Latest news with #BokWomen
IOL News
4 hours ago
- Sport
- IOL News
Springbok Women prepare for challenging match against Kenya in Rugby Africa Women's Cup
Patience Mokone of the Bulls Daisies scored a brace on debut for SA in the Rugby Africa Women's Cup opener against Uganda in Madagascar. Image: Backpagepix The Springbok Women's coaches have trusted in the team that started their Rugby Africa Women's Cup opener, to again get the job done against Kenya at Stade Makis in Antananarivo on Wednesday (12om kick-off). The only change from the team that beat Uganda 62-7 is on the bench, where Nompumelelo Mathe will add impact as a loose-forward, with wing Nomawethu Mabenge missing out. The vote of confidence in the side that scored 10 tries in their opening round victory will be a boost. The extra player in the pack an indication that the team will not deviate from their forward-based game against Kenya, who opened their campaign with a good 28-5 win over Madagascar. It is also a sign of the physical challenge that the Bok Women, led by lock Anathi Qolo, expect from Kenya. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading 'We targeted a strong start in the first match and got that, so now the focus moves to the next one, against Kenya,' September said, after the opening round win. 'They scored a good win over Madagascar and are a physical side, so we will now get ready for that challenge on Wednesday.' The Bok Women's squad will have no uncapped players, unlike in their opening match when eight players ran out in the green and gold for the first time. One of those, Patience Mokone, celebrated her Test debut with two well-taken tries. 'It was a great feeling and an emotional one to walk onto the field, sing the national anthem and know that I am representing my country, but also my family on the international stage,' said Mokone. 'I was a bit nervous due to the occasion, but once I got settled in, it became just another match.' Powerful No 8 Faith Tshauke, who also scored a brace against Uganda on debut, was immense in that match and will take some stopping. Fullback Byrhandrè Dolf was also able to pull the strings for the Bok Women on attack. Unlike the inexperienced Cranes, the Kenyans are expected to be a serious challenge, but the Bok Women will be prepared, according to Mokone. 'This is our next job and we want to get it done," Mokone said. I have to focus on my role in the team and make sure I get that done. "It is not about me on Wednesday, it is about my contribution to the team. I have always played rugby that way, so nothing has changed,' she said. The Springbok Women have beaten the Kenya Lionesses in their last six matches, the latest result being a 63-5 victory in last year's edition of the tournament. That thrashing was preceded by a 77-12 mauling in Cape Town and 48-0 drubbing in Antananarivo in 2023. The Kenyans will, however, be buoyed by their recent triumphs over SA in the sevens arena, and will be hoping to replicate this form in the fifteens game. Although they have a healthy rivalry with Kenya, it will not distract from the focus of the defending champions.
The Citizen
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Citizen
Ten-try Bok Women too strong for Uganda
Playing with the wind in their backs in the first half, the Springbok Women showed good variation in play. The Springbok Women scored 10 tries as they kicked their Rugby Africa Women's Cup title defence off on a winning note with a 62-6 victory over Uganda on a sunny and breezy afternoon at Stade Makis in Antananarivo. The South Africans fielded eight debutants and gave a number of fringe players valuable game time. The way in which they dismantled the Lady Cranes bodes well for the future and will make the selectors' job even tougher when they have to finalise the Rugby World Cup squad in a few weeks' time. Playing with the wind in their backs in the first half, the Springbok Women showed good variation in play, going the direct route and then wide to keep the Ugandan defence honest. Loose forward Lerato Makua and debutants Faith Tshauke (No 8) and Patience Mokone (wing) all crossed for braces. In control South Africa were in control for most of the match and deservedly led 29-0 at the break, but it could have been more, with a number of unforced errors creeping into their game. The Bok Women scored at regular intervals during the opening stanza, with Makua scoring a first-half brace, while Simamkele Namba, Byrhandré Dolf and Tshauke also crossed for tries. Mary Zulu added two conversions. Makua went over under the uprights in the fifth minute and Namba, back from sevens duty, was worked over in the corner after good play from a strong attacking scrum six minutes later to give South Africa a 12-0 lead. Tshauke, looking impressive at No 8, was rewarded for her strong early play with a try on debut in the 16th minute before Dolf's try, seven minutes later, also came after the Bok Women found space out side. It took South Africa another 15 minutes before Makua crashed over for her second after the team showed great patience on attack in the Ugandan 22. Strong start to the second half The South Africans were out of the blocks in no time after the break as Tshauke added her second try with a strong run off the back of a scrum in the 42nd minute, and shortly thereafter the speedy Patience Mokone scored a breakaway try from her own 10m line, with Zulu converting both to make it 43-0 for the Bok Women with just over half and hour to go. Uganda scored against the run of play when Suzan Adong intercepted and raced away, but the Bok Women were not done yet and added another XX tries to their tally, with Aphiwe Ngwevu and Sinothile Bhengu – with a try on debut – proving unstoppable at close quarters, before Mokone linked up well with her inside backs for her second five-pointer. Uganda finished strong but failed to breach South Africa's impressive defence, with the Bok Women continuing their strong play until the 80th minute to seal a great victory.
