“My athletics career has taught me about perseverance and mental strength. I want to use these assets and be an inspiration for women everywhere, showing what is possible through hard work.”
South Africa – As the Springbok Women’s Sevens set their sights on the 2020 Olympic Games, their hunt for fresh talent has landed them one of the country’s fastest women, Alyssa Conley, and sports all-rounder and Survivor SA celebrity, Steffi Brink.
Conley and Brink are part of coach Paul Delport’s rebuilding drive to strengthen the team and enable them to qualify for the Olympics by winning the Africa Women’s Sevens in October. In a rugby skills crash course, the women have been upping their game under the experienced guidance of former Springbok and ShadowBall Director of Coaching, Gcobani Bobo, and former Lions player and ShadowBall Academy coach, Selom Gavor.
Transitioning from the solitary track to a team sport
Conley is best known for her Olympic-grade 100m, and 200m sprinting prowess and has been Gauteng’s fastest woman for nearly two decades, winning several national titles over that time.
“I felt I wasn’t getting enough stimulation from track and needed a new challenge,” said Conley. “Paul approached me, and I gave myself six months to acquire the necessary skills and get game-ready.”
“My biggest challenge is to break through my fitness threshold because with sevens, it’s not about how fast you run, but about how fast you can run repeatedly! My speed is definitely an asset, but I have to change my running style to keep low to the ground as rugby demands.”
“Alyssa has been transitioning very well,” says Gavor. “She is fortunately completely new to playing rugby, so we didn’t need her to unlearn any bad habits, and she is very focused on doing things right.”
Growing skills and game IQ with ShadowBall
ShadowBall training is being used alongside the women’s sevens training to teach accurate passing and catching skills. Uniquely South African, the ShadowBall is half a rugby ball that rebounds off any wall and enables solo training. The Pass Booster programme is a scientifically proven programme that radically boosts a player’s passing and catching ability by as much as 266% within four weeks.
“Training with the ShadowBall has been very beneficial for me,” says Conley. “The training has helped me to integrate into the new sport and overcome my personal challenges. It enables and accelerates quick movements and reaction time, and it has helped immensely to be able to continue practising at home on my own.”
“Rugby is largely a reactional game that demands agility and one’s game IQ grows as you play,” says Bobo. “Alyssa has to learn that natural instinct still, but she is an explosive woman with a lot of grit and determination to her craft.”
From tropical island to the rugby field
Dubbed South Africa’s own Lara Croft, Steffi Brink did a recent stint as a Survivor SA castaway, but the part-time fitness model is also a full-time athlete and brings a range of skills to the rugby field from her background in netball, hockey and athletics. Brink is South Africa’s 100m hurdles record holder, and her speed has always been an advantage when she hit the field to play sevens for the Free State in 2010.
“I love rugby and am a keen spectator, so I jumped at the opportunity to represent South Africa in such a prestigious sport,” says Brink. “Unfortunately I probably launched into the pro-fitness level too fast after being out of training while doing Survivor for the first half of the year, so I have picked up an injury and will now be out of action for the next nine months.
“As a Strength and Conditioning Coach with a Sports Science degree, I should have cautioned myself to sort out my baseline fitness first in the gym, but my enthusiasm for the sport was paramount.” Brink promises she will return to the field stronger, and fitter once recovered.
“Steffi has a lot of raw talent and is a natural on the field,” says Bobo. “We enjoyed training with her and its sad she is injured and unable to continue, but we wish her a speedy recovery.”
Conley determined to help take SA women’s sevens to Olympics
While Brink recovers, Conley continues to train with the team as they charge towards the big Olympic qualifying event in October.
“My athletics career has taught me about perseverance and mental strength,” says Conley. “I want to use these assets and be an inspiration for women everywhere, showing what is possible through hard work.
“I am enjoying being a part of a team, and this makes me want to play well for my teammates and my country as we set our sights on Japan in 2020.”