Red card disaster hits Blitzboks

The Springbok Sevens hopes of ending the regular HSBC SVNS season in style was hit by disaster as a red card early in their first match against Great Britain virtually ended all chances of them qualifying for the Cup semifinals.

Tough start in Singapore as Great Britain beat the #Blitzboks by 38-10. An early red card followed by a yellow in the second half were very costly for SA as they leaked six tries 😔#PoweredByUnity #HSBCSVNS pic.twitter.com/8nJkDdLphx

— Springbok Sevens (@Blitzboks) April 5, 2025

The Blitzboks lost Sebastian Jobb in the first two minutes, meaning they had to play the majority of the game one man short, and eventually lost 38-10 in a performance they would rather forget.

Jobb’s red card was an unfortunate one, a dangerous tackle getting the red card treatment even though it wasn’t intentional, but it changed the complexion of the game almost immediately.

The match was not a great one from a spectacle point of view, with Harry Glover getting a red card late in the game for taking out Shilton van Wyk in the air, with the latter landing on his head, while Dewald Human also was off the field for a few minutes with a yellow card.

Either way, the bottom line is that with the tournament format - which counts for the second of back to back tournaments on the circuit - only the pool winners will advance to the semifinals, and there are no quarterfinals, highlighting the jeopardy.

Great Britain claim a huge win over the Blitzboks 🇬🇧🏉

📺 Stream #HSBCSVNS on DStv: https://t.co/0P0NNhnwKw pic.twitter.com/mQOxdprlwO

— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) April 5, 2025

That means the Blitzboks only hope of qualifying is to beat defending SVNS Series champions Argentina, who have won the past two tournaments with ease, by a big margin and hoping that Argentina beat Great Britain to force a three way tie on points where points difference will come into play.

But even then the Blitzboks big loss in their first game is likely to count against them, and they look destined for the lower placings.

The format, which World Rugby have embraced because of player welfare concerns, worked for the Blitzboks in Cape Town, but generally leave teams no room for error. And when a red card strikes, it is normally fatal for the rest of the tournament.

For the record, Great Britain scored five tries in the game, two shortly after the red card. Zain Davids and Human scored for the Blitzboks but their numerical advantage would never allow them to have a chance of winning against the odds.

• Kenya opened their tournament on a positive note, beating Ireland 17-7 in their opening game.

•

• The Blitzboks now face Argentina at 10.44am in their only other pool game, with Kenya facing France at 10am