WATCH | Brilliant Blitzboks go back-to-back with victory in Vancouver

The Springbok Sevens claimed a third HSBC SVNS title of the 2026 season by outplaying Spain 38-12 at BC Place in Vancouver on Sunday (Monday morning SA time), a win that closed the series lead held by Fiji to just the points differential.

South Africa and Fiji are on 86 log points with one tournament left in the regular season to be played in New York next weekend.

The Fijians are top of the standings, as they have a +201 points differential compared with the Blitzboks’ +199, and they are the only two teams that can claim the overall series in the US.

It was the Blitzboks’ second win in the SVNS in succession, having been victorious in Perth last month.

The Springbok Sevens qualified for the final by beating Australia 19-12 in their semifinal late on Sunday night, while Spain’s 24-17 win over Fiji in the other top-four match saw them progress to the final.

However, they ran into a Blitzbok blitzkrieg as the South Africans jumped into a 17-0 lead against Spain in the final.

Ryan Oosthuizen scored after a quick tap penalty put him in possession 50m out, and, as in the Perth final last month, he grabbed the opening try of the match.

The Blitzboks’ defensive alignment caused all sorts of problems for Spain, who panicked and tried elaborate passing to release pressure. Twice that resulted in turnovers, with Sebastiaan Jobb and Shilton van Wyk scoring for a 17-0 lead at the break.

Jobb ran onto a pinpoint pass from Tristan Leyds, and Van Wyk chased down a Leyds grubber as South Africa stole a Spain lineout throw. Leyds was named player of the final for his exploits.

The second half delivered another masterclass from Impi Visser and his men. Van Wyk scored shortly after the restart as Spain were again pinned in their half and conceded possession.

The Europeans broke their deadlock when Jeremy Trevithick outpaced the tiring South African defence. From the restart, though, Gino Cupido ran onto a Jobb pass to score, and the successful conversion all but confirmed the result.

Spain added a second five-pointer before the final try was fittingly scored by Visser, who intercepted another stray Spain pass, with the Blitzbok captain running 50m to deliver the final blow.

Earlier on the second day, the Blitzboks outplayed Australia in their semifinal, coming from behind for victory.

Ronald Brown opened the scoring after a good switch move with Oosthuizen left the Aussie defence flat-footed.

Brown then executed a try-saving tackle, but that did not stop the Aussies from scoring twice in short succession to take a 12-7 lead into the break. At this stage, Australia targeted the breakdown to dominate possession.

The second half saw a change in fortunes as the Blitzbok bench made the necessary impact to secure possession. David Brits scored in the corner after a determined run down the touchline, and a delightful conversion by Leyds edged South Africa ahead 14-12.

A turnover by Visser in his own half then delivered the knockout punch. The ball was recycled, and Selvyn Davids dotted down on the opposite side to put South Africa 19-12 ahead.

With the clock in the red, Australia had one more sortie into the South African half, but a handling error resulted in the Blitzboks earning a consecutive win over Australia, the same team they beat in Perth last month, as they marched towards the title. — SA Rugby communications

Scorers

Semifinal:

• South Africa 19 (7) - Tries: Ronald Brown, David Brits, Selvyn Davids. Conversions: Brown, Tristan Leyds.
• Australia 12 (12) - Tries: Aden Ekanayake (2). Conversion: Dietrich Roache.

Final:

• South Africa 38 (17) - Tries: Ryan Oosthuizen, Sebastiaan Jobb, Shilton van Wyk (2), Gino Cupido, Impi Visser. Conversions: Ronald Brown (2), Dewald Human (2).
• Spain 12 (0) - Tries: Jeremy Trevithick, Anton Legorburu Anso. Conversion: Juan Martinez.