Ken Borland

Cornal Hendricks has not only been the form inside centre in South Africa for the last year but he is acknowledged as the most amicable of team men. But all that does not seem as if it’s going to be enough to get him into the Springbok squad for the series against the British and Irish Lions.

While the likes of first-choice No.12 Damian de Allende, Francois Steyn, Jan Serfontein and Andre Esterhuizen can all justify their selections through their on-field displays and pedigree, there have been hints that Hendricks will not be chosen no matter how well he plays. That’s because he is still pursuing a legal case against SA Rugby for terminating his contact at the end of 2015 when medical tests showed he had a heart defect.

Hendricks has since obtained several other opinions that say playing rugby does not put him at risk of a heart attack; and he has been producing heart-stopping rugby for the Bulls for the last couple of years. He believes SA Rugby’s doctors erred, but the organisation’s medical advisors are standing firm that playing Hendricks would be too much of a risk.

It would be a great pity if the 33-year-old had to miss out on selection simply because of a decision made in an office and not because of what happens out on the field, where Hendricks has played a key role in the Bulls’ dominance of local rugby, and he would have to be the unluckiest player to miss out on on the Lions tour, even though there is plenty of depth at inside centre.

As far back as one goes through the mists of time in Springbok rugby, there has always been a surplus of loose forward talent and there are bound to be some unfortunate contenders in those positions who Rassie Erasmus and Jacques Nienaber are just not going to be able to squeeze in however much they would like to have them.

Sikhumbuzo Notshe has already lucked out with a knee injury, while Marco van Staden looks set to miss out even though he has been an outstanding openside flank for the highflying Bulls. Kwagga Smith is a World Cup winner who has dropped off the radar a bit in Japan, and his place could be at risk. There could well only be room for one of the Du Preez brothers, Dan or Jean-Luc, who have been starring for Sale, and powerhouse Jacques Vermeulen has shown his hunger for a Springbok call-up by playing a major role in the Exeter Chiefs’ success last year in winning both the English Premiership and the European Champions Cup.

Sharks tighthead Thomas du Toit is another member of the World Cup squad whose place is not assured. That’s because the three leading tightheads are surely Frans Malherbe, Vincent Koch and Trevor Nyakane, and Steven Kitshoff, Lizo Gqoboka and Ox Nche should be the frontrunners for loosehead. But Du Toit, who was a late replacement for Nyakane at the World Cup, is the obvious choice if the Springboks want a seventh prop, who can swing both sides of the scrum.

Even then, there are hardcore masters of the mystic art of scrummaging like Wilco Louw, Coenie Oosthuizen and Jacques van Rooyen who are set to lose out, while it is difficult to see where the Lions pairing of Carlu Sadie and Sti Sithole, who are rapidly moving to the forefront of the local game, can fit in.

Springbok resting protocols will allow numerous Sharks fringe players to cash in on some lengthy playing opportunity when a much-changed team travels to Johannesburg to take on the Lions in their Rainbow Cup match on Saturday.

Coach Sean Everitt on Thursday announced a team with 10 changes to the starting line-up that went down to the Stormers a fortnight ago. That includes a new front row, the return of Hyron Andrews at lock, two new loose forwards and four changes to the backline, one of which is the return of Springbok wing Makazole Mapimpi.

With the Currie Cup confirmed to start on June 18 and the Rainbow Cup final being played the next day, as well as the Sharks set to lose a large number of players to the Springbok squad, the jostling for starting spots in the team is increasing.

“The selection is very much about supporting the Springboks’ resting protocols, but it’s a good opportunity for other guys who we may be working with for a lengthy period, maybe until December. We do have the players to cover and most of them have been in the 23-man squad anyway, this is not a young and inexperienced team. It’s just starting is a different role for them.

“The matchday squad is not that different to the one against the Stormers [15/23] and it’s amazing the difference it makes to morale when everyone knows they’re going to get a shot. There has been good energy, a lot of excitement and attention in training this week. We know we have great depth, we are a vastly improved squad and the more the exposure the better the players will be for it,” Everitt said on Thursday.

Apart from resting protocols, Covid is also a massive factor in rugby today and Everitt’s plans of giving his first-choice front row of Fez Mbatha, Ox Nche and Thomas du Toit a complete rest this week were dashed when his third-choice trio of Khwezi Mona, Michael Kumbirai and Dan Jooste were all in contact with someone in the Toyota Invitation XV who tested positive after their friendly match against the Free State Cheetahs in Bloemfontein at the weekend.

It means Mbatha, Nche and Du Toit will have to sit on the bench on Saturday, and against a rock-solid Lions scrum, one would not bet against them having to come on and play a key role if the Sharks are to maintain their challenge for the Rainbow Cup title.

