Blitzboks reach SVNS Valladolid Cup Final but unbeaten Australia await

South Africa defeated Argentina 19-7 in the semi-finals of SVNS Valladolid on Saturday to reach yet another HSBC SVNS Cup Final, where they will face the tournament’s last unbeaten side, Australia.

Sebastian Jobb and Ricardo Duarttee each crossed for tries as the Blitzboks built a lead before Ryan Oosthuizen sealed the result with a 14th-minute effort in the closing stages. South Africa controlled possession through the business end of the contest to close out a comfortable margin.

The Blitzboks arrive at the final as the top-ranked side in the World Championship standings — a position they will hold regardless of Sunday’s result. Their dominant regular season form carried into the tournament, which included a first-ever victory at the Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens.

However, Australia represent a genuine threat. The Australians punched their ticket to the final with a 21-14 win over Fiji, with three-time Olympian Henry Hutchison scoring a double and James Turner also getting on the scoresheet. Crucially, Australia handed South Africa their only defeat of the Valladolid event during the pool stage — and have beaten the Blitzboks in New York earlier this season.

“Obviously they beat us in the pool stages, they beat us in New York so they’ve been a bit of our bogey team,” Oosthuizen told RugbyPass in Valladolid. “They’re a quality side — we really need to fix our errors, look after the ball, make our tackles, just play quality rugby.”

Oosthuizen acknowledged that South Africa’s performances across the first two days of the event had fallen short of their own standards, but expressed confidence in the squad’s ability to raise their game when it matters most.

“The past two days we weren’t happy with our performances… when the pressure is up, then we perform. But when you go through the motions, it’s almost like we don’t pitch up. It’s probably a mental thing we need to focus on and get over with. Luckily when crunch time is there we pitch up.”

With Argentina, Spain, New Zealand and Fiji all eliminated before the final, the Cup decider in Valladolid pits the first and sixth-ranked sides in the World Championship standings against each other. A South Africa win would extend their lead over second-placed Argentina ahead of the season finale in Bordeaux next week.

Australia also have significant motivation. A victory would deliver maximum points and push them as high as possible up the standings before Bordeaux, where the World Championship title will be decided and the top eight sides will secure core status for the 2026/27 SVNS season.