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Blitzboks handed tough draw as SVNS New York pools confirmed
By Finn Morton
South Africa have surged up the men’s standings with back-to-back title triumphs on the HSBC SVNS Series in Perth and Vancouver. The Blitzboks share top spot with Fiji ahead of the final round of the 2025/26 regular season in New York.
Sports Illustrated Stadium will host the first New York stop in SVNS Series history, with some unmissable sporting drama set to play out on March 14 to 15. The stakes couldn’t be much higher, with the pool draw and match schedule now confirmed.
Every moment of each match matters for the Blitzboks and Fijians, who are level on 86 points. Whoever finishes in pole position will be exempt from a possible relegation battle during the three-leg World Championships.
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Jorja Miller claimed another Player of the Final award after New Zealand’s 24-17 win over Australia in the SVNS Vancouver Women’s Cup Final last weekend. New Zealand are first on the overall women’s standings with 98 points, while Australia occupies second with 92.
South Africa’s quest for the men’s SVNS 1 crown begins in New York with a blockbuster showdown with traditional rivals New Zealand. The Blitzboks will also face Olympic champions France and an in-form Australia outfit in Pool A.
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Fiji headlines the other group, which includes Argentina, Great Britain and Spain. Spain got the better of the Fijians 24-17 in last weekend’s semi-finals at BC Place, which was their first decider of the 2025/26 season.
The Fijians have secured five podium finishes in as many events this season, including a 19-point win over Australia in the Vancouver third-place playoff. Viwa Naduvalo continues to star alongside the likes of Terio Veilawa and George Bose.
“It’s an amazing feeling,” Blitzboks captain Impi Visser said after the team’s Cup Final win at SVNS Vancouver.
“Sometimes we take it for granted but it’s an amazing feeling and we’re really grateful for it.
“We’ve had a lot of changes – six changes from Perth to now and the thing we said we want to build is consistency. I think we’ve shown that through and through. We just need to keep up this momentum going into New York.”
In women’s sevens, ladder-leaders New Zealand get their campaign underway with a clash against Great Britain. The Black Ferns Sevens will play Fiji and France later in Pool A, as they chase what could be their fifth trophy in six events this season.
Australia have made all five Women’s Cup Finals so far this season, but they’ve only claimed silverware on one of those occasions, with a dominant performance seeing them emerge victorious over New Zealand in Cape Town.
The women in gold will look to repeat those title-winning heroics in New York. Australia have been drawn in Pool B alongside Japan, Canada, and a USA outfit who made the semi-finals at the penultimate stop of SVNS 1 in Vancouver.
“The biggest thing for us is that you can never get complacent and there’s always things you can work on and get better at,” New Zealand captain Risi Pouri-Lane said after last weekend’s SVNS Vancouver title triumph.
“They make a big difference in the long run.”
HSBC SVNS New York
Men’s
Pool A: South Africa, Australia, France, New Zealand
Pool B: Spain, Fiji, Argentina, Great Britain
Women’s
Pool A: New Zealand, France, Fiji, Great Britain
Pool B: Australia, USA, Canada, Japan
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