Combrinck’s Springbok snub just shameful

First there was Raymond Rhule and Courtnall Skosan, followed by Dillyn Leyds and an out-of-position Warrick Gelant. Then came Travis Ismaiel, Makazole Mapimpi, Sbu Nkosi, Aphiwe Dyantyi, and Lwazi Mvovo and now Cheslin Kolbe has joined the list.

A round 10. That is the number of wingers to have either played a Test or have been part of the Bok squad since Lions winger Ruan Combrinck last pulled the green and gold over his head late in 2016.

I think the fact he has been overlooked for 19 consecutive Tests after playing in seven Tests in 2016 is shameful. I know he had his injury problems over the past two years, but we waste no time in rushing back Eben Etzebeth and Handre Pollard, so that can’t be an excuse in his case.

Combrinck has one of the biggest pairs of cojones you’ll ever find on a rugby field and will never let a Bok team down, like he showed when he made that fantastic international debut against Ireland at Ellis Park in 2016. After losing the first Test in Cape Town and trailing by 19-3 at half-time, coach Allister Coetzee brought Combrinck on to replace Mvovo in the second half. He showed exactly why he should have started the first two Tests by leading a spirited fightback with a try in his favourite corner.

A week later he finally got a deserved start in Port Elizabeth and slotted a long-range penalty goal in the second half which helped the Boks hold on to a small lead which proved to be enough to help clinch the tight series.

After missing the start of last season’s Super Rugby, Combrinck returned against the Bulls not even fully fit yet, to prove the old adage of “form is temporary, class is permanent” by scoring two tries against the Bulls at Ellis Park, of which one was a beaut. In his favourite corner I might add.

Two months later, he slotted the famous penalty from inside his own half in the quarterfinals against the Sharks to hand the Lions a last-gasp win, and he repeated his heroics in the semifinal a week later with a crucial break that led to Hurricanes flyhalf Beauden Barrett receiving a yellow card.

This year, after working his way back recovering from a shoulder operation, he made a superb line-break against the Crusaders in the final which almost led to an early try. Yet he was snubbed for the Tests against Argentina and again for the two in Australasia and his talent is wasted on club rugby in Japan again.

And besides the fact that there are at least 10 others regarded as better than him, his potential as a fullback option also looks increasingly bleak with the likes of Kolbe and Damian Willemse tipped as guys who can step in for Willie le Roux.

I refuse to accept that Combrinck is so bad that his stock fell from being a Bok hero to not even featuring in the top 10 wingers Mzansi has to offer. Either Rassie just doesn’t like him or doesn’t see him as a certainty for the World Cup while experimenting with others in the meantime.

Either way, it’s a crying shame that this man will watch the Boks play on TV while eating sushi.