Rugby
Springbok Women’s Redemption: Latsha Leads the Charge in Emphatic Win Over Barbarians
The Springbok Women, led by Babalwa Latsha, secured an emphatic 59-17 victory over the Barbarians Women, showcasing their growth ahead of the WXV 2 competition. Latsha praised the team’s dominance while highlighting areas for improvement as they prepare to compete against top international sides.
Image Credits: Johan Rynners - World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images
The first encounter between South Africa Women and the Barbarian Women was in November 2021, in front of over 29,000 fans at the Twickenham Stadium [now Allianz Stadium].
The Babas dominated that fixture 60-5 and since then, the Springboks Women’s side have made great sides as they prepare for the upcoming WXV 2 competition in Cape Town later this month.
In the latest encounter, the Bok women's side turned the tables around with an emphatic victory over their counterparts 59-17 over the weekend.
Bok Women prop Babalwa Latsha was enthralled by the victory
"It was exciting to play the Barbarians, we do have history against them and it was great to come away with the victory. We have come a long way, 2-3 years ago we were hammered in Twickenham [Stadium] and now we did the same on home soil. In cape Town where our own fans can enjoy,” Latsha told SportsBoom.com.
"The take outs are obviously the win, we dominated up front which speaks to our style of play and we can't shy away from saying that we are a good set piece team however within that there are areas we would like to clean up on. Our consistency can get better overall. I thought it was a great performance. The likes of Vainah Ubisi [Lock] put in a massive performance and women of the match. We got some good footage to go through going forward."
Latsha highlighted a few work on’s that the side need to work on to be able to compete against top nations.
A big work on would be ball retention, which is an area we would like to be more consistent with. Which would in turn starve the opponent's possession of the ball and it's a really good point of attack even. That's it really.
Babalwa Latsha
Bok Women prop Babalwa Latsha was enthralled by the victory
"It was exciting to play the Barbarians, we do have history against them and it was great to come away with the victory. We have come a long way, 2-3 years ago we were hammered in Twickenham [Stadium] and now we did the same on home soil. In cape Town where our own fans can enjoy,” Latsha told SportsBoom.com.
"The take outs are obviously the win, we dominated up front which speaks to our style of play and we can't shy away from saying that we are a good set piece team however within that there are areas we would like to clean up on. Our consistency can get better overall. I thought it was a great performance. The likes of Vainah Ubisi [Lock] put in a massive performance and women of the match. We got some good footage to go through going forward."
Latsha highlighted a few work on’s that the side need to work on to be able to compete against top nations.
"A big work on would be ball retention, which is an area we would like to be more consistent with. Which would in turn starve the opponent's possession of the ball and it's a really good point of attack even. That's it really."
Preparation for the upcoming WXV 2
The bok women side have been hard at work to prepare for the upcoming WXV tournament which features the hosts South Africa, Australia, Wales, Italy, Scotland and Japan. Prior to the Babas fixture, the side held a training camp in Gqeberha formerly known as Port Elizabeth. SA Rugby also announced additional coaches to the side in the form of former junior Springboks head coach Bafana Nhleko and rugby consultant/analyst Swys de Bruin.
"We are on the right track, preparation wise. Its been a breath of fresh air to have the likes of Bafana Nhleko and Swys de Bruin in our system and we have learnt a lot from them which contributes positively to our preparation towards the WXV."
"They [Nhleko and de Bruin] bring new perspectives and energy which the ladies have all bought in to. Their efforts were primarily the reason why we came back with a promising result against them [Barbarians Women]. In my opinion they are walking rugby encyclopedia's and really grateful to have them in our system."
Premiership Womens Rugby [PWR] vs South African domestic rugby
Latsha plys her trade for the Harlequins Women's side in the Premiership, prior she featured for Western Province in the local domestic competition in South Africa. There were a few Premiership players playing in the Babas side including Rachel Burford, Cerys Hale, Claire Molloy and Lydia Thompson to name a few.
Latsha was asked if there were any differences and similarities between the quality of rugby between the Premiership and South African domestic rugby.
Latsha responded, "Talent wise we are not short of it in South Africa...pound for pound we [South African domestic rugby] lack nothing compared to the players in the Premiership. I am enjoying the rugby in the Prem and in terms of developing as a player. But again we don't lack the talent nor the skill, perhaps they play a lot more rugby which is about 18-20 games and less in the local domestic league. Going forward I hope playing less games changes and improves."
Nathan has over a decade of knowledge and experience, both as a former professional sportsperson and journalist. Nathan, a former radio sports presenter and producer is an award-winning community radio sports producer/presenter.