Sharks team: Anthony Volmink, Yaw Penxe, Werner Kok, Marius Louw, Makazole Mapimpi, Manie Libbok, Jaden Hendrikse, Phepsi Buthelezi, Henco Venter (c), James Venter, Hyron Andrews, JJ van der Mescht, Wiehahn Herbst, Kerron van Vuuren, Ntuthuko Mchunu. Bench – Fez Mbatha, Ox Nche, Thomas du Toit, Ruben van Heerden, Thembelani Bholi, Grant Williams, Boeta Chamberlain, Jeremy Ward.

Zak Burger is the latest in a number of Paarl Gimnasium products that have landed up at Loftus Versfeld, including Handre Pollard, Johan Grobbelaar, Stravino Jacobs and Muller Uys, but the 22-year-old scrumhalf is a bit different in that he has taken a more scenic route into the Bulls team.

Born and bred in the Cape, Burger missed out on SA Schools selection but took up a junior contract with the Sharks. It was a foot in the door at a major union, and he was chosen for the SA U20 squad for the 2018 Junior World Cup, but Burger then gambled by joining Griquas in a move that has turned out to be every bit as audacious as some of his trademark breaks from the back of the ruck or scrum.

“It was a bit of a gamble, but after the Junior World Cup I got the opportunity to play Currie Cup rugby at the age of 19 in Kimberley. So I sat with my Dad and we decided that it was a big privilege to get senior experience at my age, rather than waiting to come through the ranks at the Sharks, through the U21s into senior level.

“It worked out very well. I learnt so much in Kimberley and I ended up as captain, so now I have leadership experience from a young age. Scrumhalf is a crucial position in terms of leadership and it was a big privilege to captain Griquas. I definitely grew and became a better player there,” Burger explained on Wednesday.

In a struggling side, Burger’s vision, reading of the game and all-round ability caught the eye of Bulls coach Jake White, who snapped him up after the Currie Cup. With Ivan van Zyl’s tour of duty at Loftus soon coming to an end, Burger is going to be playing a more and more influential role alongside Embrose Papier, if he does not return to the Springbok squad.

And Burger says he is particularly looking forward to running on to the field on Friday night against the Stormers, the team he supported as a kid.

“I grew up in the Cape and went to school there, so naturally I supported Western Province. My Mom and Dad were big Stormers supporters since I was small. So I know it’s the big North/South derby and every match between the sides is very physical, I can remember Schalk Burger and Bakkies Botha going up against each other.

“I’m looking forward to Friday night, it will be lekker to play the Stormers at Loftus. I definitely don’t have a point to prove though, it’s not a grudge meeting, just another game. At the moment I’m playing for the Bulls so I want to do my best for them in every game. Losing to the Lions was a big disappointment for us, but it was a good wake-up call,” Burger said.

For the Springboks to remain a top-class side, they have to be a flexible team with a capacity for thinking on their feet, coach Jacques Nienaber said on Friday as he outlined his vision ahead of his first assignments in charge against Georgia and the British and Irish Lions.

The world champions have not been in action since winning the World Cup in November 2019 meaning Nienaber, who was appointed as the successor to Rassie Erasmus in January last year, will oversee the Springboks for the first time when they warm up for the Lions series with two Tests against Georgia on July 2 and 9.

But with Erasmus, now the director of rugby, saying winning the series against the Lions will be like winning the World Cup, the focus is firmly on those three Tests between July 24 and August 7.

“The Lions have a well-balanced squad which can play both types of rugby. So that means we will have to be adaptable and solutions-driven during the match, and that’s how we are trying to coach. At the World Cup, during the knockout rounds, we had to play a certain style of rugby against Japan, moving them from side-to-side. It was about breaking down their style and imposing ours.

“Against Wales it was the complete opposite and then England posed something completely different in the final too. Part of the alignment camps has been about telling the players which are the critical areas of play that we need to get up to the required standard. We’ve been drip-feeding them bits of the game-plan as well,” Nienaber said on Friday.

While a series of such importance as the Lions playing the world champions is unlikely to produce sexy rugby, Erasmus said he does believe the tourists will have the ability to play quite expansively and at a high tempo.

“The players they have chosen won’t have any influence on our selection coming up next weekend, but if you look at the Lions squad, it’s fairly evenly spread between the four countries. Scotland have provided the most backline players, and Gregor Townsend [Scotland head coach] is the attack coach, while there are only three England backs. But the forwards are mostly from England and Wales.

“Most of the coaching staff have also worked with Warren Gatland before, Townsend is the only guy who hasn’t. I think they’re going to bring a mix, it won’t be like playing against Wales where whoever grinds the hardest wins. They have a fast, quick pack, just looking at their mobile props and if someone like Courtney Lawes plays at lock,” Erasmus said.