Regular season champions South Africa have booked their place in the Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens quarter-finals, bouncing back from a shock defeat to Spain with a ruthless 38-0 shutout win over a six-man Argentina outfit.
South Africa won four of six events during a dominant SVSN 1 campaign, which saw them secure the regular season crown at New York’s Sports Illustrated Stadium. But the World Championship Series saw the ladder effectively reset, with more silverware still to be won.
The Blitzboks have never won the Hong Kong Sevens, and their quest for a maiden title didn’t get off to an ideal start at Kai Tak Sports Park. Uruguay fell to the SVNS giants 12-7 in the first round of pool matches, before the South Africans suffered a shock 31-12 loss to Spain.
Defending Hong Kong Sevens champions Argentina are the other side in the pool, but they had already secured their place in the Cup knockouts. South Africa needed to either win or claim a losing bonus point to keep their title dream alive.
Ryan Oosthuizen was prolific from the get-go, with the SVNS Series veteran ending up with the ball off the kick-off. It was all South Africa early on, with Oosthuizen coming incredibly close to scoring the opener after just 35 seconds.
2025 World Rugby Sevens Player of the Year Luciano Gonzalez made a powerful try-saving stop on Oosthuizen, with the Blitzbok’s foot hitting the sideline. That gave Argentina a chance to set up for a lineout well inside their own half, but it didn’t go to plan.
Oosthuizen rose highest and got hand to ball, winning the lineout on Argentina’s throw. The Blitzboks spread the ball from one sideline to the other, with Sebastiaan Jobb beating Gonzalez to cross for the opening points.
Argentina controlled possession for the next couple of minutes but remained parked well inside their own half. Martiniano Arrieta thew an ambitious flick pass but it was picked off by Oosthuizen, who raced away to score under the posts.
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Arrieta was shown a red card shortly after, following a tip tackle on Zain Davids. Argentina had to play most of the match with six players on the field, and the South Africans made the most of that advantage immediately.
South Africa elected to set up for an attacking scrum just inside the opposition half, and it worked wonders for the SVNS 1 winners. Selvyn Davids fed the ball in before flying down the blindside, throwing a dummy to split two defenders.
Oosthuizen was again in the thick of the action as the Blitzboks scored one more try before the break, with Tristan Leyds touching down before slotting the difficult conversion. South Africa took a commanding 26-0 lead into the half-time huddle.
Shilton van Wyk, who is the co-leader on the RugbyPass Men’s SVNS Series leaderboard after six tournaments, helped South Africa start the second term in style. Van Wyk raced away for the team’s fifth five-pointer, scoring less than 20 seconds into the half.
Leyds completed a double with about four minutes remaining, and that ended up being the final points scored in this one-sided Pool A showdown. Both teams are still through to the quarters, which will be played later on Saturday.
