SHAKES IN SEVENS SQUAD
EP KINGS player Shakes Soyizwapi has been included in the Springbok Sevens training squad to take part in the Safland Windhoek Sevens rugby tournament in the Namibian capital on Friday and Saturday (September 25-26).
This event will be the squad’s first serious on-field action as part of their pre-season training programme.
A combination of established sevens internationals and several promising young players will participate under the banner of the SARU Sevens Academy alongside teams from Zimbabwe, Botswana and Poland. Namibia will field two sides in a bid to give more of their players a taste of international sevens action.
Earlier this year Soyizwapi was included in the Springbok Sevens Academy team which went on a tour to Europe in June.
Springbok sevens coach Neil Powell said his players were looking forward to kick-starting their serious on-field preparations in Windhoek.
“The Safland Windhoek Sevens is the ideal opportunity to assist our training group with their preparations for the upcoming HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series,” said Powell.
“Our national training group have been together for a while now, working very hard on their fitness and conditioning at our base in Stellenbosch. This group is a mixture of experienced players who have played in a number of World Series events, as well as exciting youngsters from our very successful SA Sevens Academy.”
The new look World Series now consists of 10 tournaments worldwide and kicks off in December with the Emirates Dubai Sevens, followed by the first South African leg in Cape Town.
Powell, who led the South Africans to second spot on the overall World Series log last season, described the forthcoming international season as the most important yet.
“The newly expanded World Series and the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio make the coming season a very special one. We are looking forward to the season with great excitement and we want to use the Safland Windhoek Sevens as a springboard to launch our preparations for what promises to be a great but demanding year of international sevens rugby.
“We are delighted for the opportunity to go and play in Windhoek and we hope that people will enjoy the chance see us in action,” said Powell.
