Dobson: De Jongh picks up the whole thing
JUAN DE JONGH did a few sprints on his own yesterday afternoon at Western Province’s High Performance Centre.
His right knee was heavily strapped and he was wearing one of these new masks that simulate high altitude. He looked like a character out of the Mortal Combat video game.
He looks like he is ready for action after he missed more than a month of rugby after sustaining a leg injury in the second week of the Currie Cup against the Cheetahs.
And De Jongh is trying to get his lungs acquainted with the lack of oxygen that they are going to be experiencing when the WP captain runs out onto the field in the thin Johannesburg air against the Lions on Friday night.
It’s a truly remarkable recovery, as the centre wasn’t expected to be back playing in the league phase. In fact, he was touch and go for the playoffs.
But now De Jongh is likely to start for WP when they take on the top-of-the-table Lions. It’s a massive boost for WP as they gun for a home semi-final with a win over the unbeaten Lions.
“I said on Saturday night that he wasn’t going to start, but I’m re-thinking that, just in terms of what he brings to the group with his leadership,” WP coach John Dobson said yesterday.
“If he starts, then he is empowered with the team from the beginning as the captain. He picks up the whole thing. He is unquestionably the leader, as a person and as a player.
“It’s maybe worth starting with him to get the full value of his leadership. For the team it’s a massive boost, and for him to be there when the playoffs come around is big.”
It’s no coincidence that WP suffered the two successive defeats right after De Jongh got injured. The Wellington-born player has grown as captain and is a massive member of the side as both a leader and a player.
“I said to Juan de Jongh he has to play, just so that his leadership can come through.
“But his playing ability stands out more than how he leads,” vice-captain Nizaam Carr said yesterday.
“Being the captain and vicecaptain, you have to sort of care about the other things on the field. When you are just a number in the team, you can sort of 60 percent focus on your game, and then play for your mate next to you.
“But if you are the leader you have to constantly worry about the lineouts, the breakdowns and how to handle the ref. You have your pre-match talk with the team and you have to get the right message out there. So there are a lot of factors that is challenging, but it’s a lot easier when Juan is back.”
But where will the Springbok centre fit in?
The incumbents Huw Jones and Johnny Kotze have struck up a nice partnership over the last few weeks, and have really done well on attack and defence.
Both players are big attacking threats, and have broken the line a few times in their last couple of matches. They have also improved on the defence.
It seems likely that De Jongh will come in at inside centre for Jones, but the WP captain can, medically, only play for 40 minutes against the Lions.
“We expect the game to open up in the second half. So if it’s either Johnny or Huw (on the bench), they will be on the park when the game opens up,” Dobson said. “I will have a talk to Juan to see if he is comfortable at 12 or if he prefers 13, because he might be more comfortable with that because of the injury.”