VIDEO: PSDT said this to Sacha ahead of that kick
VIDEO: The Springboks’ captain against Wales last weekend, Pieter-Steph du Toit had just one message for Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu when the youngster stepped up to take a 52m penalty kick.
Feinberg-Mngomezulu had a dream week after receiving his first Springbok jersey and scoring his first-ever points in the Green and Gold for his country.
The 22-year-old replaced Jordan Hendrikse with 20 minutes left in the Test and went on to give a polished performance, including slotting that kick with consummate ease.
On Wednesday Feinberg-Mngomezulu talked about stepping up to take that kick and the short and sweet message he got from Du Toit when he asked for the ball.
“That sort of kick, the thing is we work on it. You have to understand your range and the distance you can kick.
“So when you ask for the ball to take a kick, it’s not supposed to be a gamble.
“It’s a trusting thing. And the one thing they get right here at the Springboks is that they trust you.
“I asked for that ball from Pieter-Steph and he said ‘slaan hom’.
“And I kicked it over,” Feinberg-Mngomezulu said with a hint of a smile.
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Feinberg-Mngomezulu spoke about the help he has received from Springbok assistant coach Tony Brown and his kicking coach at the Stormers, Gareth Wright, during the post-match interview.
“All these things come into play and when the kick comes, it’s another day of practice.
“It just happens to be in front of a lot of people which is what we all want to experience one day,” Feinberg-Mngomezulu said.
The youngster clearly has his eyes set on the Springboks’ No. 10 jersey and he has already shown he has the right attitude and capabilities to make that dream a reality.
“I fully understand that I’m a new boy in the system and I’ve got a lot of work to do and a lot of things to fix.
“You know with the people around me I’m certain that slowly but surely I’ll get that right.”
In the Test, Feinberg-Mngomezulu distributed the ball with a calmness that normally comes with age and experience while he also landed two conversions and a penalty for his first points in senior international rugby.
“It’s all sponge mentality for me at the moment.
“Even yesterday, just when we were kicking and watching Willie le Roux and Handré Pollard kicking, you know every sort of repetition these guys get, you see and pick up something.
“Whether it be Jesse Kriel in the warm-ups or Handré kicking.
“So it’s an environment where there’s a lot of learnings and invaluable experiences.”
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus said he was not surprised that the young flyhalf had such a seamless performance.
“A guy like Sacha went on the SA A side tour last year. Just to get used to how we do things, how we operate, how we pick our team, how we have a half-time talk, how we act and handle ourselves in public.
“That experience for him was just wonderful. When he went on on Saturday, you could clearly see that a guy like Jordan – he did so many great things but then he would slip.
“But overall he had a hell of a good defensive game but then Sacha, who was in our system, whose used to us, he just settled in,” Erasmus told reports during a media briefing on Wednesday.
The first Test against Ireland is at Loftus Versfeld on July 6.
