Sevens tourney roars into life

tomorrow evening.
The tournament kicks off today at 10am at the Harare Sports Club cricket pitch.
This is the first time the Zimbabwe Rugby Union is hosting a Sevens tournament and Leitao and his charges would like to make a big point in front of their home fans.
They also want to take advantage of the event to prepare the Zimbabwe side for the Hong Kong tournament at the end of this month.
But their focus at the moment is on this tournament that kicks of at 10am.
It’s not as strong as the Zimbabwe Rugby Union wanted after some of the teams, which include Kenya and Spain, turned down the invitations.
The hosts believe the major obstacle will the South Africa Sevens Academy that features three capped players, including captain MJ Mentz, who have had a dance with the Blitzbokke.
However, according to Leitao, all the teams that are taking part in the tournament — from the national teams to the provincial sides — pose a threat and they will not take any one of them lightly but treat them with caution.
“It is always good to play in front of the home fans and we have to give them something to smile about at the end of the day not forgetting that we are also using this to prepare for Hong Kong as well.
“So this goes on to show how seriously we are taking this tournament,” said the Cheetahs and Sables forward.
Zimbabwe are missing two of their regular players — South Africa-based forward Njabulo Ndlovu and Germany-based winger Gardner Nechironga.
Tafadzwa Chitokwindo has been relegated to the Goshawks after he failed to make the grade for the senior team.
He has been replaced by hardworking Gweru Sport Club winger Kilvan Magunje and Leitao feels that the side they have is good enough for the challenge at hand.
All the teams that had confirmed participation including Botswana, Zambia, the South African provincial trio of Northern Region, Buffaloes, and SA Academy, arrived on Thursday night while Mpumalanga withdrew and will be replaced by the Zambezi Warriors.
Though Leitao would have loved playing a more experienced side than the Zambezi Warriors — that mostly comprises of Under-20 players — he feels that this might be a blessing in disguise for the local players who might shine at the two-day event.
“Of course we are missing two of our regular players as they could not join us in camp while another team could not make it here.
“But I feel that this is also an opportunity for some of the up-and-coming players to make their presence felt and show what they are made of.
“Mike Morris was at the (IRB) Port Elizabeth tournament last year, Kilvan (Magunje) is gelling in well and he has been tremendous at the training sessions and I believe he is justified to be part of the Cheetahs.
“He has been playing well in the Summer Series and we have no doubts over him.
“It’s essential to have a bigger pool of players,” said the Cheetahs captain.
SA Academy captain MJ Mentz, however, played it low saying they were not here to win the tournament but to make sure that the young players in the side gain experience for the future.
“This is the best way for the young players to learn. It’s the first time for most of them to play at a tournament of this type (international tournament) though there are about three that travelled to Uruguay recently.
“We will just take each game as it comes, I guess that is the best approach, and I know that Zimbabwe are our biggest competitors in this tournament,” said the Blitzbokke player. Among the SA Academy players is Zimbabwean Preston Bryant who was part of the Zimbabwe Under-19 side that won the Junior Africa Cup at Prince Edward last year.
He has been ruled out of the tournament due to a hamstring injury.
“He is a great player who loves being coached and make the job of the coach much easier but he will not play here as he suffered a hamstring injury before we came here and the reason he is here is that he is part of the system and has to know our culture as a team,” said SA Academy coach Marius Shoeman.
Botswana captain Hugo Botha said they are on a re-building exercise and most of the players in the side have been together at about a year.
“We are looking forward to being invited to more of such tournaments so that our side gains more experience.
“Most of the players here have been together for about six to 12 months now and some are just recovering from injuries but Zimbabwe know each other well and they play at a higher level,” said Botha.
However, Zambia team manager Hein Havenga said his side suffered a major blow at the beginning of the week after two of his players were injured and ruled out of the tournament.
“It was a major blow for us because we do not have the side that we really wanted after two of our players were injured but this will also open doors for other players.
“This is a team game so we are expecting all the players to push for what they were selected to do,” said Havenga.
By yesterday afternoon the Harare Spots Club cricket pitch was ready to host the tournament as the groundsmen had just put the final touches to the field while teams had a feel of the playing turf.
Squads
Cheetahs: Fortune Chipendu, Jacques Leitao (captain), Mike Morris, Manasah Sita, Justin Coles, Graham Kaulback, Kelvin Magunje, Daniel Hondo, Gerald Sibanda, Tangai Nemadire, Jonathan Mcwade, Wesley Mbanje, Tafadzwa Chitokwindo, Lloyd Machanjaira, Jafet Ndebele.
Goshawks: Tolerance Zishe, Shingirai Mpofu, Stephan Hunduza, Shayne Makombe (Harare Sports Club), Josh Smallbones, Simba Gonese, Craig Elcombe, Scotty Jones, Liberty Mutowonzi, Wilson Seremani (Old Georgians), Patrick Tenesi, Kudzai Mashavi (Police Defenders), Itai Vambe (Old Hararians), Kuda Chiwanza (Sharks Academy SA). SA Academy: Pieter Engelbrecht, MJ Mentz, Dirk Dippenaar, Kwagga Smit, Shane Spring, Chase Minnaar, Justin Geduld, Preston Bryant, Ruwellyn Isbell, JP Lewis, Werner Kok, Juwell Samuels.
Draw
Pool A: Zimbabwe, Buffaloes, Botswana, N. Select.
Pool B: SA Academy, Northern Region, Zambia, Goshawks.Women: Sports Club, Old Hararians, Police, Air Force.