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Vianca Boer and Patience Mokone Earn Springbok Women’s Sevens Call-ups for Spain
The Springbok Women’s Sevens squad named for the second leg of the HSBC SVNS World Championship has a much more settled look, and given the additional time to prepare, head coach Cecil Afrika backs his charges for a positive performance at Estadio José Zorrilla in Valladolid, Spain on Friday, 29 May 2026.
The South Africans suffered a rash of injuries before the first leg of the World Championship in Hong Kong last month and, with limited time to prepare for that event, finished 12th out of 12 teams, but Afrika has much more belief for this tournament in northern Spain, before they head to Bordeaux in France for the final stop of the season. afsport.lat
The return of Vianca Boer to the squad brings an element of versatility, while the inclusion of Patience Mokone adds some try-scoring pace to the South African outfit.
Neither of the two has experienced top-tier sevens rugby before, but Afrika is confident that their exploits in SVNS 2 and the Challenger Series will be helpful in Europe.
“There is a big difference between our preparation for Hong Kong, where we had to replace four injured players and blood some youngsters in the week before departure and this squad of 14 players travelling,” said Afrika.
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“We had a very good month of preparation and from our review sessions following Hong Kong, I could see the confidence and belief in the squad growing as we get ready to face Australia, USA and Fiji in our pool.
“We are still going there to get into the knock-out stages and to improve our overall ranking, and this team has the ability to deliver.”
Springbok Women’s Sevens Head Coach, Cecil Afrika
Afrika lamented the loss of Asisipho Plaatjies, who ruptured her Achilles in Hong Kong, an injury that will keep her out of the game for the rest of the year: “We wish her a speedy rehabilitation and recovery, she had an operation a couple of weeks back.”
Plaatjies joins Nadine Roos, Liske Lategan, Simamkele Namba and Shannon-Lee Windvogel on the 2026 injury list.
“Vianca returns after an injury in SVNS 3 and while she has not played in a while, her learning curve remains very good,” the SA coach said.
“The intensity will be a challenge, but I have more than enough confidence in her contributions, while Patience showed in SVNS 2 that she can score tries and impact results.”
The review sessions following the Hong Kong tournament, where the team scored a famous win over Great Britain, were positive and contributed to their upbeat mindset ahead of their Pool B matches.
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“We saw many good things in those reviews, and we could apply those learnings to our training sessions,” said Afrika. “We will have to be ruthless in our approach and added that element to our preparation.”
The squad will leave for Spain on Sunday.
Springbok Women’s Sevens Pool B fixtures at the HSBC SVNS World Championship at at Estadio José Zorrilla in Valladolid, Spain from Friday 29 May to Saturday 30 May 2026 (CAT times):
Fri 29 May, 10h22: South Africa v USA
Fri 29 May, 14h29: South Africa v Australia
Sat 30 May, 10h00: South Africa v Fiji
Springbok Women’s Sevens squad (HSBC SVNS stats)
#3 Patience Mokone – uncapped
#4 Zintle Mpupha (captain) – 13 tournaments, 65 points (13 tries)
#7 Maria Tshiremba – 7 tournaments, 70 points (14 tries)
#10 Byrhandré Dolf – 4 tournaments, 8 points (4 conversions)
#15 Vianca Boer – uncapped
#16 Shiniqwa Lamprecht – 9 tournaments, 0 points
#19 Shanidiné Bezuidenhout – 1 tournament, 5 points (1 try)
#20 Catha Jacobs – 2 tournaments, 0 points
#21 Jané Mulder – 1 tournament, 0 points
#22 Owami Mohuli – 1 tournament, 0 points
#23 Ayanda Malinga – 9 tournaments, 70 points (14 tries)
#26 Lerato Makua – 2 tournaments, 5 points (1 try)
#27 Maceala Samboya – 1 tournament, 0 points
#30 Eloise Webb – 10 tournaments, 7 points (1 try, 1 conversion)
Original Copy: SA Rugby Communications, with editing by gsport
Main Photo Caption: An uncapped duo of Vianca Boer and Patience Mokone (pictured) bring versatility and attacking pace as captain Zintle Mpupha leads a settled Springbok Women’s Sevens squad into the second leg of the HSBC SVNS World Championship at Estadio José Zorrilla in Valladolid, Spain. File Photo: Gallo Images / SA Rugby
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Lamontville Golden Arrows' Sede Dion on the verge of PSL Golden Boot history
As the 2025/2026 Betway Premiership season reaches its simultaneous 3pm conclusion this Saturday, Lamontville Golden Arrows striker Sede Dion stands on the brink of making Premier Soccer League (PSL) history. Currently leading the goalscoring charts with 14 goals, Dion could become the first player from the Ivory Coast, and only the second from West Africa, to claim the prestigious Lesley Manyathela Golden Boot.