Daily Maverick
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Maverick
Uncharted territory — Springbok Women aim for their first World Cup quarterfinal spot
Coach Swys de Bruin is thinking outside the box to reach uncharted territory at the Rugby World Cup in England later this year. On 14 May, there were exactly 100 days to go before the start of the 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup. The tournament, which starts on 22 August and will be hosted by England, is one of the most significant in South African women's rugby history. The teams are as competitive as ever, the structures are the best yet and the coaching staff, led by Swys de Bruin, possess some of the best rugby knowledge in the country. 'Certain things are getting there,' De Bruin said about the improvements he has seen in the Springbok Women since taking the reins in August 2024. 'I have a fantastic coaching staff, which helps a lot. The support structure, from our manager, the medical part – everyone is pulling their weight big time.' The goal is for a South African women's rugby side to reach the quarterfinal stage of a World Cup for the first time. To do that they need to win two of their pool-stage matches. France, Italy and Brazil are in their group. 'It's easy for me; the [support staff] make my job so easy,' De Bruin said. 'But it's all words – we have to do it now. We didn't win a game at the [previous] World Cup. We have to start pulling wins off.' South Africa should overcome Brazil (who are ranked 33rd in the world), but they are not taking the South American side lightly. 'We can't underestimate Brazil,' the coach said. 'They have their sevens players back now and they're strong. The World Cup teams are all strong.' South Africa will be targeting the match against Italy at the quadrennial event. Italy are ranked eighth in the world, four places ahead of South Africa. The Springbok Women have recent experience playing against them, losing 19-23 in a tightly fought match at Athlone Stadium in the WXV2 competition in October 2024. It was a match in which the spirit of the Bok Women was on display as they trailed 7-17 at half-time. They fought back hard in the second half, but a final ball failing to go to hand denied them victory. 'It was really one pass away from a famous victory… it was very close,' De Bruin said. 'Italy has improved as well. They did so well in the Six Nations. They [nearly] upset France and France is a big dog. We know we're going to have to turn every stone and bring our A-game if we want a positive result.' Italy ended the Six Nations in fourth place, securing victories over Scotland and Wales and suffering three losses, to Ireland, England and France. Star player The Springbok Women's Sevens squad fell at the final hurdle at the World Championships in Los Angeles at the start of May, which ended their quest for a spot in the second division of the SVNS circuit. The team members who played in the knockout matches were inexperienced and lost 14-17 to Kenya in the final. Nadine Roos, whose unrelenting attitude dragged the team to the final in the first place, was at the heart of all the excellent work achieved, including scoring one try, setting up another and converting both. De Bruin now has the services of the talented playmaker available as the team build towards the Rugby World Cup, along with a few other young players, including skilful youngster Leigh Fortuin. 'It's always good,' De Bruin said about the sevens players returning to 15s. 'Their skill level is high. Their conditioning is good. I always love when the sevens players come back.' De Bruin's approach to get the most out of Roos, who so often is the gamebreaker in 15s rugby as well, is to get her as close to the action as possible. 'She plays in the spine,' De Bruin explained. 'The spine for me is [numbers] nine, 10 or 15. She enjoys all three [positions]. When I played her at nine, she looked very dangerous. With our counterattack system that we're training and working a lot on now, she works very well at 15.' Roos started her international career on the wing before donning the fullback jersey. Last season, when regular No 10 Libbie Janse van Rensburg moved to the back, was the first time Roos played as flyhalf for the national team. The pair have played together in the sevens and 15s circuit since their days of playing together at the University of Pretoria. 'In any case, the style I attack and the way we want to play, the 10 and the 15, they swap roles like [Handré] Pollard and Willie le Roux,' De Bruin said. 'We do a similar sort of thing. Both players are back when they kick to us and the counterattack starts with both of them.' De Bruin explained that Roos will be back at fullback as her primary position this season, but she will cover flyhalf and scrumhalf as alternative options. 'She can play anywhere – [we don't want] to stuff her around too much,' he said. '[No] 15 will be the priority, and then 10 she's very good and in a crisis we can play her at nine, you never know. 'Rassie [Erasmus] took four scrumhalves to the World Cup, so we might take three.' Final preparation As the preparation for the Rugby World Cup continues, the side's resources will be split. South Africa will play in the Rugby Africa Women's Cup next month against Uganda, Kenya and Madagascar. In the three years since 2019 that the tournament has taken place, the Bok Women have won it. This time, the brains trust has decided to send a slightly less-experienced side, led by lock forward Anathi Qolo. De Bruin won't be at the tournament, which will be hosted in Madagascar, and either assistant coach Bafana Nhleko or Franzel September will take over the reins temporarily. Apart from the Rugby Africa Women's Cup, the Springbok Women will play four friendlies before the World Cup, which will be the true test of how far they have come. They will take on No 2-ranked side Canada in two matches and a Black Ferns XV in New Zealand in the other two. It's the first time De Bruin has coached a women's side, and after eight months at the helm he is starting to figure out how to get his team going for the big matches – which every match is until the conclusion of the World Cup. 'It's fantastic. I'm very blessed to do it,' De Bruin said about his time in the hot seat. 'It's totally different. When they're happy they play [well]. If you give them tons and tons of confidence, they excel. If you do it with men, they get overconfident and you get a hammering.' De Bruin will look to instil this confidence in his side in their quest to reach uncharted territory in England in August. DM This story first appeared in our weekly Daily Maverick 168 newspaper, which is available countrywide for R35.
