Habana shows his desire in slippery Stellies

BRYAN HABANA scored two tries as the Springbok Sevens made a three-match unbeaten start to the 7s International tournament in Stellenbosch yesterday.

In bitterly cold conditions and with a hailstorm forcing the players off the muddy field in their second match at the Markötter Stadium, the Blitzboks beat Western Province twice (29-0 and 38-0) and Zimbabwe 38-0.

But apart from getting in some match practice for the squad, Blitzbok coach Neil Powell would’ve been delighted to see Habana having firstly just made it to Stellenbosch, and then scoring two tries during the day one action.

Habana played in the French Top 14 final last Friday for Toulon at the famous Nou Camp, where they lost 29-21 to Racing Metro.

But the man who has won virtually every major honour in Southern Hemisphere and European rugby is hoping to put the cherry on top of an unbelievable career with a gold medal at the Rio Olympics.

Habana – who turned 33 earlier this month – faces serious competition for a place in the final 12-man squad for Brazil, although his appearance in Stellenbosch would’ve proved the desire and commitment he has to Powell’s team.

SA Rugby said on their website that Ryan Kankowski, Philip Snyman, Cecil Afrika, Francois Hougaard and Ruhan Nel didn’t participate yesterday due to minor niggles, and that Habana “showed up well” on the day.

“We wanted to test a number of new things we did in training and especially at kickoffs, and it worked. The conditions weren’t great and that impacted on our attack and defence,” Powell said.

“With the ball so wet, no team could really take it wide, so it was easier to defend against. On attack again, the slippery ball was a problem. Overall, I am pretty pleased, though. I saw some good things out there and the way we played in our second match, against Zimbabwe, was pretty good.”

Werner Kok also continued his comeback from a long-term injury by scoring a double in the opening game against WP, and he will join Habana during the finals today in trying to impress Powell once last time before the Olympic squad is announced in about two weeks’ time.

“The field will still be wet (on Saturday), no doubt, but at least the ball will be dry and that will give us more options on how we want to attack,” Powell said.

“It’s the same for the opponents and that will in turn be a good test on defence, so I am looking forward to day two.”