Swys de Bruin Interview: What I Learned Coaching Women

I was delighted to be joined by Springbok Women head coach Swys de Bruin! Having worked at academy, Franchise & Men's international level as well as being an analyst for SuperSports, there perhaps no one in South Africa more qualified as a rugby educator as Swys. In this podcast I was lucky enough to be able to pick his brains for nearly an hour, covering a wide variety of rugby topics.

Swys is of course deep in his preparations with the Springbok women for the Rugby World Cup in England later in 2025. I ask him all about how he has adjusted to coaching in women's rugby and how the women's game is progressing in South Africa. He talked passionately about the diversity in South African rugby and how important it is to draw on the strength that gives the country.

He then gave me a fascinating insight into his approach to coaching and how he views himself as a rugby teacher. He tells me how he communicates with his players and how he gets them playing rugby to his vision for the game. He also gave me some brilliant analysis on where rugby is headed and the trends he is seeing across the game.

.com/HuwGriffinRugby

Chapters
0:00 Exciting Times for South Africa
4:50 Progress of the Springbok Women
13:50 South Africa Rugby Tactics
17:00 Challenge of Coaching Women
32:05 Swys the Teacher
36:10 Analysing Trends in Rugby
47:09 Johan Akkerman Thoughts
50:05 Rassie's Biggest Challenge