Philip Snyman gets full-time Blitzboks coaching job

Olympic Games bronze medal-winning SA Sevens team rugby coach Philip Snyman has been appointed full-time to the position.

Snyman, who previously captained the Blitzboks team, has been in the role of head coach on an interim basis for the last six months since taking over from Sandile Ndlovu midway through the last World Rugby Sevens Series.

Snyman will fill the position until the next Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028.

‘Remarkable’

“The way Philip turned around the fortunes of the Blitzboks in a short time was remarkable and speaks volumes of his abilities as a coach,” said SA Rugby CEO Rian Oberholzer.

“Their performances in Monaco and Paris showed that he can get the Blitzboks back to their former glories and we are pleased to have him on board.

“As a former captain, Philip brings deep institutional knowledge of the Springbok Sevens with him, having played in 62 world series events, two Rugby World Cup Sevens tournaments and a Commonwealth Games where the team won gold.

“Philip is also the only person in the game who has won medals as a player and a coach at the Olympics.”

‘Massive honour’

Snyman, who has previous experience as head coach with Uganda and Germany before his appointment as Blitzbok assistant coach in 2023, thanked SA Rugby for their faith in him.

“It is a massive honour to be appointed as full-time head coach, a position that demands the best of what the Blitzboks can be and a position I always aspired to when I became a coach,” said Snyman.

“There is a lot of work to be done, despite our recent results. We are still way off being a top three team and we will be working hard to get back to that position.

“I can’t wait to get going and I would like to thank SA Rugby’s leadership for the trust they have placed in me. We have a solid core of players, and I will be looking at ways to strengthen our player base and depth to such an extent that we will be contending for titles and medals regularly.”