IOL News
24-05-2025
- Sport
- IOL News
Zenay Jordaan's return potential game-changer for Springbok Women ahead of Rugby World Cup
Zenay Jordaan Former Springbok Women flyhalf Zenay Jordaan (front) will return to the World Cup in a coaching capacity. Photo: BackpagePix Image: BackpagePix Springbok Women performance coach Swys de Bruin has stressed the importance of utilising the intellectual capital of the likes of player-turned-coach Zenay Jordaan as the Rugby World Cup looms ever larger. The 34-year-old Jordaan can offer the Bok Women's staff valuable insight into the tournament. The former flyhalf was a prominent member of the team that featured at the last World Cup, in New Zealand in 2022. She played her last Test for the Bok Women at Waitakere Stadium in Auckland in 2022, bringing to a close a 36-cap career that was a record at the time. Come England and RWC 2025, Jordaan – who recently completed World Rugby's Level 3 coaching course – will return to the global showpiece with the Springbok Women in a coaching capacity, assisting South Africa's coaching staff as part of World Rugby's Gallagher High Performance Academy programme. She is also the assistant coach for the Bulls Daisies, South Africa's top provincial team. 'We all know what a brilliant player she was, and to have the intellectual property of one of the legends in the women's game around is very positive,' De Bruin said. 'As to her role in the coaching set-up, I am adamant about the development of female coaches, as I believe they are the best way forward in the women's game. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Springbok Women's assistant coach Laurian Johannes-Haupt has made a successful transition from player to coach. Image: SA Rugby 'Zenay is already involved with the best provincial team in the country, and to have her around is a benefit to us all. 'The growth of rugby is about spreading the word, not keeping everything in a secluded group of people.' Incidentally, Bok Women assistant coach Laurian Johannes-Haupt was in a similar role in 2022, but she has since progressed into a full-time coaching position in SA Rugby's High-Performance department. Jordaan joined the Bok Women training camp in Stellenbosch last week as the 'on-field' element of her high-performance course kicked in, much to the delight of the former flyhalf. 'I really enjoyed the online part of the course thus far, and I learned so much from so many experienced coaches in that time,' said Jordaan. 'It certainly added to my knowledge and composure as a coach. 'On the field is where I am at my most happy, so to have this opportunity to come and implement those guidelines was as pleasing. 'The fact that I know those players and played with some others at the last tournament has made life easier for me. 'Also, with Laurian, who walked this journey before me, also here was another bonus. 'She has given me good advice where needed, and I can always check in with her if I am not sure about something." Springbok Women's coach Swys de Bruin supports the development of female coaches, as he feels they are the best way forward in the women's game. Image: Henk Kruger/Independent Newspapers Saturday marks 90 days to go to the World Cup in England. 'What has struck me thus far is the quality of the coaches they have here and how they manage to bring the message across to the players,' Jordaan observed. 'There is good communication going both ways. 'The players are asking good questions, and what impressed me is the clarity of communication regarding the sessions so far.' Zenay Jordaan will feature in her fourth @RugbyWorldCup later this year, but this time in a new capacity - more here: 👍#MakeItCount — SA Women's Rugby (@WomenBoks) May 21, 2025 The Bok Women are hoping to improve on their previous best finish at the Rugby World Cup (10th in 2010 and 2014) in England, and Jordaan is quietly optimistic about that. 'So far so good – the 100-day countdown has started, but we should not get ahead of ourselves,' she said. 'The most important thing will be to make the most of each training session and get the maximum value out of that. 'It might sound far away, but it will go fast from here on in, so the quality of work at training from here on in will be very important.' The South Africans have also had to focus on preparations for the defence of their Rugby Africa Women's Cup title in Madagascar next month.
