v USA – 17.10
England v Russia- 17.32
South Africa v Scotland – 17.54
Schedule – Sunday, April 10
(Kick-off is local time are local – GMT plus eight hours)
Bowl quarterfinals:
3rd Pool A v 4th Pool D – 09.30
3rd Pool C v 4th Pool B – 09.52
3rd Pool D v 4th Pool A – 10.14
3rd Pool B v 4th Pool C – 10.36
Cup quarterfinals:
1st Pool A v 2nd Pool D – 10.58
1st Pool C v 2nd Pool B – 11.20
1st Pool D v 2nd Pool A – 11.42
1st Pool B v 2nd Pool C – 12.04
Shield:
Semifinal One – 13.30
Semifinal Two – 13.52
Bowl:
Semifinal One – 14.14
Semifinal Two – 14.36
Plate:
Semifinal One – 15.00
Semifinal Two – 15.22
Cup:
Semifinal One – 15.44
Semifinal Two – 16.06
Shield Final – 17.00
Bowl Final – 17.30
Plate Final – 18.00
Third/Fourth playoff – 18.30
Cup Final – 19.00
