Watch VideoNadine Roos: We are thrilled to go from zero Springbok Women’s games a year to 10

Nadine Roos Roos did the double at the SA Rugby Awards evening on Thursday when she was named SA Rugby Women’s Player of the Year for a second successive season. Springbok Women’s sensation Nadine Roos says there has been no greater time to be a female rugby player in South Africa than the present. Roos did the double at theSA Rugby Awards eveningon Thursday when she was named SA Rugby Women’s Player of the Year for a second successive season.

Roos was voted the outstanding women’s player in South Africa in a season where the Springbok Women reached the Rugby World Cup playoffs for the first time. The other finalists were Byrhandré Dolf, Aseza Hele, Libbie Janse van Rensburg, and Babalwa Latsha. Roos also took the crown as Springbok Women’s Sevens Player of the Year, while Byrhandré Dolf — herself a dual-international — was named as the first winner of the SA Rugby Young Women’s Player of the Year award.

Roos said the rise in profile of the Springbok Women is reflected in the exciting confirmation that they will play curtain-raisers to the Springboks versus All Blacks matches in the approaching Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour. “It is an amazing time for us,” Roos said. “If you look back a few years, there were no Test matches for the women’s game.

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Before we went to the 2022 World Cup in New Zealand, we had no matches to prepare us, while last year we had five matches in which to warm up for the World Cup, plus we played some games at the end of the year. “From five matches last year to ten is double in one year,” the 29-year-old said. “It is exciting because the only way we can grow and learn as players is by playing the game.

“Years back, we always moaned as players that we did not get game time, experience, and exposure, and now we have the game opportunities,” Roos continued. “It is a great time to be a female rugby player in South Africa and in the world currently. There are a lot of initiatives around growing the women’s game.

The World Cup last year in England was just a statement of where the game will be going in the next five years.” *Mike Greenawayis a senior rugby reporter at Independent Media and contributor on ourLast World on Rugby podcast on our YouTube channel, The Clutch. He is the author of the best-selling booksThe Fireside SpringbokandBok to Bok.

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