Vlok sees Dillyn more as a ‘Willie’ than a ‘Quade’
WESTERN PROVINCE coach John Dobson is left with a bit of a conundrum in terms of where best to utilise the talents of Dillyn Leyds.
The 22-year-old’s cameo off the bench in last Saturday’s Currie Cup match against Griquas at Newlands sparked WP and put them on course for a crucial bonus-point victory over the men from Kimberley.
Leyds played on the wing for the Stormers this year due to a lack of depth in that position, and went on to top the try-scoring charts for the Cape side.
At the start of the season, Dobson mentioned that Leyds would serve as the back-up for fullback Cheslin Kolbe because of his counter-attacking prowess. It’s a position where he played for the South African Under-20 team and also for UCT in the Varsity Cup.
But Leyds is also being viewed as a possible option at flyhalf after having starred for Bishops in that position as a schoolboy. He earned the nick- name “Quade” – as in Wallaby playmaker Quade Cooper – for the tremendous skill and adventure he played with.
While playing on the right wing for the Stormers, Leyds took a lot of ball at first receiver in the latter part of their Super Rugby campaign to try and give their attack more bite.
However, while his kicking out of hand is decent, it could be too risky to play him this weekend against the Sharks at Kings Park, a venue renowned for its swirling winds as far as place-kicking is concerned.
Right wing Kobus van Wyk hasn’t exactly been at his best since replacing Leyds in Province’s starting line-up after three games into the Currie Cup. But Van Wyk is also a player, like a few others, who needs game time to get back to his best form.
So, it could again be a straight shootout between the two players to see who wears the No 14 jersey in Durban on Saturday night.
“Dillyn is an exciting player and he brings that unpredictability. He can attack the line and give you a wide game. He has got a good passing game and a good running game,” WP defence coach and former SA Sevens coach Paul Treu said this week.
“What Dillyn brings to the party is that he can exploit opportunities really quickly. We have seen it against Griquas with his counter-attack from our 22. If you give him space he will cut the defence to pieces.
“For us it’s a plus. If we can turn the ball over, it’s in those situations where Cheslin, Dillyn and Seabelo (Senatla) can hurt other teams. It’s what made the team successful last season, and something that can hopefully make us successful this season.”
Kicking coach Vlok Cilliers, himself a former WP flyhalf, says Leyds could possibly do a job at No 10 for Province, but he is worried about the message that may send out to some of the young flyhalves at the union.
“Dillyn is a talented player, he played flyhalf at junior level and at school. But in saying that, we mustn’t forget that we still have a Rayno Eksteen, Robert du Preez and a Jean-Luc du Plessis,” Cilliers said.
“He (Dillyn) is a guy like a Willie le Roux who can come in at flyhalf in the third or fourth phase and play a role there because he is such a talented player.”
Kurt Coleman, though, looks set to get an extended run in the WP No 10 jersey, but one of the things he has got to improve on from last weekend’s match against Griquas is his touch kicks and penalty kicks out of hand.
Coleman is starting to find his radar again as far as his goal-kicking is concerned, but the distance of his punts put Province under a bit of pressure last weekend. “I already spoke to Kurt and I showed him a few clips. He knows what he has to do and what we expect,” Cilliers said.