Sandile Ngcobo and Philip Snyman, two former players who were chosen to coach the Springbok Sevens squad on Thursday, will usher in a new era for the Blitzboks.
Neil Powell and Renfred Dazel will be replaced as head coach and assistant coach, respectively, by Ngcobo and ex-captain Snyman.
After retiring from playing in 2018, Ngcobo, 33, served as the director of the South African Rugby Sevens Academy and helped Paul Delport with the Bok Women’s Sevens team at the Commonwealth Games and Rugby World Cup Sevens.
Snyman, 35, was also coaching at the Stellenbosch Academy of Sport before assisting Uganda and Germany.
The ideals of the emblem and the brand are undoubtedly extremely important to everyone concerned, and our duties will be to preserve and advance those values.
There is no time to sit around and think since we have a warm-up event the next weekend, so the job must begin right now, according to Ngcobo on Thursday.
“I don’t want to make any significant adjustments; we already know what works. The first task will be to assess the roster that is already on hand and to begin getting ready for our inaugural World Series competition, which will be held in Hong Kong early in November.
Ngcobo has a challenging task ahead of him, particularly after the Blitzboks were eliminated from the World Cup last weekend in Cape Town at the quarterfinal round.
SA Rugby president Mark Alexander said on Thursday: “It wasn’t a tough choice to make. We are all aware that they have enormous shoes to fill, but the management structure of the Springbok Sevens set-up still has a tonne of knowledge and expertise, so we do not anticipate any lessening of the team’s standards or performance.
Although there may be growing pains when some seasoned players move on, the team’s and management’s essential ideals will endure.
The director of rugby for SA Rugby, Rassie Erasmus, added: “Having esteemed former players switch roles to coach the team they played for so long is testimony of the great culture that was created over the years.
“We have seen what the Blitzboks are capable of; for the last 10 or so years, they have constantly been among the top three teams in the world.
That was not accidental; rather, it was the result of years of hard work at their home base, the Stellenbosch Academy of Sport.
“Both instructors are motivated by their experiences as members of the prestigious Blitzboks culture. With the arrival of the new participants, they will undoubtedly ensure that the system’s values advance.