‘We are all so relieved’: Blitzboks end Hong Kong Sevens title drought

It is incredible to think that across the long history of South African sevens rugby, it had taken until 2026 for the Blitzboks to win a title at the “home of sevens.”

However, its final arrival in the form of a 35-7 victory over Argentina has proven that not only is the South African side in the mix to win back-to-back championships, but it could be the start of much more.

The 2026 Hong Kong Sevens proved significant on many fronts, with South African women’s side also playing after strong campaigns across the 2026 season.

Despite claiming the title, the Blitzboks are vowing not to rest on their laurels, with both sides returning to their training base at Stellenbosch to prepare for an intense second finals leg in Valladolid.

Speaking with Times Live, Blitzbok Ronald Brown believes that the success of the 2025-26 series has come down to a mental shift, more than anything.

“The win that eluded so many Blitzbok sides was huge, and we are all so relieved the bogey is no more,” Brown said.

“More importantly from that win, though, was the way we achieved it. We again realised that if we play the way our coaches have prepared us, we are a hard team to beat. If we execute, we will have success.

It was also a mental win for us, we started poorly on day one but once we applied our minds, success followed. That was another reminder that we need to be ready, not only physically but mentally too.”

Building belief and a successful culture where winning becomes second nature is the goal any rugby side, no matter the format, aspires to achieve.

While the Blitzboks have continued their success from last year, what has been most impressive has been the translation of success into the younger players, with nearly half of their squad under the age of 25.

While six debutants have also come through the ranks in the 2025/26 series as well, the success of the side in Hong Kong has set the stage for long-term success under the current coaching staff.

This is also translated over to the women’s side, who, despite finishing last in Hong Kong, have had a colossal year in Sevens, winning the SVNS 3 tournament and finishing third in SVNS 2.

This has also come with multiple new debutants, among them Jané Mulder, the daughter of 1995 World Cup-winning centre Japie Mulder, who made her debut in Hong Kong.

“I didn’t really plan to play rugby seriously; I just wanted to play to enjoy myself,” Mulder said in an interview with the University of Pretoria.

“Before long, though, I found myself playing with complete dedication. At first, I didn’t tell my parents that I was playing rugby. When I told them, they were initially quite shocked. But now my mother, Ronel, is one of my biggest supporters.

“My dad keeps encouraging me to do my own thing on the field. If there’s one thing he hates, it’s players who are like robots on the field. According to my dad, a good player should be able to adapt to what’s happening on the field at any time.”

The next step for the Blazeboks will be qualifying for the World Series, and the side will have plenty of work to do in Valladolid and Bordeaux if it is to achieve that feat, and bring the curtain down on a seismic year that has seen considerable shifts in the program.

Even if they don’t achieve their goal this series, 2025 and 2026 have already proven years of colossal growth for South African women’s rugby, following hot on the heels of the Springbok Women making the quarterfinals for the first time at last year’s Rugby World Cup.

The Blazeboks will take on Fiji, the USA and Australia in Pool B at Valladolid, while the Blitzboks will face Australia, Kenya and Great Britain in Pool A next month.