Coupe du Monde 2026 – Groupe E : Adeyemi, Andrich, Füllkrug… les absents majeurs de la liste d’Allemagne
La sélection de l’Allemagne pour la Coupe du Monde 2026 dans le Groupe E suscite déjà de nombreux débats outre-Rhin. Le sélectionneur allemand Julian Nagelsmann a tranché dans le vif avec plusieurs choix forts, laissant à quai des joueurs expérimentés et des éléments en pleine progression. Parmi les absents les plus marquants figurent Karim Adeyemi, Robert Andrich ou encore Niclas Füllkrug. L’absence de Karim Adeyemi surprend particulièrement. L’attaquant du Borussia Dortmund sort pourtant d’une saison moyenne avec 10 buts et 6 passes décisives en 39 rencontres toutes compétitions confondues. Sa vitesse et sa capacité à faire des différences en transition semblaient être des armes importantes pour la Mannschaft. Même constat pour Julian Brandt, auteur de 11 buts et 4 passes décisives cette saison, mais finalement écarté de la liste finale. Ter Stegen malchanceux Marc-André ter Stegen n’a pas profité. Pendant toute sa carrière internationale, le gardien du FC Barcelone a vécu dans l’ombre de Manuel Neuer. Avec la retraite annoncée du portier du Bayern Munich, Ter Stegen pensait enfin devenir le numéro un de la National Mannschaft pour le Mondial 2026. Mais les blessures répétées du gardien barcelonais ont changé la donne. Entre-temps, Neuer est finalement revenu sur sa décision et retrouve sa place dans le groupe allemand, laissant Ter Stegen hors de la liste finale pour ce tournoi. Füllkrug, Andrich et les autres oubliés D’autres absences interrogent également, notamment celles de Niclas Füllkrug, Tim Kleindienst et Robert Andrich, pourtant habitués du groupe ces dernières années. En défense, Yann Aurel Bisseck, Maximilian Mittelstädt et Josha Vagnoman n’ont pas été retenus. Enfin, plusieurs jeunes talents comme Tom Bischof, Noah Atubolu ou Kevin Schade devront encore patienter avant de découvrir une Coupe du Monde avec la sélection allemande.
L’article Coupe du Monde 2026 – Groupe E : Adeyemi, Andrich, Füllkrug… les absents majeurs de la liste d’Allemagne est apparu en premier sur AfricaFootUnited.
The cost of commercialisation in school sports
This article was a really good read today. Amongst the things I was thinking about it we are all trying to justify our own existence, including myself, and sleep well at night — but how many of us truly have the kids’ interests as a priority, and how many of us are seeing them as a means to profiting in some way or another?
Amongst the interesting things is that the more dependent school rugby becomes as a source of income, the greater the need appears to be to control the narrative around what is ethically right and wrong. It starts to feel like there is a constant process of justification, where the more uncomfortable realities are either softened, blurred, or redirected — often by shifting blame elsewhere.
Another thought I had was about the revenue stream and its potential. In the same way I have said school rugby needs a central governing body, it ideally needs a collective structure to help schools regain control of their own product and, in doing so, maximise the commercial and broadcasting value that sits within it.
If the WPPL, the two SWD big guns, Grey College, the Eastern Cape boys’ schools, the top six Gauteng boys’ schools, the Noordvaal Cup Premier League schools, and KZN’s tier one programs came together, that would form a powerful and still manageable collective of around 45 schools. You could even add a handful of other schools that consistently draw strong audiences to reach a round number of 50.
