Ankie, you really need to be more specific. The more details you give, the better the advice will be.
As you can see, many here, including myself, prefer PCPs. Nothing wrong with springers if you can shoot them accurately and the power level suits your needs. The R9 has a great reputation, so you are off to a great start. PCPs offer easier variability in tuning that springers simply can't give you, however, it is a "rabbit hole" and once you dive in, it can get expensive.
Small game can mean many things to many people. Up to squirrels or tree rats as I call them, the .177 is fine for clean kills if you can make the shot placement accurately/precisely.
When you start getting larger than that, .22 may be required for clean kills.
Whatever you do, don't fall for the "bigger caliber is better" talk. Accuracy/precision is the most important part of hunting/pesting. If you are depending on a larger caliber to "devastate" your prey no matter where you hit it, then you are probably not paying enough attention to accuracy/precision.
Oh, and as in my case, lower power may be necessary to keep from having collateral damage via ricochets, pass through, etc. As I said, the more details you give as to your needs for the airgun, the better the advice will be.
Anyway... that is JMHO. (grin)