They say the only way to get smarter is by playing the smarter opponent. But if you watched the Blitzboks take on Fiji at the London Sevens this weekend and compared it to their efforts in Scotland last weekend, you’d say that statement was completely untrue. The South African Sevens side fell short of yet another World Series title by losing 19-7 in the Cup Quarter final on Sunday.

Last weekend, South Africa was beaten by a faster, smarter, sharper and more powerful side, and seemingly didn’t learn any lessons from the defeat. They were, once again, too keen to lean towards the kicking game, an unforgivable approach in the shorter format and constantly attacking short side which on more than one occasion resulted in turning over possession and Fiji scoring.

The Fiji Sevens team have had a tremendous season and deserve buckets of credit, but South Africa simply was not good enough, not in London and not in Scotland. Fiji have also, it seems, become South Africa’s “bogey” team. They can be beaten, but the Blitzboks seem to enter mental meltdown mode whenever the two sides square off. They have become to the South African Sevens team what New Zealand used to be to the Springboks. But the Blitzboks will recover from this, they have all the resources to grow from this experience and build towards the dream of Olympic gold to go alongside their Commonwealth Gold. It will, however, not be possible without investment. In Sevens, even small investment can make a huge difference as the current World Series Sevens champions, Fiji, have proven.

Fiji have always been competitive at Sevens, but their improvements this season have, at least partly, been down to recent contractual improvements in the sport. These have all come on a very limited budget. As of last season, their Sevens players have earned central contracts, which aren’t worth much. Top tiered Fiji Sevens players will be earning in the region of FIJ$20,000 (R116,802) per season, or around R9,000 per month. All players are on a probationary period and have to maintain standards on and off the field with the intention being that “everyone” is able to earn a contract. Contracting players has given the team more control over its members which focuses their energy into a more channelled approach. The entire budget is still a fraction of what some of the bigger teams can offer their players, but it’s a start.

Central contracts are pivotal in securing team success and nobody knows that better than SARU. They were the first national union to award full-time national contracts to the men’s Sevens team in the 2008/2009 season, and the team has been delivering top results since then.

But it’s not all rosy on the Sevens circuit. The South African women’s Sevens team are severely lagging behind. At the start of 2014, SARU contracted Springbok women’s Seven players for the first time. They also recently unveiled a training programme in an attempt to boost women’s rugby across South Africa, but the on-field results aren’t quite living up to expectations. Players were contracted with one eye on Olympic qualification, but the South African women’s Sevens team currently sits stone last on the World Series log with one leg of the tournament still to go.

They have taken just eight points from five tournaments, meaning they will have won their respective 2015 Regional Association Women’s Sevens Championships between 1 June 2015 and 31 December 2015 in order to qualify for the Olympics. Should they fail to win the regional tournament, they will have one more chance, provided they secure a top three place at the regional tournament.

The Final Olympic Qualification Tournament for the final spot in the Olympic Games will take place between January 2016 and 30 June 2016, and will offer one final spot as 16 teams fight it out for Rio.

Big results will not come overnight, but South Africa’s progress has been slow at international level. Since making their debut in the 2012-13 season, they have won just eight out of 33 matches and prior to beating Brazil on the weekend, they had not won a single match since December last year, a losing streak that stretched 17 matches.

But it’s not all doom and gloom. Encouragingly, eight of the original 15 players who were contracted by SARU last year played this weekend. The squad is also mostly young, with Kirsten Conrad, at 18, being the youngest of the lot. Consistency will only come from playing together more often as a group, and with contracts in place to allow them to do so, at least it seems that the structures are in place to help the team achieve their goals. SARU seems under no illusions as to just how much investment achieving top results will take. DM

Photo: South Africa’s players celebrate with their medals after defeating New Zealand in the gold medal match of the Rugby Sevens at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, July 27, 2014. REUTERS/Russell Cheyne