Springbok Women and Catha Jacobs target another step forward against Black Ferns

Springbok Women utility forward Catha Jacobs believes time spent playing sevens has helped her in Test rugby.

In the wake of Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 and her team’s quarter-final defeat to the Black Ferns, Jacobs was drafted into the Springbok Women’s Sevens squad for HSBC SVNS 2 and HSBC SVNS World Championship events.

Since those SVNS World Championship tournaments Jacobs has started in three of the Springbok Women’s last four Tests against the USA Women’s Eagles and Fiji.

Ahead of this weekend’s one-off clash with New Zealand as part of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry – a fixture that acts as a warm-up to the third Test between the Springboks and All Blacks at FNB Stadium – Jacobs will get to display her refined skillset in front of home supporters in Soweto, against the second-ranked team win the world.

“I joined the sevens after the Women’s Rugby World Cup and played in the various HSBC SVNS tournaments, which was great for my conditioning, but also my skill level, which improved as well,” Jacobs said.

“There is no doubt in my mind that I have benefitted hugely from being with the sevens group and I can feel that in my XVs play over the last couple of Test matches.

“We are certainly continuing our upward curve that started in the lead up to the World Cup and having several of those sevens teammates in the mix, certainly added to our improved ability.

“We will never move away from our strengths in the first phase and our physicality, but we did add some variety in our play.”

Jacobs will get to show off those refined skills on Saturday afternoon when the Springbok Women host the Black Ferns for the first time.

It was almost a year ago that the two teams faced-off in at Sandy Park in a Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 quarter-final. It was the first time that a South Africa side had reached that stage of the competition and pushed their six-time champion opposition hard in Devon.

At half-time the scoreboard read 10-all. There was a real sense that Swys de Bruin’s Side had found a way to confound the Black Ferns with their direct play and 15-player lineout mauls.

Ultimately the Boks did waver as the fixture continued, as the eventual bronze medal winners claimed a 46-17 victory.

“We left the field frustrated after the [Women’s Rugby World Cup] quarter-final clash against the Black Ferns last September in Exeter,” Jacobs said.

“It was great to have made the last eight for the first time ever and even better to be 10-10 at halftime with a team that dominated World Cups over decades. That second half did not go our way and we were frustrated afterwards, wishing we could turn back the clock.”