Leigh Fortuin reflects on Springbok Women Sevens rise

The 21-year-old was speaking as the defending champions assembled at the University of Pretoria’s High-Performance Centre to prepare for this year’s edition of the continental tournament, which takes place in Nairobi, Kenya on 15 and 16 November. 

Fortuin, who also captained the Junior Springbok Women earlier this year, says she’s grown immensely as a player, thanks to the support and experience within the senior squad.  

"With my debut in Ghana last year, it was a very special moment for me, obviously as a youngster coming into the Sevens national team from Juniors is like a massive goal and dream for many youngsters," reflected Fortuin.

"And getting to actually play in your first national tournament, the Africa Cup, it was a very special moment for because everybody's dream is to wear the green and gold jersey, and actually scoring a debut try, it was mind-blowing."

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Once a ball retriever at DHL Stadium, while attending Rocklands High School, Fortuin has risen steadily through the ranks, and has featured both in the Springbok Women’s 15s side that retained the Rugby Africa Women’s Cup in Madagascar, and the Sevens setup. 

She admits she’s still striving for improvement but believes her hard work will pay off. 

"I'm actually not really happy with where I am right now, I still feel like there's a lot of room for improvement to become a better player in any position that the coaches want to see me in," she added.

"And obviously where I can fit myself in, I would actually say there's a lot of growth to become a utility player, and I'm always willing to go out there and reach out to people willing to help me improve on skills and things I'm struggling with.

"And even the basic things, there's always room for improvement, and I think that will always come with time and steps of progress."