More dominant tackles will have to be the order of the day if the Blitzboks are going to meet success in their World Cup Sevens quarterfinal clash against Ireland at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday evening.

That warning came from captain Siviwe Soyizwapi after they beat Chile 32-5 in their round of 16 match to set up the clash against the Irish.

“We were very clinical on attack, especially in the opening part of our match against Chile, but I think we need to be more dominant on defence as we gave a lot of momentum away in the match,” said Soyizwapi.

“Ireland play a very structured game and to be successful against them, you will have to stop their momentum. We did not do that very well against Chile, so that will be an area to focus on come Saturday,” said Soyizwapi.

Ireland made it into the quarterfinals thanks to their 17-5 win over England on Friday.

Apart from the challenge of maintaining match day focus until deep into the evening, the Blitzboks will also have to guard against slipping up. The Cape Town Stadium surface will likely get greasier as the evening progresses and the hosts may find it a bigger challenge than their opponents who are more accustomed to playing on damp surfaces.

Staying focused

Ronald Brown, one of the stars in their victory over Chile said the team prepared well for their evening kickoff on Friday and will do the same on Saturday.

“We had our training session in the morning and then went back to the hotel to chill for a bit and had our recovery session. So, we jumped in the pool, relaxed a bit, had lunch as a team, and from then on some of the guys had naps, some chilled in the games room.

“Then we regrouped and planned for the game and came to the stadium. Ireland is a quality side, and we know what they are capable of. They have a lot of playmakers with the likes of Terry Kennedy and Jordan Conroy so if we can limit them with ball in hand and make them defend then we should be in for a good match,” advised Brown.

SA's women's team, who lost to France on Friday,  suffered more disappointment when they lost their Challenge quarterfinal at the World Cup Sevens on Saturday morning.

Having been knocked out of the Cup with a defeat to France on Friday, they fell short 14-12 to Japan who defended stoutly in the closing stages of the tense encounter.