BLITZBOKS BECOME THE FIRST TEAM TO SUCCESSFULLY DEFEND CAPE TOWN SVNS CROWN

DIE Kaap was weer Hollands on Sunday, with South Africa’s Blitzboks successfully defending their Cape Town SVNS crown at Cape Town Stadium.

With 50 seconds left on the clock in the final against Argentina, it looked like Los Pumas were going to stun the hosts by claiming gold as they led 19-14 thanks to two tries from Marcos Moneta and one from Luciano Gonzalez.

Donavan Don  and Sonwabo Sokoy scored for the South Africans.

But the unbeaten Blitzboks had other planne, with Shilton van Wyk knocking the ball out of Argentina’s hands, with Ricardo Duarttee then launching a counterattack that ended with Christo Grobbelaar running in the try under the sticks to make it 19-19.

Ricky Duarttee then added the extras to make it 22-19.

The Argies had one final push at glory, but the South Africans’ guts brought them glory as they defended like men possessed to become the first team to win back-to-back titles innie Kaap.

One player who stood out in the final was the man of the match Van Wyk, who said of the win: “We just thank God for giving us this opportunity to play the game we love and to go back-to-back is something special for our team.”

SA beat Fiji 24-21, New Zealand 19-14 and Great Britain 14-7 on Friday to advance to the knockout stage, where they klapped France 22-17 in a thriller in the semi-finals.

Of going back-to-back, coach Philip Snyman said: “It’s a dream come true... it’s an amazing tournament in Cape Town, playing in front of our friends and families.”