Versatile Nadine Roos set to continue backline rotation for Springbok Women

Springbok Women’s performance coach Swys de Bruin will continue to use utility player Nadine Roos across the backline, splitting her playing time between scrumhalf, fullback and flyhalf.

“With Nadine at nine, 10 and 15, she knows her role now. I said to her at a stage it’ll be about 70% nine, 20% 15 and even flyhalf a bit again. So, she’s happy with that role and the rest of the team are happy,” De Bruin said, in the aftermath of the emphatic 41–24 victory over the Black Ferns XV.

In fact, he is happy with the versatility of the squad as a whole, with the World Cup in England just a few weeks away.

“I think we’re very settled now. I think we’re at the point where all 32 players understand one another, and the coaches understand them. So, it doesn’t matter who goes on and off at what stage,” De Bruin said.

“If a player is slightly off form, they all bring the player back on form. We’re comfortable with one another and that’s what I always wanted. I’ve always used the phrase they’ve got tons and tons of confidence, and they need this game just to know they can do it.”

Multi-code star Roos has expressed her willingness to play where needed and has proven this in the recent Test matches against Canada and the two games against the Black Ferns XV. On Saturday, she started at scrumhalf before switching to flyhalf.

“For me, the position doesn’t matter. Coach always says it doesn’t matter the number on your back, it still stays rugby,” she said after Saturday’s impressive victory.

Much of Roos’ focus in the build-up to the final World Cup warm-up match on home soil was on improving the defensive side of her game.

“I’m someone who, because I’m a smaller player, really prides herself on defence. People shouldn’t run over me,” she said. “This comes from sevens, and here (in fifteens) you kind of come up against bigger players.

“Some tackles I didn’t stick last week, and I just said no one was going to get past me today – and no one did. For me, it just takes one small person to give a hit that no one expects, and that uplifts the team. If I can do that, I can uplift the player next to me and give the player confidence.

“I can’t expect someone else to give me that confidence as a player. So, for me, it was just that mental switch to focus on myself, doing my job in training and on the field. That paid off for me and the team on the field.”

De Bruin feels their defence out wide still needs some work, but that it is a ‘small work-on’.

The importance of staying switched on mentally was echoed by Saturday’s skipper, Babalwa Latsha.

“I think the significant difference is that we made a mental switch to start believing that we’re really capable of winning games like this – especially going into a World Cup, where we want winning to feel familiar to us,” she said.

“So that was the importance of this game. It was a matter of players realising this is it – this is the last game in South Africa before we head to one of the biggest stages of them all.”

The Springbok Women’s squad for the 2025 Rugby World Cup will be announced on Saturday.