Blitzboks ready to let Gino out the bottle
03/27/2025 04:58 AM
Head coach Philip Snyman has a plan for this week's Hong Kong Sevens and key to it is 19-year-old Gino Cupido, who is fired up to make his Blitzboks debut.
Snyman’s charges face Uruguay, Australia and New Zealand in their pool at the iconic tournament, which moves to a new venue this year, the Kai Tak Stadium.
The Blitzboks had no luck at the previous venue, the Hong Kong Stadium, in almost three decades, and a change of venue could mean a change of fortunes, although Snyman has not left anything to chance in the buildup to the fifth leg of the season.
They have been testing their opening day strategy at training for Uruguay and Australia on Friday, according to Snyman, who also has a new joker in his pack of cards.
"We have a plan and a clear strategy on how we want to approach these opening two matches on Friday," he said.
"Without giving too much away, we realise that it will be our execution and precision that will be most important.
"Uruguay does not stop trying and will be playing for 14 minutes, so there will be no time for a breather. We have a plan to outfox their defensive alignment, they do come off the line at great speed and we need to combat that."
The same applies to Australia, who has some cunning plays from set piece and penalties: "They had some success against us in previous tournaments, so we adapted accordingly. They are very experienced as well, but as with Uruguay, I believe we have the talent and game plan to beat both of them, even with sevens being as unpredictable as it is."
Part of Snyman's belief is vested in consistent form since winning in Cape Town in December, as well as the ability of the chosen group, with Dewald Human and Zain Davids returning for this event while the uncapped Cupido will be an unknown factor.
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"Zain's power is well documented and Dewald is such an old head in this game, so it is great having them around again," said Snyman.
"Dewald also was great in aiding Gino, whom I predict to achieve great things in rugby. He may only be 19 years old but is full of potential and a player I rate highly already.
"We will need him during the tournament to do his thing and he is fortunate to have some very experienced players around him when that moment arrives."
The hype and anticipation are real, said Cupido, a native of Sir Lowry’s Pass Village and former Strand High School pupil, and he is taking everything in with a deep breath of excitement.
"This is a dream achieved, rather than a dream coming true – I tried lots of sports, but rugby fitted best and in particular sevens rugby has been great for me," he said.
"Not only does it prepare you very well for the 15s game, but I found a rugby family in this team, who have been nothing but amazing to me since I joined. They are always willing to help and my time with them has been so rewarding. Now I can finally repay them on the field as well.
"In fact, not only them, but all the country. To be pulling that jersey over my head tomorrow will be very special for me and my family and to do that at such an iconic event will even make it more special."
Blitzboks' Hong Kong Sevens Pool B fixtures
Friday
vs Uruguay, 11.56am
vs Australia, 2.39pm
Saturday
vs New Zealand, 7.43am
Photo: @Blitzboks/Twitter
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