By Lucky Maree
The ability to rise up when things are going badly, is the stuff of legend — the stuff that makes great champions.
Is the loss to Samoa at the HSBC Sevens in Cape Town a setback that will send the Blitzboks into a nosedive or will it spur them on to greater heights?
The battle for third place against the USA held great significance — and not only because it was for the bronze medal, but also a possible pointer to the future.
The scoreboard shows that South Africa lost by eight points, but the greater truth is they lost by four tries to two. Most significantly, after the USA scored first in the third minute the Blitzboks were never going to win the match.
The way they played was so much like Hong Kong: a bunch of great guys, showing great promise, but going through the motions.
If body language matters, the Blitzboks came into the stadium with drooping shoulders and they played that way. They were either sulking or gesticulating — at their teammates or (worse) at the ref. The crowd followed their lead, the ones who hadn’t gone home yet sat in sullen silence as the Blitzboks fought their way to defeat.
The ghost of Hong Kong, dressed in a black cloak like Dracula in a horror movie, is lurking in the corner.
Coach Sandile Ngcobo has done a great job since taking over as Blitzboks coach — he has pulled a rabbit out of the hat — and now he has the year-end break to think about the next tournament in Hamilton in January.
Please, Mr Ngcobo, don’t let your charges slip back. Whatever you did in Dubai, keep doing it. It’s a World Cup year. South African rugby fans need you to lead the way.
South Africa:
Tries: Siviwe Soyizwapi, Dalvon Blood
Conversions: Two
USA:
Tries: Marcus Tupuola, Malacchi Esdale, Joe Schroeder, Faitala Talapusi
Conversions: One
Blitzboks 14-22 USA
Pictured above: Ryan Oosthuizen
Image source: BackpagePix
