Sandile Ngcobo has been demoted at his request after a stuttering Sevens season.

The Blitzboks coaching hierarchy has been restructured, with head coach Sandile Ngcobo returning to coaching the Springboks Sevens Academy and Ngcobo's assistant, Philip Snyman, taking control of the Blitzboks, SA Rugby said on Wednesday.

This comes after a string of poor performances which include finishing ninth and 11th out of 12 in the past two events, in Vancouver and Los Angeles.

The change to the structure was made at the suggestion of Ngcobo. Snyman has been appointed only until July. His long-term prospects of coaching the team hinge on Olympic qualification and retaining core status on the SVNS World Series -- neither of which are guaranteed.

The Blitzboks won the first Sevens leg in Dubai last year, but failed to make the semifinals across the next four legs.

The Springboks Sevens team is seventh overall in the standings with just three legs to play.

If they fail to finish in the top eight, they will be required to play in a promotion and relegation series.

This follows an unfruitful 2023 season in which the Blitzboks failed to qualify automatically for the Olympic Games after failing to finish in the top four.

Their second shot at Olympic qualification also fell flat...