Daily Maverick
24-04-2025
- Sport
- Daily Maverick
Nolusindiso Booi has paved the way for the next generation of Bok Women
The Springbok Women skipper has travelled a long road to the top and will conclude her journey at rugby's pinnacle later this year. It took Nolusindiso Booi less than a year to go from picking up a rugby ball for the first time to playing provincial rugby. And four years after learning to catch and pass she made her debut for the national team. Her rapid rise speaks to both the incredible talent of the now skipper as well as the lack of depth, at the time, of the Springbok Women. Almost exactly 15 years since her debut, Booi earned her 50th cap for the Bok Women in the side's 48-26 drubbing of Spain last weekend. In the process she became the first Springbok Woman player to reach the milestone. Booi's debut match, against Kazakhstan at the Al Ain Rugby Club in Dubai in 2010, was at a time when interest in the women's game was nearly nonexistent in South Africa. Her career would include the team performances being so dire that SA Rugby would withdraw the national team from international rugby. And at the tail end of Booi's career the Bok team have never been better and have never had more support. Booi has seen and lived through it all, while buckling down in the middle of the scrum and jumping highest in the lineout while leading her side with the flag of the country on her chest. While the Springbok Women's growth, on the field and commercially, is trending upward, Booi won't be there when they reach their pinnacle, since the 39-year-old plans to hang up her boots at the conclusion of the Rugby World Cup in August and September. From Xesi to the Boks Her journey with the oval ball started as a 20-year-old at the University of Fort Hare in Alice in the Eastern Cape. She was walking between classes when one of the rugby coaches spotted her lanky figure and knew she would be a perfect fit for the university's second row. But the physical game was initially unfamiliar to Booi who had grown up playing cricket in the streets of her village of Trust Three in the small town of Xesi with her male family members. 'I never had any idea what rugby was because back in my village we only knew cricket,' Booi told Daily Maverick. 'Everyone was playing cricket, like my uncles and everyone and my brothers were involved in cricket. I grew up in that kind of environment and I started to fall in love with cricket.' But the opportunities that arose from playing rugby gripped Booi immediately. 'From the first time that I played the first game I was sure that this is what I want to do,' she said. 'It was fun for me because there was a lot of travelling, something that I was not used to because I grew up in a village and I never got a chance to travel from province to province. 'When I saw that there are people that are playing for the national team, my interests got bigger. I wanted to play for the national team as well.' Booi's transition into the sport was made easier by her athleticism built from other sports she played growing up. Outside of the hand-eye coordination from playing cricket, she was also a sprinter and did long jump in high school. Combined with her tall frame, this made her the perfect candidate for the No 5 jersey in the national team. A jersey she has held for the better part of 15 years, along with captaining the team. World Cup goals With a lack of real financial investment in the Springbok Women, the side struggled on the international stage, winning only one group-stage match across both the 2010 and 2014 Rugby World Cups – in which Booi played – forcing SA Rugby to rethink the side. After the 2014 World Cup SA Rugby withdrew the national women's team from international rugby, instead opting to focus on grassroots development to ensure the team would be more competitive when they rejoined. While it meant that the women's rugby system has improved in the country, it has also meant that Booi missed the opportunity to add several more national team caps to her name as well as missing the 2017 World Cup during her prime rugby-playing days in her late twenties. The Boks returned to the biggest women's rugby tournament in 2022 but again failed to win a match. Since then, however, investment in the game has increased significantly, including hiring one of the country's brightest rugby minds, Swys de Bruin, as coach. Young talent has also been unearthed within the side, with Booi's lock-forward partner, Vainah Ubisi, being one of the breakthrough players for the team in 2024. Their results have been on an upward trajectory too, which includes running the much higher-rated Australia (26-33) and Italy (19-23) extremely close in the same year. South Africa are in a group with France, Italy and Brazil at this year's World Cup. Two out of three wins would see them reach the knockout stage for the first time. 'Everyone that is going to the World Cup, their aim is to win the World Cup, but with us we're just taking baby steps,' skipper Booi said. The talk out of the Bok Women camp is that the quarterfinals are the big goal for the side. 'When you reach those quarters and you play there, you don't know what might happen next,' Booi added. 'If you win, you go through.'
