CHALLENGE BRIGADE ON STAGE
Young bucks who can catch the eye
In a world in which one can’t bank promises of load-shedding being a thing of the past, it’s always comforting to know that the SuperSport Rugby Challenge can always be relied on to churn out players for higher honours. Below are six of the competition’s graduates.
Aphelele Fassi (Sharks XV, 21)
Fassi, having just finished school in 2017, first announced himself to first-class rugby by doing what most rugby players can’t conceive, let alone do, when he bicycle-kicked a touch clearance playing for the Sharks XV against the North West Leopards at the Rustenburg Festival last year. The former Dale College top-order batsman followed that up by reeling in World Rugby’s Breakthrough Player of the Year and Springbok Aphiwe Dyantyi after the latter had intercepted in a Currie Cup semifinal against the Lions. That glimpse of genius and refusal to accept when beaten are the reason Sharks coach Robert du Preez is easing him into Super Rugby from the bench.
Gianni Lombard (Lions XV, 21)
His name may sound like that of an Italian motorcyclist, but the versatile Lombard (he can play flyhalf, wing and fullback) is nowhere near as temperamental. A graduate of the Paarl Boys High team which ultimately went on a 59-game winning streak, Lombard knows something about consistently performing under pressure. So it wasn’t a surprise when stepped up and nailed the last-minute penalty which sealed a Lions comeback from 33-5 down to beat the Melbourne Rebels 3633 recently.
Vincent Tshituka (Lions XV, 20)
Since ditching the quick step for the sidestep, Tshituka has found his rise in rugby mercurial. The DRC-born flanker, a human wrecking ball at 1.95m and 103kg, used to be a ballroom dancer in primary school and a hip-hop dancer at Northcliff High School before rugby found him. Since then he has played for the Lions in last year’s SuperSport Rugby Challenge and Super Rugby this year.
JJ van der Mescht (Sharks XV, 19)
When he made his Rugby Challenge debut in Rustenburg as a big kid fresh out of Glenwood College last year, Van der Mescht carried a bit of puppy fat at 2.02m and 132kg (the rumour is he’d lost five kilos to get there). The youngster is built like a number four lock but hasn’t acquired the mean streak of a Bakkies Botha and plays like a five lock. A sign of how highly rated he is in Durban is the fact that he is still a teenager but has been drafted into the Super Rugby team as an impact player.
Simphiwe Matanzima (Blue Bulls XV, 21)
Maybe because the Bulls were inconsistent in last year’s Rugby Challenge, Matanzima’s presence was hardly noticed. But when he was included in the Bulls’ team to play the Stormers in a friendly at the Super Heroes Double Header in Cape Town earlier this year, he revealed his inner hulk and forced himself into the Super Rugby squad despite being in possession of one of the game’s baby faces. At 1.82m and 111kg, he has not held back from throwing his weight around among the seniors, notably when he put in the massive scrum that gave the Bulls a penalty before the poles to beat the Sharks.
Kyle Steyn (Griquas, 25)
Usually when one looks at the Rugby Challenge’s graduates, it’s usually to Super Rugby or the Pro14, and said graduate is younger than 25. That’s not the case with Steyn, the former Griquas centre, winger and captain who, thanks to a Scottish mother despite being Johannesburg-born, finds himself playing for Glasgow in the Pro14 and in that country’s structures.