That kind of consolidated bargaining power would fundamentally change the equation. It would allow schools to either attract major corporate sponsors collectively or sell broadcasting rights as a unified product to the highest bidder. Either way, the key shift is control — and with it, a far more structured and transparent flow of revenue back into the schools that generate the product in the first place.…
Cigar but not close – Paul Roos vs Paarl Boys’ High
If Paarl Gim and with it the Paarl Interskole spectacle did not exist, one could make a compelling case that Paul Roos versus Paarl Boys’ High would stand as the premier schoolboy rugby derby in the country and possibly the biggest in the world. The fixture carries history, talent density and competitive weight in abundance. Yet it has, in some ways, been absorbed into the background schoolboy rugby’s broader hierarchy — not because it lacks relevance, but because it does not carry the same traditional “main rivalry” branding that elevates certain fixtures into folklore status.
Even so, it remains a consistent highlight on the annual calendar. It is a derby that, more often than not, reflects form rather than narrative. Unlike contests that can descend into volatility or emotional distortion, Paul Roos versus Paarl Boys’ High tends to reward clarity of structure, execution under pressure, and the ability to impose a game model over 70 minutes. The scoreboard usually tells the story without much ambiguity, with decisive margins more common than last-minute drama. In fact, the last time the two schools were separated by a single score was in 2014 — a telling statistic in a fixture that otherwise tends to stretch into clearer separations.
That brings the conversation into 2026 and the question of current balance: who arrives as the form side?
On recent evidence, Paul Roos present as the more consistent and system-driven outfit. There is a recognisable continuity to their approach — structured phase play, defensive organisation, and a preference for controlling territory and tempo rather than chasing chaos. There is a recognised identity in all their game this season. That stability has value in a fixture of this nature, where emotional surges are less decisive than disciplined execution.
Paarl Boys’ High, by contrast, remain a more unpredictable proposition. Their ceiling is undeniable. When their forward platform is dominant and their physical rhythm aligned, they are capable of overwhelming opponents and turning matches into one-sided contests like they did against Stellenberg in an impressive 29-7 victory a weekend ago. However, that same profile comes with variance. In games where cohesion breaks down or the game becomes fragmented, they can appear one-dimensional — easier to read and breakdown, and they find it more difficult to sustain momentum across phases.
This contrast defines the 2026 narrative: one side built on consistency and structure, the other on power and peaks.
In a fixture that so often follows the direction of the “form team,” that distinction becomes critical. Paul Roos’ steadiness gives them a higher base level week to week, while Paarl Boys’ High showed they have the capacity to elevate above anyone when their game clicks. The tension therefore lies in which version of Boishaai arrives at Markotter Field in Stellenbosch on Saturday, 23 May 2026 — and whether Paul Roos can prevent the game from ever becoming a contest of pure physical momentum.
Recent history and margins
Home team Paul Roos first
| DATE | EVENT | MARGIN | ||||
| 20 Jul 2013 | Paul Roos | 20 | 21 | Paarl BH | Paarl BH | 1 |
| 07 Jun 2014 | Paul Roos | 17 | 13 | Paarl BH | Paul Roos | 4 |
| 20 Jun 2015 | Paul Roos | 10 | 29 | Paarl BH | Paarl BH | 19 |
| 28 May 2016 | Paul Roos | 03 | 28 | Paarl BH | Paul Roos | 25 |
| 27 May 2017 | Paul Roos | 09 | 21 | Paarl BH | Paarl BH | 12 |
| 19 May 2018 | Paul Roos | 44 | 08 | Paarl BH | Paul Roos | 36 |
| 25 May 2019 | Paul Roos | 16 | 29 | Paarl BH | Paarl BH | 13 |
| 21 May 2022 | Paul Roos | 15 | 35 | Paarl BH | Paul Roos | 20 |
| 27 May 2023 | Paul Roos | 35 | 17 | Paarl BH | Paarl BH | 18 |
| 20 Apr 2024 | Paul Roos | 25 | 10 | Paarl BH | Paul Roos | 15 |
| 24 May 2025 | Paul Roos | 26 | 36 | Paarl BH | Paarl BH | 10 |