adminAfter finishing as Plate winners in the Spar Zimbabwe International Sevens rugby tournament at Harare Sports Club on Sunday, the Cheetahs took a day off on Monday before engaging in a post-tournament training session yesterday.
But the Cheetahs will get down to serious business today at Old Georgians Sport Club where coach Gilbert “Gidza” Nyamutsamba will take his charges through their paces ahead of their departure on Saturday.
The Hong Kong leg is very important for the Cheetahs who are aiming to become a core member of the World Series after they were granted a second chance to show they have what it takes to be one of the elite Sevens rugby playing nations.
This year the core membership qualifiers have been divided into two stages where Hong Kong will host the first round of qualifiers before the final leg where the top three teams will make it into the elite group in London.
Last year the Cheetahs failed to make it as a core member following a semi-final defeat at the hands of Portugal in Hong Kong but Cheetahs’ captain, Jacques Leitao, and his troops are determined to make it this year.
Besides aiming to make it as a core member, the Cheetahs also have the World Cup to focus on where they are aiming to put on a much better performance compared to their last outing in 2009 in Dubai where they won the Bowl.
But at the moment all attention has been diverted to the Hong Kong tournament where the 12-team second tier competition sees Zimbabwe drawn in Pool G with Russia, Cook Islands and Mexico.
The second tier competition is made up of 12 teams, four each from Pool E to Pool G.
Only the top four teams from this competition will progress to the final qualifiers in London in mid May where they will join Hong Kong and the three bottom-placed World Series teams.
This will make the final qualifier an eight-team event to decide promotion to the 2014 Series.
At the moment only Kenya and South Africa are core members of the World Series while Zimbabwe and Tunisia are also in the running for promotion ahead of the World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Nyamutsamba yesterday told The Herald that he was going to rope in the duo of Wes Mbanje and Garth Zieglar for the Hong Kong camp who were not part of the Cheetahs’ side in the Spar tournament at the weekend.
“Wes and Zieglar will be the only additions we are going to make for the Hong Kong squad, Mbanje will also have to undergo a fitness test because of a knock he suffered prior to the Spar tournament.
“Full camp starts tomorrow (today) at Old Georgians but today the players have been involved in a light training session where they just had to loosen up following last weekend’s tournament.
“I am happy that the Spar tournament gave us a bit of insight on who we might or might not take to Hong Kong but that is not final because there might be changes in the build up to the departure date.
“It was also a good platform for the likes of (debutant) Stephan “Stavo” Hunduza who got to see and feel the demands of the game at such levels and I am sure on a personal level he understands what is needed,” said Nyamutsamba.
However, Leitao feels that there is a lot of work to be done if they are to make it as a core member.
“It’s a tough pool but I am confident we can top it and show that Zimbabwe Sevens should be a core team.
“Russia are a strong outfit and with them hosting the World Cup this year I’m sure a lot of emphasis is being put on their national side, so they will be tough to overcome.
“I am not sure what to expect from Mexico but we can’t underestimate any team but I would believe that Tonga and Japan will also give us stiff competition if we are to meet them in the knock out stages,” said Leitao.
Hong Kong Draw
Pool A: South Africa, Wales, Argentina, Australia.
Pool B: New Zealand, United States, France, Kenya.
Pool C: Samoa, England, Scotland, Portugal.
Pool D: Canada, Fiji, Spain, Hong Kong.
Pool E: Tonga, Uruguay, Tunisia, Chinese Taipei.
Pool F: Japan, Georgia, Jamaica, Brazil.
Pool G: Russia, Zimbabwe, Cook Islands and Mexico.
Online Reporter