ZIMBABWE’s senior sevens rugby team are not leaving anything to chance ahead of next weekend’s IRB World Sevens Series pre-qualifying competition at the Hong Kong Sevens today gunning for nothing short of a victory.
REPORT BY DANIEL NHAKANISO
The Hong Kong Sevens, round six of the IRB World Series will take place from Friday to Sunday and will double up as the IRB World Series pre-qualifying competition for core status on the circuit.
Zimbabwe’s sevens rugby side, which is affectionately known as the Cheetahs is desperate to do well in Hong Kong after they failed in their bid to make the core group last year.
The South African Sevens national team, popularly known as the “Blitzbokke” and Kenya, are currently the only two teams on the continent with core status.
The Gilbert Nyamutsamba coached side warmed up for the crucial tournament with an impressive display in their home tournament, the SPAR Zimbabwe International tournament where they lifted the Plate title.
In Hong Kong, the Cheetahs will battle it out in Pool G with Russia, Cook Islands and Mexico.
The other non-core teams who will be hoping to secure core status are Tonga, Uruguay, Tunisia and Chinese Taipei occupy Pool E and Japan, Georgia, Jamaica and Brazil are in Pool F.
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The top four teams after the 12 team competition will earn a place at the London leg of the series in May.
In London, the four qualifiers from Hong Kong, plus the bottom three teams from the current series and other non-core teams, will battle it out for three slots on the IRB World Sevens Series core team list.
The IRB World Sevens Series – which is sponsored by British multinational banking and financial services company HSBC – is a series of nine tournaments played throughout the season in Australia, United Arab Emirates, South Africa, New Zealand, United States, Hong, Kong, Japan, Scotland and England.
Only core members take part in all nine legs, while Zimbabwe, who are not yet a core team have only taken part in tournaments in South Africa and Hong Kong.
With the World Cup just around the corner in June, the London Sevens will be an opportunity for the Cheetahs to prepare for the world showpiece, while core-status will see the side becoming a fully-fledged professional side due to increased funding from IRB.
Zimbabwe Sevens rugby manager Bruce Hobson told Standardsport that securing core-status on the IRB World Series was the ultimate goal for the Cheetahs.
“We will be aiming to win the qualifying section in Hong Kong as we are hoping to become a core team on the IRB World Series in London come May.
“The players are aware of how important it is for us to achieve this objective, as it will mean that we have become a professional side, which would effectively transform local sevens rugby and the whole rugby landscape in the country,’ said Hobson, ahead of the team’s departure today.
Meanwhile local schools rugby giants St Georges and Falcon College will next week tour South Africa for the 10th Eastern Rugby Festival to be held at Krugersdorp High School in Johannesburg from March 28 to April 1.
A total of 12 teams will be taking part in the tournament, including Viadana of Northern Italy who enjoy coming to South Africa at this time. Falcon College and St Georges are the only other foreign schools featuring in the tournament while the rest are from South Africa.
Cheetahs Squad: Cheetahs Squad: Fortunate Chipendu, Jacques Leitao (captain), Lucky Sithole, Kelvin Magunje, Tafadzwa Chitokwindo, Gardner Nechironga, Tangai Nemadire, Tapiwa Tsomondo, Njabulo Ndlovu, Daniel Hondo, Wes Mbanje, Garth Ziegler
