Double Olympic bronze medal speedster Rosko Specman is not yet ready to say goodbye to the Springbok Sevens.
The veteran helped Team South Africa to a second bronze medal in three tournaments at the Olympic Games in Paris this past weekend.
His experience was vital to the cause and the Blitzboks claimed third place against the odds, after coming into the tournament as the 12th-ranked team.
The 35-year-old, a bronze medalist in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, said this feat was made all the more special looking at the route they took to get to the Games and how they were on the brink of being knocked out in the group stages after successive defeats on day one.
But after some tough love in the dressing room and a massive reset on days two and three, they turned things around with three wins to claim third place and South Africa's opening medal in Paris.
“We made things tough for ourselves looking at the road we took to win this second bronze,” the flyer said.
“Yes, we could have gone for the gold medal, but at the end of the day, I always say this was God’s plan and we can try and plan many things, but He is the last one to decide what He gives us. It could’ve been where He said ‘you had a tough season so you are getting nothing’.
“And people would’ve been fine with that because no one believed we could win anything at the Olympic Games.
“But the team came together, we believed that we could because we know where we draw our strength from. We don’t play for ourselves. We play to honour God, we play for our families, for our cultures and for South Africa. That is what drove us to success.”
According to Specman, now at the ripe age of 35, he realises things are not a given, but a privilege to be part of. He was at his peak in 2016 when he won his first medal alongside interim head coach Philip Snyman.
After that, he stuck his head back into fifteens rugby, became a Springbok under head coach Rassie Erasmus, and played for the Bulls, Cheetahs and Griquas before switching back to the short format.
He has reaped the rewards and achieved what few ever have done.
“I could come back to the sevens after seven years in fifteens and I could still win a medal at the Olympics. It’s a special achievement. Those negatives we had, we knew we could turn them into positives. It only mattered where you put your energy into. We put that negativity of those who didn’t believe we could on that team we played against. And the wins showed the character of our team.”
After their exploits in Paris, the winger is not yet ready to say goodbye to rugby and the sevens. He wants to stay on, but it all depends on what the system needs and if he is still in the plans for the next couple of seasons.
“I am prepared to play a few more years; to just stay in the trade will be special. But it’s God’s plan and I will just keep believing in the ability He gives me, whether I stay at the Springbok Sevens or go back to fifteens. If this was my last season, it would be sad, but I don’t think it’s my last one, because there is more in Specmagic.”