Maria Tshiremba's simple Springboks message ahead of SVNS 2 finale

Maria Tshiremba’s message for her Springbok Women’s Sevens teammates is simple ahead of the HSBC SVNS 2 finale in São Paulo.

Even after a third-place finish in Montevideo last weekend secured a place at HSBC SVNS World Championship events in Hong Kong, Valladolid and Bordeaux, the 30-year-old wants to enjoy a dominant weekend in Brazil to end the second tier competition on a high.

“But the work is not done,” Tshiremba said. “It is our aim to finish SVNS 2 on the strongest possible terms. A win will not only be reward for our hard work, but will also improve our confidence going to Hong Kong.”

Time in Uruguay was bookended with losses to Spain and Argentina last weekend. Springboks head coach Cecil Afrika maligned the 14 minutes of rugby that meant his team did not finish any higher on the podium.

“We did not defend well enough against Argentina [22-10 loss],” she said. “They play a very good offloading game and that created gaps in our defence.

“For us to fix that, we need more dominant tackles and that is something we had worked on this week.

“But it is not Argentina only, we must make sure we are accurate against all our opponents, each of them deserve our respect and our A-game.”

So far this season Tshiremba has been a star for South Africa’s women. After HSBC SVNS 3 in Dubai, and SVNS 2 events in Nairobi and Montevideo she has scored 11 tries.

But even with such strong solo form, the 2024 Olympian refuses to take the plaudits and credited her team with providing try scoring opportunities.

“Yes, I am getting more confident the more tries I have scored – I am trusting my ability to beat opponents and how to use my speed effectively,” Tshiremba said.

“But I still need my teammates to create the gaps for me to run into them, so every try is also a testimony of their hard work.”