Online Reporter
Tinashe Kusema
Zimpapers Sports Hub
SECOND place will take the Cheetahs nowhere in Uganda next month, where only the winner of the six-team SVNS 3 Africa qualifier will advance to World Rugby SVNS 3 in 2027.
Zimbabwe finished third at last year’s Africa Men’s Sevens and missed qualification for the global circuit.
Captain Tapiwa Malenga knows another near-miss will not be enough.
“I know that we let down the fans many times, going to tournaments and finishing second, third or fourth,” he said.
“That is all in the past now.
“It’s a big assignment. Going to Uganda and trying to finish first will be tough, but we are working hard every day so that we can go there and win.”
Zimbabwe will battle hosts Uganda, Madagascar, Zambia, Ghana and Tunisia on September 26 and 27.
South Africa and Kenya will not take part because both are already part of World Rugby’s global SVNS pathway.
The Cheetahs will go into the qualifier under a new technical team headed by former Zimbabwe international Fortune Chipendu, who replaced Ricky Chirengende.
They are already in camp, but with no competitive warm-up matches yet, the players have had to test themselves against each other.
“Getting a new coach comes with challenges because you have to let go of the attachments and bonds established with the old coach,” Malenga said.
“I think we have done a good job at that. It’s a process.
“We spent the first few weeks testing our fitness, strength and conditioning. We did a lot of running and less work with the ball.
“Now we are doing more ball-handling drills and technical work.
“We are not getting competitive game time, so we mostly play against each other to see where we are in terms of understanding the game plan.
“It has been going well, and we should be ready by the time we leave for Uganda.”
The Uganda qualifier is Zimbabwe’s entry point into the three-tier structure introduced by World Rugby as part of changes to the international sevens circuit.
The top division has eight teams per gender competing across six events. Division Two comprises six teams playing three tournaments, while SVNS 3 is a standalone eight-team event featuring qualifiers from the different regions.
The new structure is designed to give teams a route from regional competition to the international circuit while reducing the cost of staging tournaments.
The Uganda qualifier is one of two competitions created after the Africa Men’s Sevens tournament, originally scheduled for Mauritius on June 20 and 21, was postponed on public health advice during the Ebola outbreak in parts of Africa.
Rugby Africa subsequently divided the 2026 series into the SVNS 3 qualifier in Uganda and the Mauritius Sevens, which will be held on October 3 and 4.
For Malenga, victory in Uganda would begin the journey back to the days when the Cheetahs regularly competed beyond Africa.
“Sevens used to be a fan favourite, with the Cheetahs winning games, going to World Cups and travelling all over the world,” he said.
“We want to bring that back.”
