South Africa's Rosco Specman continued to show why he is a truly world-class sevens player with some sensational performances in Wellington.
In Cape Town last December Specman was an integral reason for the Blitzboks reaching and winning the final, with his pace and natural try scoring abiliity showing that he will be one to watch again this series. In Wellington he carried on where he left off in 2015 and was awarded the DHL Impact Player of the Tournament.
Specman's 17 tackles, seven breaks, 27 carries and six offloads helped South Africa to their second final of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series, where they were beaten in a last-minute thriller by hosts New Zealand. The Blitzboks are now top of the series with 54 points, two points ahead of Fiji.
"The coach and the players are very disappointed," said Specman. "There are calls you can’t make on the field, sometimes the bounce of the ball doesn’t go your way. It was a positive performance overall in the tournament and we know our game plan is on the right track."
On day one of Wellington, South Africa started off strongly with wins over Scotland and Russia but their winning streak was ended by eventual winners New Zealand when Joe Webber scored a try late in the game. Finishing second in the pool drew them against Australia in the Cup quarter-final, who they beat 26-14 to set up a huge clash with Fiji. Specman shone as South Africa produced a fine display to win 31-0, scoring one try and slotting two conversions.
Defending against teams with bigger players is a key focus for South Africa and something Specman says the team have been working on.
"We are not the tallest guys so when we defend against much taller guys we like to close their space and try to just gang tackle them to stop the offloads. If we can kill the momentum then we can play from that."
Although Specman was given a yellow card in the final at Wellington, he still managed to score a crucial try to give South Africa a 12-0 lead in the first half and put them in a strong position going into the second half. Joe Webber's last minute try snatched the game out of the Blitzboks' hands but there were plenty of positives to take going into Sydney, none more so than Specman's personal performance.
"It’s key to enjoy yourself and use the space when playing sevens. It’s not 15 man rugby. There are a lot of 15s guys playing so you must just know what your strong points are compared to theirs," said Specman.
"When you get to make line breaks it feels amazing. I always look for that one per cent advantage when I get the ball. I like to make space and I treasure having it."
Elsewhere on the DHL Performance Tracker, seven different teams were represented in the top seven, with the likes of England's Dan Bibby and Samoa's Tila Mealoi putting in some big numbers across the weekend.
